The 2020 Olympics ends — a year late
The 2020 Olympic games held in Tokyo, Japan, finally came to a close in August of 2021. Postponed by the worldwide covid-19 response, the decision was made to call it the 2020 Olympics even though it was held in 2021. Maybe they had all their engraving done and it would have cost too much to change it.
A big track and field fan myself, as well as for all Olympic sports in general, this year I did not watch any of the events on television. It was mostly because I was traveling through a big part of it, but more importantly, I was tired of watching “woke” athletes who feel driven to tell the world about their own personal political beliefs.
The U.S. track team had a hammer thrower who gained most of her fame in running down the United States and openly hoped to gain a medal to be able to tell the world how awful the U.S. was. She had no chance to medal, finishing 11th, but she did get her message out.
The women’s soccer team, with a number of America hating members on that team, under performed and did not make the gold medal final. For the first time in my memory, there were significant numbers of vocal American fans who were rooting for their own soccer team to finish last. Perhaps if they had been more focused on playing soccer than pushing political agendas, they may have done better.
In other wokist moments, after the women’s weight lifting competition and the three medalists from China, England and the United States were having a press conference, the first question put to them was how they felt about a man who identified as a woman who competed against them. The trio of athletes refused to answer that question, and it was obvious that were not happy with the Olympics’ new competition policies. The newly recognized “woman” finished last, incidentally. Instead of honoring Olympic medalists, the media chose to spotlight the latest political movement.
I did get to watch some of the Olympic events via the internet. There were quite a few really great stories.
Norway, of all places, had an athlete who broke the American dominance of the 400 hurdles, shattered the world record with an unbelievable time of 45.94. Karsten Warholm is the first Norwegian to ever medal in that event, and likely the first one to ever make the final. Rai Benjamin of the U.S. was second and also under the old record. Since both men are in their early 20s, the times will only get better. Benjamin later ran a 43.2 anchor leg in the 4x400 relay to capture that gold medal.
Another great story was 19-year-old Nevin Harrison. Harrison entered the 2019 world canoeing championships in the 200 meters when she was a 17-year-old high school student. She was hoping to gain some experience, but she shockingly won the world title, and proved the first time was no fluke as she won Olympic gold in that event in Japan. Her first victory was so unexpected, they didn’t have an American flag available to fly at the awards. She is the first American woman to even medal in a canoe world event and is undefeated since 2019. Harrison was a track star in high school but a hip injury put doubts on her competing in college. Canoeing since age 12, Harrison found a new way to use her speed and talent.
I especially enjoyed watching the replay of gold medalist in women’s wrestling Tamyra Mensah. Instead of downplaying or attacking the U.S., this African-American athlete was elated over her gold medal win, saying “I love representing the U.S., I freaking love living there.” She left no doubts concerning her love of country and appreciation for what she had experienced.
Texas A&M freshman Athing Mu won the Olympic 800 and later set an American record with a 1:55 clocking in that event. Well spoken, humble and polite, watching the kind of athletes like Mu are easy to support and cheer for.
Lastly, I cannot fail to mention Sydney McLaughlin, a 400-meter hurdler from New Jersey who competed for Kentucky before turning professional. She has been coached by former Razorback Edrick Floreal. She is 22 years old, and she just smashed the world record in the 400 hurdles with an incredible time of 51.46, the first woman under 52 seconds. It wasn’t that many years ago that a 51.46 could win a 400 dash world title. She qualified for the Olympic team in 2016 at age 17 and while failing to medal that year, she began a path toward Olympic gold and a world record at a young age.
Through her steady rise in her sport, she has been an extremely likeable and humble athlete. When asked about her thoughts on her world record, she replied “Records come and go, but God is forever” giving God the credit for her talent. Earlier in the season, McLaughlin remarked that “Good character and the way you treat others is worth far more than anything else.”
There still are true American heroes in the sporting world. Perhaps their example will bring a comeback of humility, kindness, patriotism and true athletic greatness.
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Editor’s note: John McGee, an award-winning columnist, sports writer and art teacher at Pea Ridge elementary schools, writes a regular sports column for The Times. The opinions expressed are those of the writer. He can be contacted through The Times at prtnews@nwadg.com.