nyny

olympics #2

(make sure you press play)

I really, really, really love the Olympics. I've pretty much dropped off the face of the earth for these two weeks. I have watched them every single night from 8 pm until 2 am, and I spend as much time as I can get away with at work on nbcolympics.com. Incidentally, I'm extremely impressed with the thoroughness and depth of that website, including extensive video coverage of many events. The site is like a black hole that just sucks me right in. If I could, I would sit and watch different events on the NBC cable affiliates all day every day. I don't really get into long distance cycling, boxing, or wrestling, but everything else is totally in my wheelhouse. I mean, when else do American audiences get to see competitive handball, trampoline, badminton, water polo, or table tennis? It's awesome.

I've started to put my finger on why I enjoy the Olympic experience so much. Simply put, the Olympics are the best of what it means to be a human. I truly believe that there's something transcendent about pure, extreme athletic achievement. I experienced that to a certain degree when I completed a marathon about 3 years ago... pushing your body to that level is such an unexpectedly visceral and emotional experience. It's hard to describe. There's something about extreme physical achievement that makes you feel connected with the rest of the human race in a way that nothing else I've experienced can. The crazy (and wonderful) thing is that I don't even have to be the athlete - these same feelings are swirling around inside of me just from watching others who are truly the best at what they do. They are marvels of physicality. The things the human body can do are mind-blowingly spectacular, with the power to bring us places outside of ourselves. The Olympics capture that perfectly, and it's replicated dozens of times by hundreds of athletes over the course of two incredible weeks. I'm so proud of humanity.

posted by becka @ 10:19 PM