The London Olympics are over. What a ride it has been!!! I thoroughly enjoyed watching the closing ceremonies last night, but I could not help but feel sad. It's always sad to see the Olympic games end after 17 days of non-stop activity. This year felt much different, though. I feel a strong bond with these games, which is likely a result of going to see them in person. A few weeks ago, I was right in the heart of it all. I witnessed four different events on five different days. I experienced a good portion of London (although there was definitely a lot I did not see). I interacted with the natives and enjoyed the cuisine and the culture. I also spent time with eighteen other people during these games, gaining their perspectives and opinions of the Olympics and forging lifelong friendships. Yes, the 2012 summer games will always hold a special place in my heart, and to have seen them up close and personal was an incredible blessing.
There are two things that really separate the Olympic games from any other sporting event. The first deals with all of the athletes and their storylines. There are thousands of athletes hailing from over 200 different countries. Some are extremely well-known and recognizable, such as American basketball player LeBron James and Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt. Others have names that you would likely be hard-pressed to pronounce correctly (example: weightlifter Saeid Mohammadpourkarkaragh from Iran). Some of them, like LeBron and Bolt, are so incredibly gifted athletically that the way they dominate the competition seems almost unfair. Others have had to endure the heaviest of hardships on their way to the games. One of the most inspiring stories of the London games revolves around an athlete from South Africa that had both of his legs amputated below the knee at a very young age. This man, Oscar Pistorius, became the first disabled athlete in Olympic history to compete against able-bodied athletes in the games. He was initially denied participation in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but he fought hard to earn his position in 2012. Pistorius ended up qualifying for the semifinals in the 400 meter, and his team made it to the finals in the 4 x 400. Other athletes have gained attention through their actions during the games. For instance, an American sprinter named Manteo Mitchell broke his fibula during a semifinal heat of the men's 4 x 400. He felt a pop in his leg about halfway through his leg of the race, but instead of pulling up, he decided to grind his way through the rest of the race. He helped his team qualify for the final heat, where they finished with the silver medal (without his participation, of course). It's stories like these that cause the Olympic games to transcend all other sporting events.
The other thing that makes the Olympics special is the raw emotion that comes with the games. Because the Olympics are held every four years, the pressure that comes with each event is absolutely immense. In American professional sports, players typically have a 10 to 15-year window to compete and accomplish their goals as athletes. In the Olympics, there is more of an all-or-nothing feel. The luckiest athletes have managed to compete in maybe three or four different Summer Olympics. For many athletes, the amount of training and preparation that goes into these four-year periods would be enough to physically and mentally break many people. I can only imagine the intense emotion that these athletes feel when all of their training pays off in their pursuit of Olympic hardware (or when it doesn't). When I saw table tennis, I witnessed an incredible comeback from a South Korean singles player, who trailed 7-1 (winner is first to 11 win by 2) in game five of a best-of-five singles match. This woman, who had blown a big lead in the previous game, looked so defeated and frustrated. After she won a furious rally, she reeled off a huge comeback that won her the match and helped her team advance to the semifinals. She collapsed on the ground after winning the final point, overcome with emotion after he incredible victory. I've seen many other athletes in these Olympics in tears following their events, overcome with joy and happiness over their successes. I have also seen the opposite. When I was at Wimbledon, I saw Serena Williams completely overwhelm one of her opponents by a score of 6-1 6-0. The Russian woman (NOT Maria Sharapova) was so upset over her match that she threw a temper tantrum, throwing her racket and kicking the tennis ball every which way. During the timeouts, she would drape her towel completely over her head as if she were crying. One night, I watched the women's 1500 meter final, where an American woman named Morgan Uceny got tangled up in a large crowd of runners at the start of the final lap. Uceny fell down like a ton of bricks on the track. She slammed the track in frustration and proceeded to cry for about twenty minutes. She was inconsolable. I almost felt like crying myself after watching this poor girl. I have never seen a sporting event where family support was as large as it was in the Olympics. It's so heart-warming to see these super-human athletes embrace their moms/dads/husbands/wives after their events. It makes these sporting icons appear human and much more relatable to spectators. These reasons all contribute to the extraordinary nature of the Olympics.
In my London travels, I also gained the knowledge of a much different culture than what is found in the United States. I always believed that London was a very ideal location to travel to and see the Olympics. Not only is England a lot different from the United States, but there is also no language barrier. I almost never had any trouble understanding anybody during my stay. I never had trouble asking for directions or deciphering the metro system. Aside from the language, there was a lot to discover while in England. I absolutely loved the accents that I heard on the trip. I kept telling the others that hearing children talk with these accents would make me very happy. We also heard a couple of people with Scottish accents, which I also enjoy hearing. I really enjoyed how friendly and helpful everyone was in England. Sometimes, I tend to assume that other countries naturally hate Americans and want nothing to do with them. I found that a lot of British people were naturally fascinated with Americans. They would get so excited when we said we were from America. They would ask all of these questions about our country, such as the sports culture and the musical artists. As for the city, it was much different from any I have experienced. For starters, London has been around since the Romans ruled throughout Europe. The earliest American cities have been around since the 1700s. The biggest cities that I have been to, including New York, Philadelphia, and Boston, have healthy mixes of old things and new things. In London, I felt that the scales were tipped more toward the old. I saw a ton of churches, the Westminster Abbey, the London Tower, old-fashioned telephone booths and cars, a variety of old-fashioned pubs, and a ton of other historical sites. London appears to be a city that is extremely proud of its history, and tourists from all over the world seem to have no problem with that.
In my travels, I have also found that people in London appear to be working hard toward cleaning up their image as a non-enviornmentally sustainable location. I learned prior to the trip that the London Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) had pledged for the London 2012 games to be the most sustainable and most eco-friendly. I was very impressed by their noticeable efforts in this area. Each of the main Olympic venues I went to was very neatly organized and categorized. All the toilets would be in one area, all the food stands would be in another area, and the waste receptacles were color-coded and categorized so that people would be aware of what goes where. I remember traveling to Rome, Italy, five years ago and being unimpressed with how dirty and litter-filled the city was. I did not have these same impressions with London, and I believe London is supposed to be much bigger than Rome. Add in the fact that millions of people from around the world had flocked into the city to see the Olympics, and the pledge really starts to look like a reality. Another thing that me and the rest of the group would notice is how quiet some of the cars and buses ran. I have always wondered about how difficult it would be to drive in a foreign country because every country I have been to outside the US has had some fast-moving traffic flows. Cars don't wait for pedestrians nearly as much as even the most impatient American drivers. This made crossing the roads even more dangerous when you take into account how quiet some of these vehicles were. Apparently, the UK is not against using vegetable oil and other more sustainable fuel sources to power their automobiles. I just wish that the United States will one day adopt this mindset instead of depleting the planet's natural resources by the gallon.
This trip has also done a lot to affect my professional development and future career ideas. This trip has made me realize how much I love the Olympic games and the ideals that they promote. I am fascinated by different cultures and the many aspects of each culture. It is amazing to think that thousands of people from hundreds of different countries all converge in the same location to represent their countries and compete for Olympic glory. The stories, drama, dialogue, and emotion are all incredibly palpable to those who follow the games. I still desire to be a minister of the Christian faith, but I believe the Olympic games provides an incredible opportunity for athletes to learn about and accept Jesus Christ. I believe that the high-emotion atmosphere of these games creates a perfect environment for athletes, their families, and spectators to repent from their previous lives and accept the gift that Jesus has given them. I am also a huge proponent of the Olympism ideal. I think that it would be great to work in a position with the Olympics that allows me to enforce and promote this ideal. This trip has also allowed me to network with different students across the country. Since we are all in similar fields, we can keep each other notified of certain positions or opportunities that emerge in various locations. All of my experiences in London have made me more confident and more bold in my pursuit of a future career field.
There are two things that really separate the Olympic games from any other sporting event. The first deals with all of the athletes and their storylines. There are thousands of athletes hailing from over 200 different countries. Some are extremely well-known and recognizable, such as American basketball player LeBron James and Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt. Others have names that you would likely be hard-pressed to pronounce correctly (example: weightlifter Saeid Mohammadpourkarkaragh from Iran). Some of them, like LeBron and Bolt, are so incredibly gifted athletically that the way they dominate the competition seems almost unfair. Others have had to endure the heaviest of hardships on their way to the games. One of the most inspiring stories of the London games revolves around an athlete from South Africa that had both of his legs amputated below the knee at a very young age. This man, Oscar Pistorius, became the first disabled athlete in Olympic history to compete against able-bodied athletes in the games. He was initially denied participation in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but he fought hard to earn his position in 2012. Pistorius ended up qualifying for the semifinals in the 400 meter, and his team made it to the finals in the 4 x 400. Other athletes have gained attention through their actions during the games. For instance, an American sprinter named Manteo Mitchell broke his fibula during a semifinal heat of the men's 4 x 400. He felt a pop in his leg about halfway through his leg of the race, but instead of pulling up, he decided to grind his way through the rest of the race. He helped his team qualify for the final heat, where they finished with the silver medal (without his participation, of course). It's stories like these that cause the Olympic games to transcend all other sporting events.
The other thing that makes the Olympics special is the raw emotion that comes with the games. Because the Olympics are held every four years, the pressure that comes with each event is absolutely immense. In American professional sports, players typically have a 10 to 15-year window to compete and accomplish their goals as athletes. In the Olympics, there is more of an all-or-nothing feel. The luckiest athletes have managed to compete in maybe three or four different Summer Olympics. For many athletes, the amount of training and preparation that goes into these four-year periods would be enough to physically and mentally break many people. I can only imagine the intense emotion that these athletes feel when all of their training pays off in their pursuit of Olympic hardware (or when it doesn't). When I saw table tennis, I witnessed an incredible comeback from a South Korean singles player, who trailed 7-1 (winner is first to 11 win by 2) in game five of a best-of-five singles match. This woman, who had blown a big lead in the previous game, looked so defeated and frustrated. After she won a furious rally, she reeled off a huge comeback that won her the match and helped her team advance to the semifinals. She collapsed on the ground after winning the final point, overcome with emotion after he incredible victory. I've seen many other athletes in these Olympics in tears following their events, overcome with joy and happiness over their successes. I have also seen the opposite. When I was at Wimbledon, I saw Serena Williams completely overwhelm one of her opponents by a score of 6-1 6-0. The Russian woman (NOT Maria Sharapova) was so upset over her match that she threw a temper tantrum, throwing her racket and kicking the tennis ball every which way. During the timeouts, she would drape her towel completely over her head as if she were crying. One night, I watched the women's 1500 meter final, where an American woman named Morgan Uceny got tangled up in a large crowd of runners at the start of the final lap. Uceny fell down like a ton of bricks on the track. She slammed the track in frustration and proceeded to cry for about twenty minutes. She was inconsolable. I almost felt like crying myself after watching this poor girl. I have never seen a sporting event where family support was as large as it was in the Olympics. It's so heart-warming to see these super-human athletes embrace their moms/dads/husbands/wives after their events. It makes these sporting icons appear human and much more relatable to spectators. These reasons all contribute to the extraordinary nature of the Olympics.
In my London travels, I also gained the knowledge of a much different culture than what is found in the United States. I always believed that London was a very ideal location to travel to and see the Olympics. Not only is England a lot different from the United States, but there is also no language barrier. I almost never had any trouble understanding anybody during my stay. I never had trouble asking for directions or deciphering the metro system. Aside from the language, there was a lot to discover while in England. I absolutely loved the accents that I heard on the trip. I kept telling the others that hearing children talk with these accents would make me very happy. We also heard a couple of people with Scottish accents, which I also enjoy hearing. I really enjoyed how friendly and helpful everyone was in England. Sometimes, I tend to assume that other countries naturally hate Americans and want nothing to do with them. I found that a lot of British people were naturally fascinated with Americans. They would get so excited when we said we were from America. They would ask all of these questions about our country, such as the sports culture and the musical artists. As for the city, it was much different from any I have experienced. For starters, London has been around since the Romans ruled throughout Europe. The earliest American cities have been around since the 1700s. The biggest cities that I have been to, including New York, Philadelphia, and Boston, have healthy mixes of old things and new things. In London, I felt that the scales were tipped more toward the old. I saw a ton of churches, the Westminster Abbey, the London Tower, old-fashioned telephone booths and cars, a variety of old-fashioned pubs, and a ton of other historical sites. London appears to be a city that is extremely proud of its history, and tourists from all over the world seem to have no problem with that.
In my travels, I have also found that people in London appear to be working hard toward cleaning up their image as a non-enviornmentally sustainable location. I learned prior to the trip that the London Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) had pledged for the London 2012 games to be the most sustainable and most eco-friendly. I was very impressed by their noticeable efforts in this area. Each of the main Olympic venues I went to was very neatly organized and categorized. All the toilets would be in one area, all the food stands would be in another area, and the waste receptacles were color-coded and categorized so that people would be aware of what goes where. I remember traveling to Rome, Italy, five years ago and being unimpressed with how dirty and litter-filled the city was. I did not have these same impressions with London, and I believe London is supposed to be much bigger than Rome. Add in the fact that millions of people from around the world had flocked into the city to see the Olympics, and the pledge really starts to look like a reality. Another thing that me and the rest of the group would notice is how quiet some of the cars and buses ran. I have always wondered about how difficult it would be to drive in a foreign country because every country I have been to outside the US has had some fast-moving traffic flows. Cars don't wait for pedestrians nearly as much as even the most impatient American drivers. This made crossing the roads even more dangerous when you take into account how quiet some of these vehicles were. Apparently, the UK is not against using vegetable oil and other more sustainable fuel sources to power their automobiles. I just wish that the United States will one day adopt this mindset instead of depleting the planet's natural resources by the gallon.
This trip has also done a lot to affect my professional development and future career ideas. This trip has made me realize how much I love the Olympic games and the ideals that they promote. I am fascinated by different cultures and the many aspects of each culture. It is amazing to think that thousands of people from hundreds of different countries all converge in the same location to represent their countries and compete for Olympic glory. The stories, drama, dialogue, and emotion are all incredibly palpable to those who follow the games. I still desire to be a minister of the Christian faith, but I believe the Olympic games provides an incredible opportunity for athletes to learn about and accept Jesus Christ. I believe that the high-emotion atmosphere of these games creates a perfect environment for athletes, their families, and spectators to repent from their previous lives and accept the gift that Jesus has given them. I am also a huge proponent of the Olympism ideal. I think that it would be great to work in a position with the Olympics that allows me to enforce and promote this ideal. This trip has also allowed me to network with different students across the country. Since we are all in similar fields, we can keep each other notified of certain positions or opportunities that emerge in various locations. All of my experiences in London have made me more confident and more bold in my pursuit of a future career field.
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