February 4, 2022 – February 20, 2022. The winter events are held in Beijing, National Stadium, Hebei. There are approximately 2,971 athletes competing from 91 countries.
This would be China’s distinct opportunity to hold a Summer Olympics in 2008 and then today’s Winter Olympics. I was in Beijing, China in 2007 and they were already selling the Olympics 2008 paraphernalia on the streets then. Certainly China has enough land to do both seasons.
With all the excitement and focus on medals, sometimes it’s hard for us to remember that these athletes sacrifice much and work their tails off to get to where they are today. We can’t forget the support of their families and mentors either. Their accomplishments make every sport seem so easy.
As wonderful as it is to praise medal winners, it’s just as important to praise others who won’t receive medals this time around. Years of training and sacrifice can be upended in “disasters” within seconds. It’s an unforgiving sport for sure. If it’s any comfort, it happens to the best. Even, Mikaela Shiffrin, who crashed out of women’s giant slalom yesterday.
Despite this unfortunate incident, her example of resilience, perseverance, and toughness is what the Olympics is all about. That’s the enduring character part that is the real winner.
Her remarks with CNN demands respect and admiration from us all: “We can go to a lot of different places in the season where we can put the blame, but the easiest thing to say is that I skied a couple of good turns and I skied one turn a bit wrong and I really paid the hardest consequence for that.”
“Shiffrin’s next chance at a medal comes in Wednesday’s slalom, the discipline she won gold in as a teenager at Sochi 2014.The three-time Winter Olympic medalist said she was “not going to cry” about the crash as it would just be “wasting energy.”
You go, Mikaela!