2024 Olympics Are Over – But Pride in Accomplishment Remains

The 2024 Summer Olympics ended August 11. American athletes came home from Paris with an assortment of medals and memories. Some won gold, others silver or bronze, and the rest left with only the experience. Each demonstrated great discipline, team spirit, and an inspirational ability to overcome obstacles – something they and the rest of America can be proud of.

As Kirsten Brooker explained in her “History of the Olympics,” the Games are repeated every four years, a period of time called an Olympiad. The Summer Games of the XXXIII Olympiad took place in Paris, France, from Friday, July 26, to Sunday, August 11. For 19 days, more than 10,000 athletes competed in 32 sports. Between all of the heats (qualifying races) and semi-finals, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) supervised 329 events.

Olympian Overcomers

Olympic athletes tend to inspire people in general, but some had especially interesting stories this year. Gymnast Sunisa Lee, for example, was hospitalized in December 2023 with two kidney diseases. She bounced back, however, and won three medals this year!

Brody Malone, another American gymnast, suffered what could have been a career-ending injury. But he put it and his own poor personal performance behind him to guide his teammates to a bronze medal in the team competition.

Noah Lyles of Alexandria, Virginia, took home the gold in the men’s 100-meter final, and Gabby Thomas did the same on the women’s side. Cole Hocker won the men’s 1500-meter run, and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone won gold in the 400-meter hurdles but also broke her own world record in the process.

Politics and the Olympics

Historically, the Olympics has had its share of unrest. In 1936, a stadium filled with Nazis in Berlin shocked the world with their Hitler salute. Ten days before the games were set to begin in 1968, the Mexican army opened fire on people who protested the government spending money on the Olympics rather than social programs. More than 200 protesters were killed. At the 1972 Munich Games, Palestinian terrorists broke through security at the Olympic Village and killed two members of the Israeli team and took nine others hostage.

With a history like that, it likely isn’t surprising that this year’s summer games had its fair share of political drama. For example, because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russian athletes were banned from the games.

Fuzzy Feelings

NBC chose well when it picked Mike Tirico to announce the events. His coverage of the Games was balanced and friendly, and he kept things entertaining. Filmed with movable cameras and drones, the TV coverage was great. The thrill of victory on the faces of the winners and the losers often walking over to offer congratulatory hugs showed true sportsmanship. All in all, the Summer Games of the XXXIII Olympiad provided viewers with a warm and fuzzy dose of the joys inherent in competition – something we all sorely needed.