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The Olympics, as usual, have people across the world one hundred percent invested in sports they might not have known even existed just a month ago. I now know way more about the intricacies of Kayak Cross than I could have ever anticipated, and that doesn’t even compare to my newfound knowledge of Rugby Sevens. The Olympics is always a great introduction for the average Joe or Jane to sports that some have dedicated most of their lives to. But as I get older, I find myself just as or more intrigued by the athlete as much as the sport.
Every 4 years, there are endless inspiring stories about individuals competing in the Olympics. There are international superstars that arise from the games. People that become household names. But what has become interesting to me is how the Olympics doesn’t just belong to the athletes; it involves all of us. Social media has again become a game changer–an “Olympic” game changer in fact. Via social media, we have access to the lives of almost every Olympic athlete. Not just the superstars either. The U.S. women’s Rugby Sevens team members’ social media activity is part of the reason I invested so much of my Olympic viewing in their sport. The social media activity doesn’t even have to be solely related to the sport they play. A Norwegian swimmer went viral by posting Tik Toks about his love for the chocolate muffins in the Olympic village. Social media also allows us to learn that these athletes are indeed human and in fact they may even be, surprisingly, part of your social circle. Through posts on social media, this “Average Joe” learned that a former classmate’s son is in Paris to support his girlfriend who is a swimmer for the Mexican Olympic team. I learned that a friend of a friend’s niece is a significant U.S. Women’s Volleyball team player. With the representation from central Illinois athletes, U of I grads, EIU grads, etc. in the Olympic Games most, if not all of us, could find a connection to an athlete within the 6 degrees established by the Kevin Bacon game. You may know someone who knows someone who knows Simone, Katie Ledecky, or another seemingly untouchable star, from any country.
So, as we watch these amazing athletes, these human beings from all corners of the planet, compete in a city thousands of miles away, I think it’s a pretty beautiful reminder that despite the competition, we are really part of the same big team. Even us average Joes and Janes sitting on the couch enthralled by watching some Turkish guy (who we may have some connection to. Who knows?!) forego the high tech gear his competitors use and calmly win a silver medal in shooting without a care in the world. Big time “regular ole, one of us” type vibes.