Beijing 2008

I LOVE the Olympics*. Always have. Always will. I don't know what it is about it that I love so much: the sport, the competition, the unity, or the athletes. I just know that I was so excited when I learned that the Olympics would be held every 2 years instead of every 4**. And I think I was even more excited for the Beijing Olympics because I have been to Beijing. It's been so fun to re-live my trip via the TV screen.

I don't follow every sport in the Olympics, because let's be honest: some are extremely boring. There is a reason some sports are broadcast in the middle of the night. But there are the few that I absolutely cannot do without. Take swimming for instance. Since the 2008 Olympics officially started on Friday night, I have recorded every single swimming event just so I don't miss a thing. I always loved to swim when I was a little girl and to this day when I watch the swimming events I still get so excited. My mom noticed this the other day and she said to me, "You still get so excited about swimming. I really should have let you pursue it more when you were younger." She just knows how much I love it.

Because I have faithfully watched Olympic swmming since I was a little girl, I have watched an aray of US swimmers make their mark on history. There has probably never been anyone better than Michael Phelps. He won 8 medals in 2004 and is up for 8 more again this year. He is absolutely amazing to watch. His strokes are so graceful that he barely disrupts the water when he swims. He is a beautiful swimmer.

But it isn't just Michael Phelps that is a good swimmer. In fact, did anyone catch the 4x100 meter relay last night? The US men's team came from behind (kudos to Jason Lezak) and beat France for the gold medal by only .08 of a second. And not only that, but they shattered the world record by 4 seconds! Even two teams that didn't medal (4th & 5th place) beat the previous world record (that surprisingly enough, was set by the US team during the prelims the day before!). It was the fastest race ever and was completely unbelievable! It was the most amazing relay I have seen in my life (and I have seen many!) I was quite literally jumping up and down and trying not to scream too loud so I wouldn't disturb my roommates. If you didn't get the chance to see it, check it out here. Even though I know the outcome, I still get excited watching it.

But anyway, there is another amazing swimmer in our mist and he first caught my eye when when I watched the Olympics in 2004. His name is Aaron Peirsol.

He is swimming in the 100 meter backstroke tonight and will be swimming in the 200 meter backstroke tomorrow. So if you have some time to spare, turn on the TV and cheer him on!

In fact, just turn on the TV and cheer on the entire US team!

*I told my nephew the other day that I heart the Olympics. He asked me what that meant and I said "it means I love them". He looked at me and said "Oh. I heart you."

**For those who are too young to remember, the Summer and Winter Olympics used to be held in the same year and therefore the Olympics were every 4 years (at the beginning of every Olympiad). It was changed in 1992 so that the summer Olympics are held in the 1st year of the Olympiad and the winter Olympics are held in the 3rd year of the Olympiad. Therefore, the games now alternate every two years. I LOVE IT!