Confessions of an Olympic geek.

In about a week, the Summer Olympic games will begin in London, England.

As the title of this entry suggests, I am an Olympics nerd.  I admit it.  I watch them every four years.  I don't have a specific sport I watch...well, okay, in the Winter Olympics I watch ice hockey, duh...but when it comes to the summer version I do not have a specific sport I follow.  It's just the spectacle of the thing, I guess. 

When I watch the opening ceremonies next Saturday it will be the tenth Olympics I have seen since I was born.  There have actually been 11 Summer Olympics in my lifetime, but since the United States boycotted the 1980 Moscow Summer games, I don't count those.  That was unfortunate that we didn't send our athletes to those Olympics, because politics should not interfere with sports, but I don't make those decisions.  In London it's being claimed that this will be an Olympics where no eligible country will stage a boycott, so score one for the human race on that one.

The first Olympics I remember watching was the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany.  It was known as Munich, West Germany back then.  I was four years old and all I remember watching was the swimming competition.  Cosnidering the terrorist attack that happened where the 11 Israeli athletes were murdered, I am somewhat glad I only remember that. 

The Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 were the ones I really remember because I watched them practically from beginning to end.  The reason for that probably stemmed from the fact that about a month before they started, the Olympic Torch relay passed through town.  It was truly one of the coolest things I have ever experienced in my life.  I can say that I ran about a half-mile with the runner carrying the torch down Riverside Drive in Tulsa.  Not too many people get to say that they've done something like that.  It's in second place after getting to hold the Stanley Cup a few years ago.

Going to see the Olympics is definietly on my bucket list, along with seeing the Super Bowl and the Indianapoilis 500.  It's a dream that is farfetched, and I likely won't be able to do it, but I can hope.  A couple of years ago a few people form Tulsa were bandying about the idea of hosting the games here, but even though it's a neat idea the possibility of that actually happening is so remote it's hardly worth mentioning.  Still, I have hope.

Who knows?