A Sucker for the Clichés
Wherein Our Heroine
Falls Prey to the Stories of Sport.
Paul Hamm, winning the men's all-around
gold medal with a clutch performance and a sore shoulder, identical twin brother
and teammate Morgan there to cheer him on.
Mariel Zagunis, thrown high
in the air by her teammates after winning the first fencing gold for the U.S. in
100 years.
Tyler Hamilton,
after all the troubles he has had this year - a horrific back injury taking him
out of the Tour de France, his beloved dog Tugboat dying from cancer - winning
the men's time trial, Tugboat's dog-tag tucked in his
jersey.
Yeah, I'm a sap.
The Olympics always seem
chock-full of these stories, especially the recovery-from-injury stories.
Naturally, injuries occur when a person is pushing to compete at the pinnacle of
international sport. But each injury magnifies the achievement, and the
potential for disaster in so many events can make athletes seem as if they are
dancing on a razor. Fall on one side, triumph, gold medals and accolades for
the athlete. Fall on the other, disaster, injury, perhaps even an end to a
career. The drama of the back-story only enhances the current drama of effort,
nerves, and talent..
I can say
that the one bit of "drama" I can do without is the American Entitlement Drama.
Far too much has been made of the "No American Men Qualifying for the Men's 100
Freestyle" swim event. As the mutual fund prospectuses say, "Past performance
is not an indicator of future success." Get over it, NBC. The
false-entitlement talk that you have been indulging in regarding this is one
example of the reasons why "Ugly American" is another cliché. It is one we
can do without.
Posted: Thursday - August 19, 2004 at 08:05 AM
|
|
