Olympic Medals....Few Surprises

With so much attention paid to the number of medals an athlete or country obtains, we often overlook the efforts of others who did not reach the winner’s podium. While I applaud the athletes from China and the United States for their achievements thus far, both countries tend to dominate the Olympic Summer games. Before China, it was mainly a competition between the USSR and the USA.  

We should not be able to safely predict the approximate outcome of the games before they commence. It would be more enjoyable if the outcomes were more of a surprise and not based on an expectation. Perhaps if we placed more attention on the efforts of all, there would be more role models for children. Right now, there is a lot of emphasis placed on medals, and the money some people will earn from future commercial endorsements. Is that what the Olympic games are about? db