This past Sunday, we said goodbye to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. It was a sad moment for me because over the last two weeks I have come to realize just how proud I am to be American.
Going into the games, America had its fair share of hyped athletes: Lindsey Vonn, Apolo Ohno, Bodie Miller, and Shaun White. While some of them were more successful than others, I felt a ridiculous sense of national pride when I watched each of them. I'm not sure why I get so pumped up when watching sports; maybe it's the awe factor of watching something I could never do or maybe it's a kind of vicarious way to experience an adrenaline rush, but I can tell you that when I watched Shaun White land his 1260 Double McTwist, I jumped out of my seat and felt a sense of patriotism that was only matched when I watched the USA Men's Hockey team beat Canada early in the tournament (I was devastated when we lost to them in the gold medal round).
I think the Olympics is one of the best ideas taht anyone has come up with in the last century or so. Think about it- there aren't many other opportunities for countries to get together in a peaceful manner and just compete. The only other competition of this nature is the World Cup, and let me just tell you now- I can't wait til June! I'm also counting the days until the 2012 games in London and I'll be cheering for the USA!
