Olympic Glory

The Olympics are finally here. After a long four-year wait the Summer Games have finally arrived up the algae filled waters of China and to the downtown doorsteps of pollution filled Beijing. The Great Wall isn't the only wall being discussed during the Games. That's right, the fake wall built to hide Beijing has the spotlight on. Its pretty bad when even the host country makes the decision, "hey, let's just put up a fake wall to hide our city". The whole "showcase your city" thing isn't something China is interested in. I hope those businesses got a nice payoff to stay closed during the Olympics. Its kind of hard to go to your favorite downtown deli when it has a 10ft fake wall in front of it. Anyway, on to the Games!

People always talk about the great Olympians. You know....Carl Lewis, Mark Spitz, Jackie Joyner-Kersee. That's good and all, but what about all the other Olympians who weren't so great. Nobody ever asks, "hey stranger, do you happen to remember who got dead last in the '96 Olympic Men's marathon"? Of course that's an easy one. Everybody knows that Abdul Baser Wasiqi is the guy that let down his entire country of Afghanistan. These are the type of people that we need not forget. When you think about it, there are a ton of people trying to be Olympians, and that's quite an accomplishment to be crowned the worst Olympian of all. I'd like to run down some of the worst Olympians of all-time.

In the coming days of the Olympics, I will research and select some of the worst-best athletes of all time. It will make you question athletic talent. It will make you question the desire of Olympians. It may even make you think there's still time for you to be an Olympian, but let's not get carried away. We all know that while you are drinking a beer watching Michael Phelps dominate in swimming, there is a kid out there training to be the Olympian that finishes dead last in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. It could be a woman with asthma from Spain, who forgets her inhaler before the 2 mile run. It could be an American guy that just wants to go party in the Olympic Village before his boxing match. It could be a Jamaican sprinter that has too much sunscreen on his hands and drops the baton during his relay. We just don't know, and that's what the Olympic Spirit is all about.

Enjoy the Games, but don't forget to take notice when that last swimmer hits the wall. Its not everyday you can see one person let down an entire nation.