What I'll Remember About the 2012 London Olympics

The final javelin has been thrown, the final weight lifted, the final diver plunged into the pool, and the last marathoner crossed the line. The London Olympics are over. I enjoyed the Olympics. The USA's athletes did a great job individually and in team competitions. They all were great no matter what country they came from. I have some great memories...but let me get this off my chest first.

NBC's coverage of the Olympics was horrendous. They should be ashamed of the lousy way that they handled this global event. I really can't think of any instance where they excelled. When they could have made a good decision on how to cover the games they always...always chose the wrong option. I was beginning to think that Hallmark Cards was in charge of the broadcasts. We don't need Tom Brokaw telling us the heartwarming story of how the Brits struggled in WW-II...and taking nearly an hour to do it in prime time. War is hell, no matter what side you are on. We should have learned by now not to have wars but we haven't. There was no end to the sappy stories of how this athlete or that coach had to endure tremendous hardship to finally compete in the Olympics. Then, of course, there are the NBA players and the various other standouts (Phelps, Bolt, etc.) that they just had to squeeze on to the telecast one or two more times. And quite frankly, I have seen enough volleyball to last me a lifetime.

But I did enjoy the games in spite of the botched coverage. Here are ten things that I really enjoyed.

1. The opening and closing ceremonies were great. I had to reflect a little on the opening before I decided I liked it because it was a little odd.
2. I am glad Michael Phelps won his medals and is now the most decorated Olympic athlete. There were a lot of titles thrown about as cliches on TV but he has won a ton of medals. Is he the greatest athlete? No. He has duplicate event medals from several different Olympic games so he is very good at what he does...which is a narrow range of athletic performance. But I still think it's great.
3. I love soccer or futbol or football...whatever. I was excited to see South Korea win the bronze medal by defeating Japan. I was furious with NBC for not carrying the Mexico - Brazil final game on a major network that we could have watched. I'm very happy that Mexico won the gold medal. 
4. I enjoyed seeing the Jamaican runners perform. Usain Bolt is the fastest man alive...OK. (Now I'd like him to sit down and shut up). There are other runners from Jamaica. There were two or three Jamaican runners who went to Lincoln University...yes...right here in Jefferson City. I enjoyed seeing them run too. Jefferson City will, of course, ignore their very existence. 
5. I liked seeing some different sports. These may be the national sport somewhere but to me they are a novelty because I've never actually seen them. Field hockey was one that I enjoyed. I was completely confused about handball, which I thought was like racquetball but it isn't. Handball is more like water polo without the water. The rowing events were cool. I liked the cycling in the velodrome. The BMX cycling was interesting.
6. I found it interesting to see the ethnic diversity of the various teams. You can't look at a team and tell where they are from by the makeup of the members. In the olden days you could look at a French team and say "Yep, those are Frenchmen" but now you can't. There has been so much movement of people over the last few decades and generations that there can be a great deal of diversity where one would not expect it. It used to be that the USA team was the most diverse team but I don't think that can be said any longer. I think that's good.
7. I loved seeing Oscar Pistorius run on his artificial legs. He is called "the fastest man on no legs" and he made a good showing in his events. He didn't win a medal and I don't think people expected him to win a medal but he proved that he could compete with the best.
8. I enjoyed seeing some of Great Britain's athletes win medals just to hear the crowds roar. They had a good Olympics.
9. I have to hold my breath sometimes when I'm watching platform diving. The divers come too close to hitting their heads on the platform. Even so, they do some amazing dives. I like that the US diver won gold. I enjoyed the Mexican divers and the way they were pushing the envelope on the dives.
10. I was happy to see Spain make the USA team work for the gold medal in basketball. I am not happy with having NBA players represent the various countries (mostly but not only the USA). I think that there should be an age limit on basketball thee same way there is on soccer. Players should be limited to under age 23.

So now we wait two years for the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Sochi might be interesting since it is a Black Sea resort and port city next to Georgia. The climate is subtropical which may make winter sports something of a challenge. The city is close to the Caucasus Mountains where they do have snow.