Simone Biles Withdraws From Olympic Events

Not that it matters, but let me first start off by offering a disclaimer: by no means do I want to sound insensitive in discussing this. 

Athletes are different these days. Well, people overall are different because the athletic world is just a microcosm of society.  However, the greatest gymnast I've seen in my lifetime is not participating on the highest stage and it's disappointing. The reason doesn't matter. 

Regardless if it would have been due to a physical injury or something of that nature, to not see the best at a competition not perform in a once-every-four-year event is disappointing.  It's like listening to Phil Collins performing "In The Air Tonight" and your power cuts off on your sound system before the drums can kick in.  All that build up with no conclusion.

And I feel let down because this is all new to me in the world of sports.  I'm from a generation when athletes stood out because they "found a way" to compete on the biggest stages despite the pressure or pain that came along with it.  

Muhammad Ali is considered the Greatest of All-Time by many boxing fans, but he lost 5 times in his career.  Serena Williams is considered the GOAT of the tennis world, but she's lost in a major event championship 10 times in her career.  So, they're simply not great because they won a lot.  They're great because they continued to come back after a loss.

Whatever athletes like Simone, Naomi Osaka, Kyrie Irving and others may be going through, I hope that they can work through it.  How I feel is inconsequential to them, as it should be.  The media is tough and social media critics are relentless.  I'll never know the pressure they may feel just for being who they are.  But I will say this: 

It's okay to lose.

We need to instill that mindset into younger people sooner rather than later.  What made Ali the greatest boxer of all-time to me is not that he won a heavyweight championship.  It was the fact that he lost the championship belt multiple times yet continued to fight until he won it back.  His perseverance is what made him the GOAT in my opinion.  The same goes for Serena.

Something needs to change.  We need to say "no" to participation trophies.  No more celebrating someone's presence as being enough.  We have to teach people how to take an "L" and be okay with it because no matter what you do in life, failure is going to rear its ugly head multiple times.  You will lose at something.  

The word "life" even starts with an "L"!

We all go through things in life that a lot of people may not be aware of at the time.  And although it sounds like I'm bashing Simone, I'm really not.  I don't blame her one bit in this because I truly don't know what she's going through.  Her story isn't done yet.  She's still the greatest gymnast I've ever seen and I hope that she has a comeback story like an Ali or Serena.  

It's the system that I hate.  I question the system that has been in place for at least a generation that says "not participating" is the route you take when things get hard instead of a focus on helping people cope prior to getting to that point.

Gotta Love Homegrown Talent!

Track & Field star, Bianca Knight

So, I'm minding my business and doing a little grocery shopping when I hear someone calling my name from the other end of the aisle.  It's a college homie of mine named Calvin.  It's been a couple of years since I've last seen him.  I walk up the aisle to chat with him and notice a young lady with him.  It took me a second, but then I recognized her.  It was Olympic gold medalist, Bianca Knight.  I'd blogged about her 7 years ago when she won gold in the 4x100 meter relays in London.

Calvin was her track coach in high school and introduced me to her.  She was very friendly and I was able to make small talk with her for a few to see what she was doing now. 

I thought that it was funny to randomly bump into someone I was so proud of for representing my state and winning the gold seven years ago.

Here's the blog from August 2012 below:

The young lady, who literally raced to stardom in my neighborhood's backyard, is now an Olympic gold medalist! 

Bianca Knight will not only be bringing home a gold medal, she'll also bring home a world record. The U.S. Women annihilated a 27 year old East Germany record as they finished the 4x100m relay in a blazing time of 40.82 (record was 41.37). 

(continue reading here)

Kseniya Ryzhova / Tatyana Firova = Tommie Smith / John Carlos?

I saw something this weekend and had no idea that I may have been watching history. Russian track stars, Kseniya RyzHova and Tatyana Firov, violated the anti-gay laws of Russia by protesting at the IAAF track championships in Moscow. The Russians won the gold medal in the 4 x 400 meter sprints for the first time in roughly 10 years. They celebrated/protested with a kiss on the medal podium. Was this similar to Tommie Smith and John Carlos holding up the Black Power Fist on the podium in the '68 Olympics in Mexico?  Was this the opportunity for a breakthrough in the LGBT community that they have been looking for as of late?

Russian laws state that no one is allowed to discuss or display homosexuality in front of children.  However, what Ryzhova and Firova did put them on display not only in front of the children in the Moscow stadium, but also around the world.  It was the boldest in-your-face slap to Russian leaders that one could show on broadcast television.

It reminded me of a part of history I wasn't old enough to see which occurred during the '68 Olympics in Mexico City.  200 meter sprinters John Carlos and Tommie Smith represented the United States during a time there was conflict in South Africa and racial segregation in America.  To show solidarity with both movements, Carlos and Smith raised their fists (with black gloves on) to indicate Black Power.  They did it on the medal stand as the National Anthem was played despite the fact that it would piss off plenty of people here in the states.  In fact, the two lived as outcasts to many people instead of Olympic heroes for a long time because of the gesture.

Will the iconic display of affection during Sunday's event will have the same effect in Russia that the Black Power pose had in the United States?  The Olympics is no stranger to protests of all sorts, so it makes you wonder what some athletes may have in store for the upcoming Olympics in Sochi, Russia.  Although I don't think that the struggle of Gay Rights equally compares to that of Civil Rights, I do think that they sometimes take the same paths.  Just like the Civil Rights Movement, the Olympics could wind up being the portal to project the LGBT movement to the world.

The Olympics had quite an impact on me as a young boy and it still resonates with me to this very day.  I have a poster of the Black Power pose on the wall of my man cave along with Muhammad Ali, who won gold in the 1960 Olympics, and Jessie Owens, who made a statement against Hitler with four gold medals in the 1936 Olympics.

Could we one day see a poster on the walls of Russian teens of the Russian sprinters kissing?  Then again, a poster of two Russian ladies kissing wouldn't be bad for American men to put in their rooms either.  LOL!  What?  I'm just sayin'!

Do you think this move will ultimate pay off for the Russian ladies or will they come to regret it?

@MidKnightDreams Do Come True!

Bianca Knight flashes her Gold (Source)

The young lady, who literally raced to stardom in my neighborhood's backyard, is now an Olympic gold medalist!

Bianca Knight, affectionately known as @MidKnightDreams on Twitter, will not only be bringing home a gold medal, she'll also bring home a world record. The U.S. Women annihilated a 27 year old East Germany record as they finished the 4x100m relay in a blazing time of 40.82 (record was 41.37). 

Her high school coach, Calvin Bolton, was proud of her in the local news interviews as well.  He is a Coldwater, MS native who stayed a few doors down from me in college at Mississippi Valley State University.

People gathered at her school, Ridgeland High School, to view her accomplishment in the auditorium and they were not disappointed. Bianca, who runs the turns on the track almost better than any other American, helped extend a lead for the U.S. Women which led to the world record.  The media pretty much had them pegged for a silver because of the recent dominance of the Jamaicans, but the U.S. Women took the lead and never looked back.

Jamaica took silver with a national best 41.41 time.  Despite having 100m Gold medal winner Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and 100m Bronze medalist, Veronica Campbell-Brown, on their team, it wasn't enough to overcome the Americans.

Props to Bianca, Allyson Felix, Camelita Jeter and Tiana Madison for returning the relay team to glory and for being the first-ever under 41 seconds.  They erased bad memories of botched hand offs over the past couple of Olympics and got the gold for the first time since 1996.

The under-10 year old girl who used to beat older boys in foot races in my friend's neighborhood has turned her fantasy into reality.  The Mississippi teen who broke tons of state records at my city's school  is now etched in the history books.  The Texas Longhorn who left school early because she felt destined for greatness is now an Olympic gold medalist.

This is what the Olympics are about.  Pride in your country.  Despite how jacked up the U.S. can be at times with racism, sexism, and any other "ism" that comes to mind, for 40.82 seconds, all of that was gone.  Not only am I proud of my homegirl, but I'm also proud of the other three ladies for representing my home country.

Mayor McGee, fire up the parade plans. Ridgeland is having a party!

Tiana Madison, Carmelita Jeter, Bianca Knight and Allyson Felix

Fair or Foul: Olympics Version

I've been glued to my TV since the start of the Olympics and I've seen quite a bit of drama unfold. I want to throw two things at my readers to see what type of feedback I get from a couple of Olympic stories:

Jordyn Wieber
This recently-turned 17-year old gymnast was one of five young ladies who gave it their all to qualify for the team gold. However, Jordyn was dead-set on being an individual gold medalist as well. To do so, she had to be one of the top two performers on her team to qualify. She was third.

Once the results were read, Jordyn immediately buried her face in her hands and exploded into tears. NBC had multiple cameras trained on her as she dealt with her disappointment of not qualifying for the individual medals. After NBC interviewed the top two ladies on the U.S. team, they sent a reporter to interview Jordyn, just minutes after her finding out that it would be 2016 before she would have that opportunity for an individual medal again.  NBC had no concerns for her feelings. They only wanted to fuel their ratings with "the agony of defeat."

My verdict: I'd be firecracker-hot if NBC got all in my kid's grill after she experienced a disappointment like that. And don't get me wrong. I think kids should learn what it's like to be disappointed. It builds toughness and character. But, on national TV? Foul.  But, I give major props to Jordyn for handling the interview better than some older professionals would have.  She supported her teammates and kept everything moving.  Had that been my daughter being humiliated on national TV, then I would have been coming down from the stands with an ax handle.

Becky Hammon
This 35-year old WNBA star was born and raised in South Dakota. She spent her college years at Colorado State University before playing professionally with the New York Liberty and San Antonio Stars.  Everything about her background screams American. However, she was (once again) not offered an invite to participate on the U.S. Olympic basketball team for the '08 games in Beijing. So, what did Becky do?  She joined the Russian team. Yes, that's right.  Becky gained citizenship with Russia and is currently representing them in the '12 Olympic games as an opponent of the United States. But, she's just living out her dreams, right?

My verdict: I think it's a punk move. I think that her mindset that reflects a lot of under-40's in this country: you're not good enough to play with the big girls, so you take your ball and go somewhere else. What happened to earning a spot in sports? Why do people go elsewhere to try and get a chance instead of out-performing the person in front of them? I've seen parents fraudulently enroll their kids in other school districts just to find somewhere they have an opportunity to play.

If you're not good enough, then you're just not good enough. In my opinion, what Becky did, is definitely foul. The Olympic Committee should pass a rule that determines your home country as the country where you've spent a majority of your life.


Is it fair or foul for NBC to stay in the face of a minor after losing out on what could have been an opportunity of a lifetime?
Is it fair or foul to change countries in just to participate in the Olympics?

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?