We're Pulling for You, @MidKnightDreams!

The waiting is over and the Summer Olympics are here! Although I don't need motivation to watch these games from start-to-finish, I do have extra incentive this year: four athletes with Mississippi ties are competing in track and field events!

Bianca Knight - Women's 4 x 100m relay participant

First of all, my favorite of the bunch is Bianca Knight. I'll admit that I'm slightly biased towards her since she graduated from high school less than 1/2 mile from me.  A former co-worker of mine used to tell me about how she would race the boys in the neighborhoods of Rankin County and embarrass them.  She officially started racing at the early age of 12.

She first received national recognition when she was named the Gatorade 2006 National Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year.  After a short stint as a Texas Longhorn, she turned pro and started working on a way to bring home a gold medal for the U.S. team.

We're pulling for you, Bianca!

Now, despite the fact that the remaining people on my list were not born in Mississippi like Miss Knight, they did attend local universities.  Here are my other incentives to stay glued to my couch for T&F events:

Michael Tinsley (Jackson State Univ.) - Men's 400m hurdles

Brittney Reese (Univ. of Mississippi) - Women's long jump

Isiah Young (Univ. of Mississippi) - Men's 200m

What is your motivation to watch the 2012 Summer Olympics in London?