It may be because of the overdose of sporting events that are constantly overlapping, it may be because the host city has been involved in other matters that conditioned its future and in some way ours, or it may be that there is still some effect or debate from the passage of the Eurocup hurricane through our lives. What about the celebration party, what is the point of Gibraltar, what if I don’t say hello… Good examples of how little we need to start arguing. The fact is that I have the feeling that the 2024 Olympic Games have arrived almost on tiptoe, as if suddenly. Whether it is a thing of mine or it obeys a general feeling, we must get going because what is coming is worth it.
First of all, because the Games are no longer about silence, pandemics, empty stands. Many tragedies, broken dreams, and wasted efforts are left behind. The public is back, as are the success and drama with witnesses, the hugs and the tears, whether of happiness or sorrow. Normality is back, if it still exists in this world so troubled.
Second, because the list of athletes is brutal in quantity and quality. Except for men’s football, which always goes its own way, in Paris there will be the cream of the crop of world sport. Simone Biles will be back, bringing wonder to the track and mental health to the debate. We will see if, in order to win a pre-agreed gold medal, Mondo Duplantis will embellish it by vaulting his pole over 6.24m, a fucking madness. We will be amazed again in the pool by Katie Ledecky, who already has 10 Olympic medals (7 gold). We will confirm that no one sells their product better than the NBA, which has assembled a team full of legends headed by LeBron James and Stephen Curry. We could go on like this to infinity and beyond.
And thirdly, because the Games represent diversity, as opposed to the usual monopolisation of media and social attention by a few specialities. It is time to put prejudices aside and embrace the idea that a volleyball match, a karate fight or a whitewater rafting trip can be exciting. There is no better opportunity than the Games to enjoy Guadiana sports, those that only appear in our lives every four years and that, in an ideal world, would deserve more attention.
Let’s talk about Spain. 382 athletes. For the first time that women (192) are more numerous than men (190). A huge success in team sports, where Spain has managed to qualify in football, basketball, handball, water polo, field hockey, beach volleyball… All of them twice and with possibilities of success. A question arises. With so many good examples in Spanish sport of outstanding team behaviour, why is it so difficult for us to transfer these values to other areas? I will leave the answer, as today is not a day for such conceptual depth. Nadal, Alcaraz, Rahm, Carolina Marín, Adriana Cerezo, María Pérez, Rudy Fernández, Ana Peleteiro, Saúl Craviotto, Fran Garrigós, Maialen Chourraut are some of the many names we will hear about in the coming days, hopefully as messengers of good news. Some well known, others less so, but all with a great challenge ahead and an interesting story behind them.
I’m browsing the networks a bit to see how the general mood is and I find a thread on twitter entitled “The hundred best medal options for Spain”. Hundred? Do we have a hundred chances of getting on the podium? Who knows why, this exaggeration encourages me. If we have so many, it will be bad if we don’t reach the 28 that a media like Sports Illustrated. We will surely talk a lot about medals and also about medallitis.
To start, our attention is drawn to a novel opening ceremony, to be held outside a stadium for the first time. From there, seventeen ideal days to forget about almost everything, have two and three screens at hand at the same time and get fed up of the best sport possible. If you have a gap between competitions, you can stop by this newspaper to comment on the action. We will be open every day until August 10th.
Happy games to all.
You can follow EL PAÍS Sports on Facebook and Xor sign up here to receive the Daily newsletter of the Paris Olympic Games.
