Well, you knew it was only a matter of time before I decided to weigh in on the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. The games of the XXXIII Olympiad had been underway just a few hours when the internet became filled with controversy and confusion—confusion because of the not-so-subtle message delivered by the opening ceremonies and controversy because of the emphasis on mocking the beliefs of a large portion of the world’s population. I should make a big deal of this, but I won’t because I try very hard to avoid controversial and divisive subjects. If you ever want to alienate somebody, just make a comment about politics or religion.
However, even though this is a medical OPINION blog, and the subjects I write about don’t usually get people upset, I’m entitled to opinions on other subjects. My opinion of the opening ceremonies is that I wasted four hours on a Friday evening to see something I found weird and not entertaining. It was like a series of skits performed to make a point or promote an agenda. Instead of it celebrating “diversity,” as the spokesperson claimed, I found it legitimized and glorified unusual and aberrant behavior. And it went on for four hours.
The presentation of the athletes was a complete afterthought and felt like it was being done just because they had to. The Olympics are all about the athletes and the competition in which they participate. They seemed not to be the central characters in the event. They were crammed onto the top deck of 90, or so, boats cruising the Seine River during an hours-long rain storm, and they all got soaked. There was no way the TV cameras could pick out featured athletes unless the camera was on the ship, and the USA team was the lone recipient of that benefit. Spectators on the river banks, I’m certain, had a very difficult time picking out the athletes they came to see. I would have hoped NBC and Peacock would have found the star athletes from each country favored to contend for medals. If they did, I missed it.
Instead, the focus was on performers of all sizes, shapes, and genders who pranced, danced, and made silly moves and gestures to make a statement. Much more air time was spent showing these unusual skits than showing the Olympic athletes. I could have easily changed channels and watched M*A*S*H* or “Judge Judy” and enjoyed them more.
I’m glad I didn’t, though, because finally, in the latter minutes of the ceremonies, there were two things that helped me forget about the time I wasted the previous four hours. The first of these was the passing of the torch by memorable French Olympians, the last two of whom ultimately lit of the symbolic Olympic flame which in this games is in a huge hot air balloon. The lighting and rising of the “torch” and the balloon were amazing.
The second, and absolutely most incredible, event of the entire evening was the performance by Celine Dion from the Eiffel Tower. She was amazing! What a talent! What a voice! What a setting! She was beautiful in her white, sparkling, sequined dress and despite being troubled by a rare neurologic disorder, sang flawlessly. The song was the French “Hymn to Love,” or
“L’ Hymne a l’amour,” a beautiful melody performed by Ms. Dion with such deep emotion that I was moved to watch it 5 times on You Tube. I will remember her performance as the highlight of the ceremonies for a long long time.
Lastly, we come to the games themselves. Thirty-nine sports from Archery to Wrestling are contested over a period of 17 days. Thus far, I have enjoyed watching competition between athletes in the following sports: badminton, basketball (both men and women), boxing, gymnastics, handball, rugby, shooting, swimming, table tennis, volleyball, and water polo. That’s less than a third of the sports. I doubt seriously that I’ll watch artistic swimming, breaking, field hockey, rhythmic gymnastics, sailing, skateboarding, and surfing, but there are plenty of people who will.
Thus far, swimming leads the way for my viewership. I’ve been impressed how swimmers from Australia, Canada, Germany, and Italy have dominated the competition and how the U.S. swim team hasn’t performed up to expectations. The competition is only in its 4th day, but just one woman (Tori Huske) and one men’s relay team (4x100m free) have stood on the top step of the podium to receive GOLD. Six Americans have won BRONZE including previous gold medalists, Katie Ledecky and Ryan Murphy. I guess the Michael Phelps-Ryan Lochte era of swimming dominance is over. But it’s early and a lot of events are yet to come so we still have a chance.
Last week, I watched two days of men’s rugby. The U.S. team did not fare well, lacking the speed of several other teams, and were knocked out of medal contention by losses to Australia (18-0) and Ireland (17-14). France won the GOLD, Fiji SILVER, and South Africa BRONZE. Rugby is not a sport for the anxious or faint-of-heart. Real men with well-conditioned physiques dive head first into scrambles for the ball without pads, helmets, or fear of injury.
I could go on, but it would get very boring. Track and field starts Thursday, August 1st and expectations for success there are running high. During the 11 days of competition, the U.S. track team anticipates it will take home a slew of medals, at least according to previous performances. I’ll definitely find myself glued to the TV for those events. While writing this post, I watched the U.S. men’s volleyball team beat a tough German team 3-2 with a 15-11 score in the 5th set. The German’s were down 2 sets to zero, came back to tie it 2-2, but lost on a serve into the net on match point 2. Mens’ and womens’ basketball are just getting started, and some GOLD should come from that, too. I’m not so sure about the contrived 3-on-3 basketball games. My overwhelming thought for this event is “why?” What’s the sense of this? I don’t know so I probably won’t watch.
Finally, I love the summer Olympics. I look forward to them every four years. It good to see the games “normalized” after the COVID postponement of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Originally scheduled for July-August of 2020, they were held in the summer of 2021 instead, “behind closed doors and without spectators.” All that has changed in Paris 2024, and large crowds again gather at popular events. 70,000 fans watched rugby!
But the Paris Olympic organizers upset millions of people because they chose to emphasize the odd and bizarre, and not the athletes, the competition, and the international goodwill fostered by the games. Instead, they cheapened it in the name of diversity and inclusion. Does there always have to be a message? Why not just have Celine Dion sing for an hour if she is capable. No one would criticize that.
Let the games continue. I hope you enjoy the competition as much as I do. There’s so much to see. And just think, there won’t be any bogus excuses to keep Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese off the Olympic women’s basketball roster in 2028!!
