Olympics

I love the Olympics. Although I sometimes complain about the TV coverage, this year I am really impressed with the way NBC is reporting the games: A lot of actual action and just enough background on the athletes to understand where they are coming from.

As a competitive runner, I feel an empathy with the participants that I suspect most couch potatoes don’t. It is clear that no one gets to this level of competition without a lot of hard training and sacrifice. Sure I don’t have the talent that they have, but I know what it feels like to get out and run in the hot weather and in the cold weather. To train when you would rather stay in bed.

Runners know about the jitters that come in the week before a big race. What the night before feels like. The excitement of putting on your running gear and pinning on your bib. The concentration required during competition to start slowly and then press to the finish line. The emotions that surge after the race is over. The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.

I was touched by what Alexandre Bilodeau, Canadian gold medal winner in the moguls, had to say about training. His older brother Frederic was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and told he would lose his ability to walk by age 10. Frederic did not accept that prognosis and through hard work continues to walk at age 28. Alex said, “How could I ever skip a work out given what my brother has to do just to walk?”

Keep Running!