I was disappointed with the selection of Christine Sinclair as Canada's flag bearer for the closing ceremonies. I understand I am almost certainly in the minority here, but I just still feel her class and leadership were lacking after that loss to the U.S. If I was Rosie MacLennan, Canada's LONE WINNER OF A GOLD MEDAL, who comported herself with nothing but sweetness and class throughout the Games (and incidentally, someone NOT under investigation and pending discipline from her governing body), I'd be pissed. Except I think Rosie MacLennan is probably far nicer than me, and definitely too nice to think this way.
Speaking of lone gold medals, there has been speculation in the media about Canada's performance at the London games, and why there weren't more gold medals. Well, it's likely because the most we've had at any single games in the past 20 years has been 3. We're not a summer games nation, though apparently there are steps being taken to change this. In the run-up to the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, Canada launched a program called "Own The Podium", an umbrella program intended to groom and develop athletes to get to the top of their respective sport, through greater funding and access to resources such as nutritionists, physical therapists, coaches and specialists, sports psychologists, etc. It has received some credit for Canada's earning more gold medals than any other nation at Vancouver 2010. It is now under some scrutiny for the lack of gold medals in London. But I think some very important stories get lost in the disappointment about a lack of hardware. All the athletes who set personal bests, or even defied the odds to merely compete in their events at all. The women's gymnastics team finished 5th in the team competition, the highest ever, behind gymnastic powerhouse nations such as the U.S, China, Russia, and Romania. Pretty amazing. Damien Warner, Canada's entry into the men's decathlon, set personal bests in ALL TEN EVENTS. He finished 5th overall, but what more could anyone possibly ask from him? Paula Findlay, a triathlete who was a gold medal threat until an unfortunate injury last year, competed in London and despite being in obvious pain, completed the entire race. She finished 52nd out of 52 competitors, but she finished. On a bad hip. No one watching her cross the finish line could be anything but inspired and amazed. So the medal count most certainly doesn't reflect the performance of the Canadian Olympic team as a whole. Nor will the medal count be hastily fixed by a quick injection of cash. If Canada wants better results, they have to be prepared for a long term investment.
Something else I got to thinking about while watching the Olympics as the events wore on, was the idea of what constitutes a sport. During both the synchronized swimming and rhythmic gymnastics competitions, watching these smiling, sparkling, heavily made-up girls doing breathtaking and acrobatic feats, I started thinking, anything based so much on aesthetic, and that comprises an artistic score component, is likely not a sport. Which is not to take away from the incredible athleticism and skill these girls possess, or to suggest what they do isn't unbelievably difficult. Because it is. But are they sports where you should be able to win a medal over someone else because you looked prettier displaying your incredible athleticism? In a word, no. They are not. In the same way dance, or yoga, or cheerleading are not sports. Are they difficult? Of course! Do you need to be super fit and skilled? Absolutely. But they're not sports. Thus I'm not sure I agree with their inclusion in the Olympics.
I don't have a real talking point to what I'm about to say other than just to make mention of it. Women accounted for fully 50% of Canada's medals at the Olympics this time, and I hope this in some way encourages little girls to get (and stay) involved with sports. I was hugely involved in sports in high school, and it's just so hugely beneficial in the right environment.
In watching the opening ceremonies 2 weeks ago, there was a very, very small group that marched in under the Olympic, rather than a national, flag, and it sparked a great deal of curiousity. They were termed "Independent Olympic Athletes", who came from nations whose Olympic Committees were either dissolved, or in the case of Guor Marial, a marathon runner from South Sudan, not yet formed. It's a truly inspirational story amongst many at the Olympics, and is just such a shining example of perseverance and principle. I had said to my mother while we were chatting about the Olympics that I have NO idea what constitutes a good marathon time, or if he had any chance of contending for a medal, but I said it would just be lovely if he was able to finish. And he did, in 47th place, with a time of 2:19:32. Awesome.
Also, I LOVED the Spice Girls at the closing ceremonies. That was about all I loved, but I loved it a lot.
Hope you all have a wonderful week, and are dealing with your post-Olympic existence as best you can :)
No comments:
Post a Comment