Ruminations on the Olympics

I love the Olympics! The Beijing Olympics were no exception. I spent every possible moment in the past two weeks watching whatever I could. I find the very thought of the entire world participating in a common endeavor inspiring in the extreme. There were some wonderful back stories and many exceptional performances. From open to close the Olympics were thrilling. It didn't hurt watching the events on a widescreen TV in high def. The images were just amazing! I felt an actual sense of loss when the olympic torch was extinguished.

Highlights
*Lezak's final leg of the 4x100m swim relay
*Phelp's fingertip win in the 100m butterfly
*Dara Torres' silver medal win in the women's 50m freestyle at age 41
*Men's gold medal basketball match
*Men's gold medal volleyball match
*Women's gold medal soccer match
*Bolt's 100m and 200m runs
*Men's and women's 4x400m relays
*Artemev's performance on the pommel horse in team comp

Disappointments
*Dara Torres' hairsbreadth silver medal finish in the women's 50m swim
*Bolt's showboating in the 100m dash
*Shaun Johnson's missteps in the women's gymnastics
*Legat's DQ from the 1500m and poor showing in the 5000m runs
*Men's and women's DQ from the 4x100m track relays
*Controversy over Chinese women gymnasts
*Taekwondo competitor kicking ref in the face for a bad call

Pet Peeves
*Lack of coverage for the less popular events
*Michael Phelps mother
*NBC attempts to create controversy
*Knucklehead questions asked of the atheletes
*Michael Phelps mother
*Constant coverage of beach volleyball
*Endlessly repetitive commercials
*Michael Phelps mother

Stomach-Turning Shocker
*Weightlifter's arm bending backwards