Hello everyone! The Olympics concluded yesterday and I’m still recovering from the excitement. One of the things I love most about the Olympics is the chance to watch sports that I don’t typically have the chance to watch on an annual basis. It seems like every Olympics there is one sport that I binge watch to try and become an expert in just a few days. This year that sport was water polo.
What fascinates me most about water polo is that the players never touch the ground the entire time. I realize this may seem really rudimentary but I can admire the endurance from an athletic standpoint. I also didn’t realize that the US women’s water polo team was so dominant as they went on to win their third straight gold medal in the Olympics defeating Spain in the finals.
Speaking of dominance- The United States of Basketball returned to its dominance and won gold in both the men’s and women’s division. The women capped off their 55th straight win in international play against Tokyo for the gold.
Track and field was exciting as usual as new faces became stars. A 19-year old mid distance runner from New Jersey, Athing Mo, took the world stage by storm winning the 800 and 4x400 relay. The 400 relay also saw the last race of Allyson Felix who is now the most decorated American Olympian ever as she also won a bronze medal in the 400 individual race.
One of the cooler moments of the Olympics was when these two high jumpers, instead of doing a “jump off” to determine a winner decided to split the gold and end in a tie.
Gymnastics had a bit of a different outcome than expected as Simone Biles opted out of most of her competitions (more on this on a future podcast). Her teammate, Sunni Lee stepped up in her place and won gold in the all around competition.
The United States won the overall medal count with 40 gold medals and 113 total medals. The streak of dominance continues for this country in sports, and that we can all be proud of fir the next 4 years.
Personal News
I have officially accepted a nod as a tenure track professor at Kentucky State University in Physical Educational and Sport Management. Although I am very excited about this new role, I know in the midst of a pandemic there will still be challenges beyond the typical learning curve. I would very much appreciate your prayers for Adeline and I as we go into this new season of life.
Thank you!
Deverin