i am completely speechless from the closing ceremonies. how could you not be entranced by the choreography of hundreds of people not only to utilize their movement but also their costumes and the structures built in a matter of hours. then there's another component of choreography that only the chinese could do this well. from the countdown with simple bottle rockets to incredibly timed showering mortars, there is little that can be said. i'm going to completely ignore the "theme" of this olympics, "beijing, beijing, oh i love beijing," catchy... kinda but how about the wide array of drummers? the beginning had 6 or 7 year old stick handlers (don't try to verify their age with the chinese government...) and then a couple chic 20 somethings going at it. and ... jackie chan!!!! i'm going to agree with nbc's chris collinsworth and say that it will be a long time until we see another host nation that takes so much pride in their athletes, venues, and performances as china did. well done china.
all and all a wonderful, rather controversy free olympics (ignoring the whole age thing). china dominated the golds, the u.s. won the total medal count, and jamaica defined themselves as the premier sprinting nation. and now, what's next? well since there was a david beckham kick and london's mayor waving a flag, i guess that means we will be doing this in the uk this time 4 years from now. will they have the guards in hats dancing. correct answer: yes.
in london, i look forward to the records being broken, parents crying for the success of the children, the chills of unfolding stories and the passion of patriotism that comes from host countries and the athletes that play for their nations. as for this glorious event that will be back quicker than we say, "how many medals did phelps win?" we close this fairy tale and say goodbye. thank you to all the athletes, coaches, volunteers, referees, anounchers, and fans. cheers.
there is no question we witnessed greatness. the historic. the confident. the freakishly tall sprinter, usain "king carl watch out" bolt busted on the olympic scene in the 100. world record. (he broke his own). he had time to look around, pound his chest and write a poem to his equally proud mother. two tenths of a second. two... tenths of a second. really? who does that? my memories from that night are him repeatedly saying, "i'm just happy." truth.
the 200 hundred. the same zeal. the same passion. the same speed. our wonderful nbc announcers "had done the math" and his spilts should be good enough but was his mind ready? in his normally playful self, bolt was cutting up, actin' a fool before the meet and then, the silence. a wave of seriousness struck usain and he was ready. the gun. great start. off the turn. yards away. two tenths of a second. world record. this time, i think he would agree, he had to push the end a bit to break michael johnson's illusive 200 record.
4 x 100 relay- crushed. all the jamaicans needed were to take the opposite path of their american counterparts and pass the baton around the track. they did. with the style and grace of the reggae beat; the jamaican team crushed the "unbreakable" 1980 record. everyone knew they could do it but as their women's side showed, there are no guarantees in relays. hats off gentlemen and extra hat tipped to the anchor, mr. powell. he has served his country with the quiet power of a champion. cheers to all of you.
there is a rumor following great britain's taunting anchor in the 4 x 400 meter relay. bolt who was long raised as a 400 runner (a true prototype for that) and with any fire that the brits may have instilled in him would be ready for a passioned fight. could bolt come back for a fourth olympic gold. time will tell and all i know is i would not want a ticked off usain bolt walking me down on a relay.
we'll see if there is indeed a part four to one of my favorite series of posts to write.
you could see it on his face, "i'm holding this pace. hey is that the reigning world champion? hey, is that my fellow german that always beats me? hey, i'm going to do this." truly a race of a life time for jan frodeno. give the site a look-over. the sponsors and "erfolge" may be a bit boring and in german, but the olympic slide show is quite moving.
as a beginner triathlete, i was thoroughly impressed with the entire field. each leg, was completed with only slight variations in times and great composure was held on all of the athletes faces. the slight differences in each of the events represented slight differences in training, mental strength, the athlete's diet 2 days ago, and who ends up running or cycling beside them to push them or pull them along. in frodeno's case all of these were what he needed. he tapered correctly, trained his butt off, and found the top group for the cycling and running to push him through and draft off of.
hats off to you jan frodeno. this race was indeed your biggest swim, biggest bike and without a doubt greatest run (the last 300 meter sprint simply amazing) of your life. enjoy your gold medal and i look forward to seeing your success in the years to come.
the three b's. thats misty and kerri's coach's mantra throughout their ridiculous year long winning streak with 13 tournament championships and a second gold medal. the final was by no means flawless but it was walsh and may's ability to not let the net-tipped serves that were fluky, automatic aces, bother them. they bounced back and kept rolling. gathering inspiration from jason kidd and parents, may-treanor put on a focused and centered performance for the ages.
even when chinese drama queen, tian, asked for a medical timeout to stop-the-bleeding (clap, clap, clapclapclap) the dynamic duo rallied to finish the final set. the consistency with which they won set after set throughout the last year on the avp, is something that separates them from all other duos in men's or women's beach. true inspiration. i hope to see this partnership stay together for a year or two but retire on top with a legendary record. oh yea and they gave president bush a shout out after the victory. cheers ladies.
