With the end of the Olympic Summer Games, and the preparation for the Paralympics underway, there are lessons that could be taken from the Summer Games in Rio — lessons for the sporting bodies in Canada and elsewhere, and lessons we humble citizens might be able to learn too.
One lesson that comes to mind is, do not ever underestimate Girl Power, and moreover, Olympic sport people, definitely make sure there are training dollars and support for young women in sport in this country. One member of the Canadian delegation put it this way: we need ot make sure there is more gender equity when it comes to the resources provided to current and aspiring Olympic athletes.
Seeing how our women dominated the winning of medals until sprinter Andre De Grasse won his bronze in the 100-metre race, I should think they more than proved themselves.
Just as an aside, when the question was being asked about who should be Canada’s flag-bearer at the Closing Ceremonies, I wanted it to be Penny Oleksiak, and happily she was chosen as the one. I was impressed by how calm and poised she was when she was interviewed about this singular honour, and it’s astounding to think she’s just heading into Grade 11.
Both she and De Grasse “broke the mold”, so to speak, as some of the announcers noted that it used to be (for Canadian athletes, anyway) that athletes at their very first Olympics aren’t expected to medal. Well, let’s see — Penny got four of them, one in each of the three colours with two bronze, and De Grasse got three, a silver and two bronze, so they further proved, there needs to be attention paid to the training of young athletes, equally between the genders.
Another lesson learned, and all of us can surely take this to heart, is “always tell the truth”, as most moms will have told you, hopefully.
I of course refer to the fiasco of the American swimmer Ryan Lochte, who got drunk with three friends, vandalized a gas station and then lied about it to the media, only recanting his story when video evidence proved he really wasn’t held up and robbed at gunpoint.
Fox Sports had a cute headline, stating that these U.S. athletes were “swimming in a pool of lies”. They were all involved to an extent, but Lochte was the primary one responsible, and he paid a heavy price, losing some very lucrative endorsements by Speedo and Ralph Lauren, with a couple others also about to pull their big bucks. You can’t blame them — they can’t have ads with this guy’s face on their products after he disgraced himself, the U.S. and shamed Brazil while he was at it. Partying is one thing, but acting in a shameful and disgusting way is not how you represent your country and your sport.
