True Confessions of an Olympic Fan

By Flickr user JL08
The Olympic Games held in Beijing over the last several weeks were one of the most controversial Olympics in recent memory. China's record of human rights abuses, treatment of Tibet, and involvement in the Darfur conflict have been pulled into the international spotlight by activists the world over—from the protesters who interrupted the torch relay, to the two elderly Chinese women who were recently sentenced to "re-education" for attempting to organize a demonstration.

In light of all of this I've been feeling confused and conflicted recently. You see, I love the Olympics. It's a deep and long-standing love (some might call it an obsession) that probably began in 1988 when my parents had to drag me away from watching the gymnasts on TV by promising me a gold medal if I brushed my teeth. I love marveling at the spectacular ability of the human body and spirit, being reminded of sports that normally receive no attention in the US (table tennis, anyone?) and yes, even the little surge of pride I (a normally non-nationalistic person) get when one of my compatriots wins a medal.

Beyond the media hype, corporate sponsors, and doping scandals, the Olympics are still made up of thousands of individual human stories. I was inspired by a pair of Iraqi rowers who managed to train in the face of violence, military patrols and curfews. That they finished last in their heat was unimportant compared to the chance to represent their country and "show the good side of Iraq." Twenty-one-year-old Rohullah Nikpai learned tae kwon do at a refugee camp in Iran and went on to become a hero in his home country of Afghanistan, winning that country's first ever Olympic medal, a bronze. Stories like his put into perspective the trivial "medal count" obsession in the western media.

The Games also represent an opportunity for everyday people and athletes to hold up the ideals of the Olympic Movement, even when the IOC or the participating countries do not. Joey Cheek, a speedskater who won gold at the 2006 Winter Games founded Team Darfur—an international coalition of athletes committed to raising awareness about and bringing an end to the crisis in Darfur, Sudan. Team Darfur did not call for a boycott of the Beijing Games, but rather an effort to turn attention to Darfur while "celebrating the Olympic spirit." Nonetheless, China revoked the visas of Joey Cheek and several other Team Darfur athletes who hoped to attend the Beijing Games.

As Rebecca Solnit so eloquently wrote, "Bodies in peak condition performing with everything they've got are an image of freedom, as are pristine landscapes like Yosemite and the Tetons. But the reality of freedom only exists when these phenomena aren't deployed to cover up other bodies that are cringing, starving, bleeding, or dying, other places that are clearcut, strip-mined, and contaminated…But the associations between the two are crucial to our sense of compassion, and of what it means to be a part of a global community."

As a global citizen and lover of the Olympics, I can only hope that the Games in 2010 and 2012 live up to their potential to be a force for good, to promote rather than repress freedom, and to continue to inspire us toward great achievements.

This entry was written by Anne, an editor of the Idealist in NYC blog.