WAS: What Adults are saying about a wild, wacky, entertaining Paris Olympics
This wasn't your grandfather's Olympics
Time was the Olympics were a once-in-awhile event that carried more excitement than urbane residents coming to visit the family at Hicktown. The world venues and unusual sports combined to create a spectacle (almost exclusively experienced through television) that drew back the blinds about different people, places or things. Far out time zones made for odd day-part viewing and during the Cold War the historically significant Roone Arledge and peerless Jim McKay artfully presented the proceedings as sport, history and their true pedigree, international politics.
But over the span of no more than two generations, the so-called “Olympic movement” has become an international business franchise for oligarchs where off field corruption has significantly threatened world interest. Where once the sanctity of the amateur athlete was paramount (as Soviet bloc countries giggled), professionalism now reigns. Where once the world’s cities competed for the “privilege” to host the event, few suitors now emerge lest they invite civic distress. Where once the IOC contained its corruption and avarice today it manages a wide, deep and dirty trough from which hundreds eat heartily-including familiar athletes from Olympics past such as Bach, DeFrantz or Coe.
Then there are the politics and human rights issues that beset virtually all competitions set on a world stage. As manager of the franchise the IOC has emerged to be just another international cartel like other sport kings in FIFA, the NFL, The English Premiere league and others. Though the sports differ all are similar in that they crossbreed a Fortune 50 company with an expanded crew sent by Tony Soprano. To enjoy 21st century Olympics means one has to either dance with the devil or suspend reality, at least for a couple of weeks.
Doing this for what just completed at Paris was a trade off that might have been worth it. Seldom has an extended athletic competition been so provocative, beautiful, peaceful (mostly) and full of performances both remarkable and poignant. Propelled by a jaw dropping Opening Ceremony where its mind stretching conception was only exceeded by its execution, these Games were compelling from tip to toe. For most of us NBC was the lens through which we understood all of this including the rare Biblical literalists who decried portions of the Games’ open. From people whose understanding of anything French ends with fries, we briefly endured juvenile pearl-clutching and proselytizing. But among those who bring an adult and open mindset to multi-cultural events this gnat-like irritant was rapidly overwhelmed by heart-pounding competition.
Americans Katie Ledecky and Simone Biles, for example, went to Paris as arguably GOATS in their respective sports. Expectations were high for both to perform well and perhaps mic drop. There were excellent and inspiring but not without performance flaws. Both added to their legendary resumes with more gold and other medals. More importantly both seemed to be having a good time in simply competing, enjoying their teammates, succeeding, failing and all in between. In their athletic majesty they did not mic drop and no one cared.
Stories like this were abundant including:
+ Cuban heavyweight wrestler Mijain Lopez won his 5th consecutive gold medal as his sport’s GOAT and promptly completed the stark ritual of wrestling retirement—leaving his shoes in the center of the mat.
+ Ethiopian runner Sifan Hissan competing in the 5,000 and 10,000 meter runs and the marathon. In the first two she took bronze while narrowly winning marathon gold on the Games’ last day. In a span of less than 40 hours she raced over 33 miles!
+ American Cole Hocker in the 1500 meters, running a ballsy race with patient strategy, zooming through the inside lane for an improbable victory reminiscent of Dave Wottle.
+ American Scotty Scheffler, the world’s best golfer, shooting a back-nine 29 on the final tourney day to garner a gold he received with tears at the end of a summer where he went from the Penthouse to the outhouse (briefly), and back again.
+ Track bicyclist (yeah, the one around the oval) Kristin Faulkner, who entered the 98-mile women’s road race as an afterthought to support training, simply cycled away from her small group with about two miles to go for a stunning victory.
+ Forty-year old Lebron James, sporting more white in his beard than Uncle Remus, leading his team to an unbelievable come-back against Serbia on the path to an eventual gold.
+ In women’s basketball a riveting final between the US and France. Played so sloppily and devoid of fundamentals that Dr. James Naismith turned in his grave, it reminded us that in a pinch nerve-wracking drama always tops artistry.
+ American Kenneth Rooks and his stunning sprint some 350 meters from the finish in the 3,000 meter Steeplechase. He opened a backstretch lead inviting the ghosts of Steve Prefontaine at Munich and doggedly held for the silver medal.
These are just a few of the many magical, weird, improbable and captivating stories that made the Paris Games a two-week binge watch. Hell, just think of the things not mentioned above: Noah Lyles and his curious ending, French swimming, Australian break dancer Rachel Gunn, distance swimming and Triathlon events postponed due to high E. Coli levels (you do know what that means right)? We saw American distance runners collectively break the stranglehold of gold among sub-Sahara African countries, the big does of US women’s Rugby securing a first-ever medal, great American success in swimming, track, gymnastics and rowing and the American born and trained mashup of Jeff Spicoli and Nike, one Mondo Duplantis, who seems poised to turn the Pole Vault into something where a rock festival meets paragliding. Of course there was a ton more too.
Those were some games and next are headed to our shores. The athletes of the world will convene at the City of Angels in ‘28 (for an unprecedented third time) and encounter the smog, heat and rapidly changing culture of SoCal. In recalling four years ago we were then entrapped, mostly alone, by the ravages of COVID one quickly realizes 48 months is a long time in which many things can happen. Southern California has long been the Petri dish for 21st century America in all its growing and complicated issues. It is the living and breathing front line of where carbon meets green, young meets old, immigrant meets “native”, airbrush meets authenticity and yes, Shakespeare meets AI. Paris (at least to foreigners) set a high bar. It’s now game on for LA.