The Olympics are officially over (don’t forget the Paralympics starting up towards the end of this month) and wow – what a wild ride! Here are some stories/situations that stood out to me from the events that I watched/followed:
Simone Biles coming back from Tokyo – Simone received a lot of backlash for bowing out of certain gymnastics events in Tokyo as a result of mental health/well-being/etc. Many had written her off and some of the backlash was downright toxic. Fast forward to Paris 2024, and Simone is bringing back 3 Gold medals, 1 silver medal, and status as the most decorated United States Olympics gymnast in history with a total haul of 11 Olympic medals.
Suni Lee competes in Paris – Suni was never expected to compete in Paris due to an incurable kidney disease that left her gymnastics career in doubt, yet she overcame and took home 3 medals, against all odds!
Rebeca Andrade - Became the first Brazilian to medal at the Olympics for Gymnastics in 2020, despite having multiple ACL injuries, walking for hours to practice, and being raised by a single mom who cleaned houses took care of her 7 siblings. She shined in Paris with 4 medals!
Artistic Swimming – Seeing teams work together in the sport of artistic swimming was astounding to watch. Everyone had to work together above water and below water.
USA Men’s Team Gymnastics – Stephen Nedoroscik, the pummel horse Clark Kent. The men’s team helped end a 16-year drought of medaling as everyone on the US team delivered their best. Stephen stood out, not just for being cross-eyed, or solving a Rubik’s cube in under 10 seconds, or for only participating in one event, but for encouraging his teammates and getting water and being an all-around team player.
Noah Lyles 100m Win – 5/1000th of a second is how Noah Lyles took gold in the 100m. Here’s what Noah had to say as a note of encouragement to you:
I have Asthma, allergies, dyslexia, ADD, anxiety, and Depression. But I will tell you that what you have does not define what you can become. Why Not You!.
Couldn’t have said it any better.
(Wall Street Journal)
Yusuf Dikeç– The shooter from Türkiye stood out not because of what gear he had but what gear he didn’t have. He showed up in the shooting event with casual clothing and some earplugs and won silver. It’s easy for us to judge someone by their appearance, especially what they have or do not have
Julien Alfred: St Lucia’s first Olympic medal ever – Before Julien Alfred, St. Lucia never had any Olympic medal. Yet Julien Alfred made history for her nation by bringing home A MEDAL. And it was gold, in the 100m race. The barriers that Julien broke to bring pride to a nation and pave the way for future stars is an amazing thought.
Alison Gibson’s 0.0 DiveScore – On her very first dive at the Paris Olympics, Gibson’s heels hit the springboard on her way down, resulting in a non-dive. As a result, the 0.0 score prevented Gibson from advancing to the semi-finals, ending her Paris run. Why do I include this? Well, I’ll let Alison put it in her own words:
But one thing that I say is I hope that anyone who is watching just was able to see what it looks like to get up and keep going even when things don't go the way you want them to. It's about the fight…Obviously, today didn't go the way I wanted it to, but I think you can learn and grow from every experience, and I truly hope that the next generation of athletes recognize that even in the worst moments you can keep fighting, you can walk courageously.
From the balance beam event in Gymnastics to falling off a bike or tripping during a running race, Olympic-caliber athletes get up (as they can) and keep moving forward.
(New York Post)
Ese Ukpeseraye receives a bike from the Germans – Team Nigeria was invited to compete in the track event for cycling at the last minute (looks like it was a disqualification of another country). Ese did not have the right bike, and it would have taken too long to get the approved bike for the track event, but Germany came to the rescue and lent Ese a bike to use during the event. 
(BBC)
Most of us reading this post will likely never be an Olympian, but I would argue that while we may never qualify for the Olympics, our lives are its own Olympics - and we are all Olympians in our own lives. Think back to the times you:
- Were in Simone’s situation and you had to make a hard choice to put your health first, and the backlash that ensued.
- Or the times that you have showed up against the odds like Suni.
- Perhaps you were in uncharted waters like Rebeca and the Brazilian Gymnastics team and had to scrape by to break ground in a new area unfamiliar to people around you and you had to be resourceful.
- What about those times in life when you put ego aside to work in sync with a team to produce something beautiful such as what the athletes do in artistic swimming.
- Or maybe you do not feel like you have much to offer, and you have conditions that work against you, but you show up and deliver the best you can deliver for your team like Stephen and help your team achieve success!
- Or have your personal disadvantages become your greatest strengths when it mattered most as it did for Noah?
- Perhaps you have showed up without having as much as the people around you, but you have grit, stamina, and the utmost concentration needed to perform in the situation you are putting yourself into.
- Perhaps like Julien your personal win is a larger win for your family or community, or an entire nation. You have broken ground for your family, maybe as the first to go to college, or to lift your family out of poverty, or you brought light to your community by just being you.
- Or you fought your way to the world stage only to see your dreams shattered like Alison’s 0.0 dive, but you picked yourself up again and finished what you started and salvaged what you could because you have trained yourself to keep showing up, even if you don’t want to.
- Perhaps like Ese you have been on the receiving end of serendipity where you did not have what you needed but by the generosity of strangers you are able to move forward in certain circumstances.
These are all rhetorical questions to make you think. I had a wonderful 2-week retro of my life watching these athletes compete, though it was focused on the non-athletic parts of my life. Seeing these athletes overcome all odds, from all parts of the world, compete on the world stage that they have dedicated their lives for, inspires me to try harder!
So what do I want you to take away from all of this?
- You’ve made it this far - celebrate! Life is hard, it’s a privilege to be here! Life is too short not to celebrate the small wins (dubs?). Pat yourself on the back, you are here, and that is awesome.
- Individual efforts matter. Every athlete at the Olympics has worked their bottoms off to get to shine for a few seconds/minutes/hours (for marathoners) on the world stage.That is something to celebrate (see the previous point). It is not wrong to acknowledge the individual efforts that you invested to get here.
- Teams still matter. Behind every athlete is a coach or team of coaches, a family, and a community. These support systems contribute to an Olympian’s success. It’s why many speeches at award ceremonies are littered with thank you language, or why an “acknowledgement” section exists in large books. Team efforts are not in competition with individual efforts. Team success does not need to overshadow individual success. It takes both. In an increasingly individualistic culture, remember the team/community that lifts you up when you are down, that pushes you to achieve new heights, and is there for you when you stumble and fall.
I could talk about the Olympics for another month and share more stories that I did not have room to share here, but I am curious - what Olympics stories hit differently for you from Paris - and what lessons did you learn/relearn as a result?
