The 2008 Olympics is rife with two disappointing trends:  The individual athlete is forgetting his pride of nation, and somehow it has become a tragedy when an athlete comes in second.  Do we blame the media for showcasing only the victories of gold medal winners, or for being guilty of preconceived expectations of our own country?  Perhaps we should take the blame ourselves for living in an age where we have allowed a culture of “me-ism.”  Have we put aside our sense of patriotism and become jaded by world politics, forgetting about the true spirit of the Olympic Games, and the sheer joy of athletic competitions?

If the media’s take is such that what really counts is individual medals and records, then why keep track of the number of total medals each country has won, why march with the rest of your countrymen during opening ceremonies, why have the host country put on million-dollar displays of its nation’s culture and history?   What’s next for the summer Olympics of the future… personal theme songs instead of national anthems for the gold medalists?

I was saddened to watch a part of the outcome of the men’s 100 meter sprint and to witness the dejection of Jamaican runner Asafa Powell because of his fifth-place non-medal finish.  His countryman, Usain Bolt, took home the gold for Jamaica and easily obliterated a world record in the process.  It was a treat to watch Usain “Lightning” Bolt run this race, to watch with amazement as he incredibly decelerated with fifteen meters to go and pounded his chest in victory, ultimately leaving room to easily break his own new world record.  But instantly, my excitement at having witnessed such a feat was dampened by the disappointment and non-congratulatory carriage of Mr. Powell.

I understand the basic human emotion of not achieving, call it ‘losing’ if you must, and raw emotion is a very difficult thing to mask.  I also fully understand the sadness experienced by individual athletes in the team competitions when they do not do as well as expected.  You, the athlete, are disappointed in yourself because you were not able to help your team and instead experienced defeat.  The converse is also true:  You, the athlete, were indeed able to help your team, because you functioned as a TEAM on your way to collective victory, witness the 1980 USA Men’s Olympic Hockey Team. However, when it comes to individual events, if you don’t place but your countryman is victorious, then revel in national pride and cheer like hell for your teammate and your homeland.

One of the marks of a true champion is to comprehend the scope of your contest, and to genuinely appreciate that contest’s victor, especially if it was not you.  Without outstanding competition, how would one be able to measure one’s own accomplishments?  If indeed the Olympic Games are an international competition with the pride of your “home team” on the line, and your teammate wins the gold, then relish in the glory which that win has brought to your country.  At least give your teammate a pat on the back in front of the cameras of the world.

Yes, it is human nature to put on a pedestal our outstanding specimens, our individual athletes who break world records and accomplish unbelievable things.  Michael Phelps was a joy to root for.  Sean Johnson was a delight to watch.  There is nothing better in sports than a true champion.  Especially if that champion is someone who, as a part of a team, makes his or her team better.  Michael Jordan.  Bobby Orr.  Reggie Jackson.  Mallory Holtman (look it up if you don’t know her).

But the Olympics is supposed to be about countries and cultures.  Nations who show the world how great they can possibly be at something that is important to them.  It is an international showcase of talent with exuberant enthusiasm on the part of each nation’s citizens.  There are surprises.  There are moments of utterly heart-breaking defeat.  And there are hundreds of stories of exceptional effort and personal bests.  Unfortunately, there is not enough air time devoted to the showcasing of sportsmanship, which is (or should be) at the heart of any athletic competition.  It should be especially showcased as an inspiration to our planet’s young people, who have grown up in a world filled with conflict, fear, and jingoistic isolationism.  The Olympic games allow us to hope.  When nations can show sportsmanship in the ultimate contest, perhaps they can show acceptance of each other while still displaying a sense of united pride.

It is depressing to watch the faces of the individuals and teams who pout and drop their shoulders in disappointment when placing second or third (still silver and bronze medalists) while not appreciating their own monumental accomplishment.  Wake up, Mr. or Ms. World Class Athlete!  You did better than the other six or seven athletes who competed in that contest, and better than the other one hundred and eighty-six other countries’ athletes who didn’t even qualify.  These are the top athletes in the world, chosen from every remote mountain and lowland, every village and town, every island, and every big city all over the planet.  And you came in number two?  That’s an achievement, not a loss.

You certainly did better than this columnist:  I can’t even make it to the fridge for another beer without getting winded.  My hopes and dreams of becoming an Olympic athlete were shattered forever when I was in the fourth grade and Walter B, the chubby kid who no one ever picked for dodgeball, beat me in a foot race during recess.  Okay, so the prize was a Reese’s peanut butter cup, and maybe Wally had more motivation than I did.  Still.  I was, at that moment, keenly aware that I could be beaten, and my false sense of superiority had been permanently deflated.  I thought perhaps I should enter the poetry contest instead next year.

Non-medalists, please do not suffer publicly like a spoiled child who did not get the last ice cream sandwich.  Go ahead and feel sorry for yourself later in the evening when you have a private moment to yourself in your room at the Olympic village.  But do yourself a favor and remember the expression we have from our great game of American football:  “Any given Sunday.”  What that means, when applied to world class athletes at international competitions, is basically that on any day you could win, or on any day you might be beaten. If you don’t come in first, today was just not your day.  You are still a champion.  Any one of a host of infinitesimal factors could have been at play here today, or perhaps that other athlete who came in one-sixtieth of a second ahead of you was just that much better… today.  You are still an athlete of enormous talent, a human being who has been able to accomplish physical excellence to get to where you are now, and well-deserved of international accolades and public adoration.

Silver and bronze medalists, take your cue from Richard Thompson of Trinidad and Tobago.  His celebration of his silver medal in that same Men’s 100 meter sprint was the singular redemption of the Olympic spirit which I, the viewer, turned on the television to see.  Had you missed the race and just tuned in, you would have bet your farm that Mr. Thompson was your gold medalist.  His arms raised in triumph, his pride of country reflected in his remarkable smile, he dropped to the ground and made turf-angels, wrapped himself in the flag of Trinidad, and pumped his fists with pride at the crowd.  And the crowd cheered.  Mr. Richard Thompson had come in second, but he medaled – the ONLY medal for his country in ANY event, in ANY sport, men’s or women’s, in this 2008 Olympics at Beijing.  I thank him for bringing back my fragile expectations of both pride of country and pride of self at having achieved second place.  I will forever remember that, and admire him for it.

Take also a lesson from the truly amazing and accomplished US swimmer, Dara Torres.  At forty-one years old, she was matched in a physical battle with the other greatest female swimmers in the world, many of whom were half her age.  She competed in her fifth Olympics.  She qualified for a particular heat, the women’s 100 meter freestyle, beating other outstanding athletes who that day did not earn the right to compete.  She entered the race and gave it her all.  She did her best, and she came in second… literally by a fingernail.  Yet she instantly swam over and congratulated the first-place swimmer because she knew what excellence had been achieved.  She smiled a genuine smile, because she knew that she had also accomplished greatness.  She was better than than the six other competitors that evening, better than the other seven billion Earthlings who did not even qualify.  And she brought home a silver medal for her country, a country which is very, very proud of her.  She stood on that podium with pride, a mere four inches lower than her golden peer, and represented her country with dignity and a true appreciation of what the Olympic spirit is supposed to be about.