by Mitch Albom | Nov 21, 2008 | Detroit Free Press
SYDNEY, Australia — The Olympics end today. The final medals will be decided. But I’m ready to name my own winners and losers of the past few weeks.
By the way, I am a purist.
Only gold …and tin.
Olympic Comeback
* Gold: To out-of-retirement swimmers Jenny Thompson and Dara Torres. They came. They saw. They delivered.
* Tin: To French track diva Marie-Jose Perec. She came. She saw. She ran away.
New Olympic Event
* Gold: Triathlon. Every time you watch it, you think “grueling.”
by Mitch Albom | Nov 21, 2008 | Detroit Free Press
“The louder he talked of his honor, the faster we counted the spoons.”
— Emerson
The people who run the Olympics have been caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
Inside are goodies such as free trips, jobs for children, college scholarships and an old favorite, cash.
These goodies were offered by cities hoping to host the Olympic Games. Since the Games and all their tourism dollars come only once every two years, you can see how, as the competition swelled, so did the pot.
by Mitch Albom | Nov 21, 2008 | Detroit Free Press
EN ROUTE TO NAGANO, JAPAN — I wave good-bye to the lucky ones, the ones who get to see the Winter Olympics.
“So long,” I say to my buddy with the big-screen TV, as I board the plane for Japan, “enjoy the event.”
“You, too,” he says, waving.
“Lucky stiff,” I mumble.
I should not feel envy, but I feel envy. I am jealous of their luck. I am jealous of their good fortune. Mostly, I am jealous of their seat.
“Don’t forget to tell me what happens,” I yell to my buddy who owns a sports bar. “I want details.”
by Mitch Albom | Nov 21, 2008 | Detroit Free Press
HAKUBA, Japan — To appreciate the scene — one man, leaping into the sky, soaring above his flag-waving countrymen — you must first appreciate the culture. Japan is a place where you do not stand out, where conforming is good, where joining is good. Those who dare to be different risk scorn and disgrace. There is an expression taught to the very young: “The nail that stands out gets hammered down.”
by Mitch Albom | Nov 21, 2008 | Detroit Free Press
ATLANTA — You take an idea. Get everyone in the world together, in one place, at one time, under one flag, for one cause. It is preposterous. It is unfathomable. But you circle it and you study it and you begin to chip away, like a sculptor on a mountain of granite.
by Mitch Albom | Nov 21, 2008 | Detroit Free Press
LAKELAND, Fla. — Forget the dateline. This has nothing to do with baseball or Florida. It has to do with the Winter Olympics, which ended nearly two weeks ago. It’s something I would like to get off my chest.
by Mitch Albom | Nov 21, 2008 | Detroit Free Press
CALGARY, Alberta — I am standing in snow. My feet are numb. My nose is leaking down my face. You are in an easy chair, wearing fuzzy socks.
We are both experiencing the Winter Olympics.
I am the journalist.
Ah-choo!
Let the Games begin! Wow! Just saying it gives me chills, although, with any luck, they will go away by spring. Maybe my jaw will defrost by then. Gold medals? Silver medals? Victory? Defeat? The triple salchow? Yes. Well. Easy for you to say.
by Mitch Albom | Aug 10, 2008 | Detroit Free Press
BEIJING – Ten thousand athletes. More than 200 competing nations. And there you are, one man, alone on your block, and it feels as if the entire Olympics do not start until you do.You are Michael Phelps.How’s the world feel on your shoulders?If it’s...
by Mitch Albom | Aug 3, 2008 | Parade Magazine
If you want to find the best stories at the Olympics, look in the corners, away from the spotlight. For me, in covering the Olympics over the last 24 years, the lesser-lit places have been where the most memorable moments took place. Sure, TV always hypes the...
by Mitch Albom | Feb 11, 1994 | Detroit Free Press
LILLEHAMMER, Norway — Wait a minute. Torvill and Dean? Didn’t we kiss them good-bye 10 years ago? Weren’t they skating with the Muppets last year? Isn’t Dean about as old as Regis Philbin? Isn’t Torvill in a reading group with Candice...
