Who We Want To Be:

I just finished watching a devastating interview with Melissa Hollingsworth... tripping into tears, trying to atone with words for what she felt was a letdown for her family, her country...

I think we're confused as to who we are as a country. We want to be both things.

We've heard it repeatedly over the past few days. Canadians are polite. We're friendly. We're upset when people don't hold the door because we know we'd hold it for them. We hate crossing the border because we'd sooner assume that somebody is good than that they're bad.

My speculation, though, is that in sports, the guys who win, more often than not, are the guys who you hated playing against in rec league because they took everything way too seriously. They're the guys who got all sweaty and aggressive when everybody was just trying to have fun. The guys who threw their weight around even though nobody was wearing pads.

I was watching the Snowboard Cross event with some buddies at work. We were yelling at the TV mid-race as the two American guys were throwing elbows and shoving our guy out towards the edge of the course... it's so inherently unlike us to approve of that type of activity, right? Fight fair. Fight clean. "C'mon man...!" is what we say.

So do we want to be known as, "Canada... reserved, humble, polite"? Seemingly.. because, let's be honest.. we do not want to be known the way much of the world knows the Americans. And we swell with pride during the Opening Ceremony poem, "We Are More". "Damn right!" we all say..

Or do we want to be known as, "Canada... owns the podium"? Win at all costs, utter brash confidence, mercilessly competitive, ultimately victorious. Well...



My take is this:

I love good stories. I'm not particularly competitive. In fact... really not much at all anymore. In the end, I don't really believe that sports, as a singular event, mean anything. They're the least of all things... with the power to excite, and inspire, and, as such, to become so much greater than their original, base-level value. I've found that I don't have a ton of interest in expectations. Melissa Hollingsworth was expected to win gold. She didn't. Somebody else did, and I suspect that the other girl has an amazing story.

This whole "Own The Podium" excercise has done its job. The proverbial "bums" are "in the seats". People are watching. The show is rolling, and the advertisers are buying.

Every win means something great for somebody. When a Korean wins a gold, they're guarenteed a government issued salary, for life. For life!! I love those great moments where everything falls into place. I enjoy the ones that go our way. As one of my bosses said when he walked into the room immediately following the Canadian "Crosby Show" shootout win, "now THAT's GOOD TV!!" Sure was... a huge moment. Fun to be a part of.

If, at the end, Canada was to be known for something, I'd prefer it wasn't that we were great at winter sports.

These games have been a blast to watch. Great moments left, right, and centre. Athletes reaching the absolute pinnacle.. sometimes ours, sometimes not. It's how it should be.

Here's to a great second week!


... but we better friggen win Hockey!

JB