In planning to write this blog earlier in the week I was fully ready to wax lyrical about how I love the Winter Olympics due to its madness and spectacle but events in the hours before the Opening Ceremony put that all in perspective. As I'm sure you will be aware there was tragedy in the luge during the practice runs when Georgia's 21 year old luger Nodar Kumaritashvili crashed and sadly passed away due to his injuries. The incident has for me as well as many others put everything in perspective not only in the Olympic world but in sport as a whole. Talking about the madness and sometimes comical side of winter sports doesn't feel appropriate. The aspirations of the Georgian have made me think of the deep down reason as to why the Winter Olympics is so great. It's not those who take the glory or see it snatch from their hands but it's those competitors who are there to live a dream, the dream of being a Winter Olympian and the bravery they have to perform in these super human events such as ski-jumping, skeleton and biathlon to name a few.
The British team embodies this sentiment and anyone watching the short track speed skating last night might have seen the reaction of a first time Olympian from Nottingham. 18 year old Jack Whelbourne scored a third place finish in his heat albeit with some luck after a fellow competitor fell on the last corner but his push to 4th at that time and the happiness that Whelbourne showed as he crossed the line made me smile. Hopefully Team GB will take a few medals in the next two weeks but the reality is that many of our athletes are under funded compared to other Olympic sporting stars that will get their chance on an Olympic stage in London. That doesn't many that the Winter Olympians are any less worthy of a hero's welcome back home at the end of the Games, sadly that won't get it. To finish I hope the next two weeks is full of similar stories of bravery both at the top and the bottom from teams across the world, starting with the men's downhill which will hopefully be held tomorrow.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
Nodar Kumaritashvili’s death is a tragedy! Luge looks like such a neat sport, but also very dangerous at the same time. His death will cast a pall over these Olympic Games. The safety of the sport definitely needs to be addressed appropriately and immediately.
ReplyDelete