My Summer Olympics thoughts

As the resident sports’ blogger here at The Microcosm, I thought I would muse on some thoughts I had during the last few weeks of the summer games.

We watched the Olympics every night, despite being in transit from Baton Rouge to Akron, Ohio, during part of the games. We watched in Murfreesboro, Tenn., on our first stop of the migration. Then in Salem, Ohio, at Sarah’s boss’ house during our first night up north. And finally in our very own Akron apartment, using the cable left behind by the previous residents.

We DVR’d events, woke up early to watch basketball and stayed up late to watch Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin, among others. Stayed glued to the TV for every “Michael Phelps in 17 minutes” update from NBC. Watched in awe during the opening and closing ceremonies of the games, wondering if any future Olympic ceremonies will ever come close to the grandeur of these games.

It was an amazing couple of weeks, and this first Olympics I have watched this vigilantly. In the past, the games were just something to watch if I was bored. But this time, I paid attention, followed the storylines and yelled at the TV. It was fantastic.

Here are a few of my favorite storylines from these games:

• Michael Phelps or Usain Bolt? Who dominated these summer games? To me, the answer is definitively Phelps. But arguments can and should be made for Bolt, as he blew away the field in the shortest races allowed on the track. It was amazing to watch both of these fantastic athletes.
• I was captivated by women’s gymnastics, something I did not expect coming into the games. Liukin and Johnson were more than compelling on center stage.
• The USA men’s basketball team’s — aptly nicknamed the Redeem Team — gold medal run. These guys did more to heighten the image of men’s basketball in the USA than any other athlete or team in these Olympics. They played with respect for their opponents and dignity to the game itself, and won the right way.
• Men’s and women’s beach volleyball were must-see TV. The women more than the men, naturally, but both were equally as entertaining.

What were some of your favorite memories from these summer games? Please share in the comments!