Someone asked me the other day if I was watching the Olympics coverage. I'm not. It got me to thinking, why not? When I was a kid I always watched the Olympics. Summer games, winter games - I was glued to the TV. Of course back then we only had three channels, so very little choice in what to watch.
I've never been a fan of hockey but I remember vividly how I felt watching the 1980 hockey game where team USA won, called The Miracle on Ice. I was very proud of our team and proud to be an American. That was the last hockey game I ever watched. It might have something to do with the fact I graduated from high school that year and started college, and life got really busy then - and has stayed busy. Or not. Being a Southerner, hockey just isn't big here. Even our own Atlanta Thrashers eventually gave up and went to Canada, eh.
However, I'm not here to write about hockey.
So far, the Rio Olympics seem to be disastrous.
That makes me angry and sad.
For months we've been seeing news coverage about the zika virus. Back in June, Time magazine wrote Zika Has People Freaked Out About the Olympics But Experts Aren's Worried. Some athletes decided not to go to the Olympics due to health worries.
I was horrified yesterday to see the video of Scary injury: French gymnast Samir Ait Said snaps his leg on vault on Facebook. Hasn't France had enough issues lately?! Sacre bleu!
What horrifies me most, since swimming is the only competitive sport I've ever attempted [4 years on the neighborhood team anyway] is that some athletes are going to be swimming in RAW SEWAGE. What Happens When There's Sewage in the Water?
That article was from back in March. The issue hasn't gotten better.
According to a British article: Rio 2016: Athletes warned to keep mouths closed when swimming in faeces-infested water "Researchers found that many of the beaches in Rio de Janeiro have been long contaminated with raw sewage, household garbage, and even dead bodies, creating hazardous swimming conditions for the 500,000 people expected to descend on the city in August.
“Foreign athletes will literally be swimming in human crap, and they risk getting sick from all those microorganisms,” Rio paediatrician Dr Daniel Becker told the New York Times. “It’s sad but also worrisome.”
UGH.
How desperate are you to win a medal? Desperate enough to swim in poopy water?!? Bumping dead bodies out of the way? Keeping water out of your mouth while swimming in a race isn't really possible. Lots of splashing goes on. I know this from experience.
My family had a speedboat when I was growing up and I remember my disgust sometimes at the dirty water in Lake Loudoun near Knoxville. However, that was was pristine in comparison to Rio.
I do not understand WHY the Olympics people didn't inspect the water and make the Brazilians clean it up! WTH?! They should move to safe, clean waters, and penalize Brazil for this. It's absolutely disgusting and - far worse - a huge health risk. Dang y'all, get it together.
I do not want to watch our athletes, or any athletes, swim in raw sewage. This is ridiculous.
above, at the lake with my dad and cousins, abt. 1977
