Hooray... the Olympics are finally here

I don't talk about it much but I LOVE the Olympics. I prefer summer but get almost as excited about the winter events. Wherever there are representatives from all over the world competing for their country in a sporting event, it's exciting. If I could take 3 weeks off work and plant myself in front of the TV for the duration I would. It's sad but I really would.

The Olympics are more special than any other world championship competition because they encompass so many different events within a 3 week period and they only occur once every 4 years (yes, I know they are technically every 2 years because they alternate the summer & winter but for any given event the competition occurs every 4 years).

Supposedly the athletes are all amateurs in their respective disciplines but I don't think that really means anything these days. When basketball players are making millions of dollars in the NBA, I don't think anyone can profess that they are "amateurs" at their sport. However I'd argue that the weightlifters and fencers can claim amateur status given that I don't think there is much money to be made in either event.

I can get excited about almost any of the sports.... they are each exciting in their own way. My favorites are generally gymnastics, diving, and various track & field events. But I'm open to watching any event and am hoping there is TV coverage devoted to some of the more obscure ones. When was the last time you saw women's wrestling, handball, taekwondo, or a good old fashioned kayak race? The TV announcers are usually pretty good about explaining how things are judged and scored so even if you are completely unfamiliar with the competition it's fairly easy to follow along. Which is good because... what the hell is a modern pentathlon????