I love the Summer Olympics and I'm getting excited that they start in less than 3 months (the 8th day of the 8th month of the 8th year - 8/8/2008). I've never been as big of a fan of the Winter Olympics but I like them too.
Back in 1984, I remember my wife and I watching the opening ceremonies on television of the 1984
Los Angeles Summer Olympics. On a spur of the moment, we said to each other while watching day 1 cycling "why don't we go to them." So we asked her brother and sister-in-law to watch our children which they did, and we jumped in our car and headed south for Los Angeles with not a clue of what was to follow. We stayed there for about 5 days, found affordable lodging at one of our favorite places in Santa Monica and bought tickets to several events. We went to a track & field event and bumped into OJ Simpson along the way during his glory years as a sports announcer for ABC. I approached him and asked if he would autograph our tickets and be in a photo with my wife. He was very cordial and agreed to both. I still have the autographed tickets and photos.
We also took in an incredible amount of boxing (my desire), so much that I had no interest in watching amateur boxing for several years thereafter. We also went to the 181 lb. class of Olympic weightlifting event. I was surprised at how much I liked it, the excitement of the lifter approaching the bar as the crowd went silent, contrasted by the roar of the crowd after a successful lift. I remember that the gold medalist was someone from West Germany (back in the days of West Germany and East Germany).
We also took in some women's basketball, and watched the first ever women's marathon which was won by Joan Benoit (now Joan Benoit Samuelson). We had a view on the same street as our hotel in Santa Monica.
I have good memories subsequent to the 1984 Olympics watching the games on television, staying up late to catch the brief coverage of less popular events like Judo and weightlifting, and trying to watch all the track and field competition that I could. And, from the last Olympics, I watched in awe as a Chinese woman weightlifter clean and jerked over 400 lbs. in the company of my Dad. He didn't believe what he saw or that she was a woman, wanting proof of that. He remembers when John Davis became the first man to clean and jerk 400 lbs. back in the early 1950s and what an amazing accomplishment that was at the time.
I am rambling on while at the same time scheming how I will get my Olympic viewing in this year as we, in our spartan lifestyle, abandoned our television about 2 years ago. I'll be catching up on my visits with my parents and other friends with suggestions that we get together and watch the Olympics on television. Track and field, Judo, weightlifting, wrestling (both freestyle and Greco-Roman) are just a couple of my interests. Note to myself: plan my work schedule for August around the Olympic games.
Sorry for the long ramble. I did it for my own benefit. But perhaps some of you have the same excitement of the Olympic games as I do and, if you do, please share them with me and others.
Thanks for reading.
p.s. NCB has a great website devoted to the 2008 Summer Olympics. I'm starting to spend some time there looking at various photos and watching short video clips.
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