I always know its Olympics time because I get a nightly, breathless phone call from my mother saying, Did you see that? Youre watching, right? Tell me youre watching.
My mom is an Olympics junkie. She loves it all: the inspirational stories, the underdog triumphs and the amazing performances from the best the world has to offer.
My husband does not share my familys Olympics enthusiasm, and he groaned at the idea of sitting through hours of TV coverage just waiting for one little gem of inspiration. So, we compromised, and I compiled the most inspiring moments from this years Winter Olympics so my children could still experience the magic.
The Olympics are a beautiful microcosm of what we want for the world and what we hope our children will become. Athletes from different countries cheer for each other while pushing each other to become better. They overcome physical and mental challenges, sometimes snagging the gold and sometimes just doing their personal best.
Even though the games came to a close over the weekend, you can still enjoy these amazing moments with my top five inspirational messages from this years Olympics. Take some time this week to share them with your kids along with the lessons about grit, determination and dedication from these athletes.
1. Overcoming adversity
Akwasi Frimpong grew up in a one-room house in Ghana with eight siblings. Determined to become an athlete, he moved to the Netherlands, where he learned Dutch, practiced three sports and worked two jobs (one as a door-to-door vacuum salesman). He competed for Ghana in this years Olympics in the sport of skeleton. Although he came in last in his event, his story of grit and passion won over spectators, as did his signature celebratory dance at the end of each race.
Read his story here.
2. The art of finishing
Mexican cross-country skier German Madrazo finished dead last in his 15 km event a full 26 minutes after the gold medalist. But Madrazo didnt slink into his last-place position. Instead, he grabbed a Mexican flag and enthusiastically finished his race. His teammates and his competitors embraced him at the finish line. I love this triumphant finish because most times in life, we arent going to win. We may not even place. We dont really have control over whether we come in first or last, but we can control whether we finish the race we start.
Watch Madrazo cross the finish line here.
3. Getting back up
Oh, Nathan Chen. You are amazing. After bombing his short program and landing in a disappointing 17th place, USA figure skater Chen made the comeback of all comebacks. In his free skate, he rocked the figure skating world by completing a record six quad jumps in one program. Im sure Chen was devastated by his subpar performance and the realization that he would not earn himself a medal in this Olympics, but he got back up, dusted himself off and decided he was going to go for broke.
Speaking of getting back up, Simen Hegstad Krueger of Norway had an amazing comeback after he stumbled and fell with two other skiers at the start of the 30 km skiathlon. He came back from last place, surpassing all the competitors ahead of him and winning gold.
I want my children to learn what these athletes know: Setbacks are not finales, as long as you get up, try again and maybe even surprise the world.
Watch Chens historic free skate here.
And Kruegers comeback here.
4. Siblings can get along (and win medals!)
As a mother, this is mind-blowing. My kids cant even make a peanut butter sandwich together without fighting. But the Shibutani siblings, Maia and Alex, have been skating together since they were kids and won the bronze, becoming the first U.S. siblings to win an Olympic ice dance medal.
Maia had this to say about her performance with her brother: Its the Olympics. Youre going to be a little nervous, but at the end of the day I know that Im out there with Alex and we just really trust and believe in each other and in ourselves.
To my kids, unless youre bickering about whether youre going for the silver or the gold, please take a note from the Shib Sibs and get it together.
See the siblings free dance here.
5. Fighting until the bitter end
Who doesnt love a last-minute, heart-in-your-throat victory?
The USA womens hockey team delivered just that in their victory against Canada, winning the gold in a 3-2 shootout that kept spectators on the edge of their seats until the final moment. Both teams gave 100 percent until the final buzzer, exemplifying the Olympic idea that its not over til its over. The win was the first for the USA womens team since 1998.
See the coverage and the winning shot here.
My mom is an Olympics junkie. She loves it all: the inspirational stories, the underdog triumphs and the amazing performances from the best the world has to offer.
My husband does not share my familys Olympics enthusiasm, and he groaned at the idea of sitting through hours of TV coverage just waiting for one little gem of inspiration. So, we compromised, and I compiled the most inspiring moments from this years Winter Olympics so my children could still experience the magic.
The Olympics are a beautiful microcosm of what we want for the world and what we hope our children will become. Athletes from different countries cheer for each other while pushing each other to become better. They overcome physical and mental challenges, sometimes snagging the gold and sometimes just doing their personal best.
Even though the games came to a close over the weekend, you can still enjoy these amazing moments with my top five inspirational messages from this years Olympics. Take some time this week to share them with your kids along with the lessons about grit, determination and dedication from these athletes.
1. Overcoming adversity
Akwasi Frimpong grew up in a one-room house in Ghana with eight siblings. Determined to become an athlete, he moved to the Netherlands, where he learned Dutch, practiced three sports and worked two jobs (one as a door-to-door vacuum salesman). He competed for Ghana in this years Olympics in the sport of skeleton. Although he came in last in his event, his story of grit and passion won over spectators, as did his signature celebratory dance at the end of each race.
Read his story here.
2. The art of finishing
Mexican cross-country skier German Madrazo finished dead last in his 15 km event a full 26 minutes after the gold medalist. But Madrazo didnt slink into his last-place position. Instead, he grabbed a Mexican flag and enthusiastically finished his race. His teammates and his competitors embraced him at the finish line. I love this triumphant finish because most times in life, we arent going to win. We may not even place. We dont really have control over whether we come in first or last, but we can control whether we finish the race we start.
Watch Madrazo cross the finish line here.
3. Getting back up
Oh, Nathan Chen. You are amazing. After bombing his short program and landing in a disappointing 17th place, USA figure skater Chen made the comeback of all comebacks. In his free skate, he rocked the figure skating world by completing a record six quad jumps in one program. Im sure Chen was devastated by his subpar performance and the realization that he would not earn himself a medal in this Olympics, but he got back up, dusted himself off and decided he was going to go for broke.
Speaking of getting back up, Simen Hegstad Krueger of Norway had an amazing comeback after he stumbled and fell with two other skiers at the start of the 30 km skiathlon. He came back from last place, surpassing all the competitors ahead of him and winning gold.
I want my children to learn what these athletes know: Setbacks are not finales, as long as you get up, try again and maybe even surprise the world.
Watch Chens historic free skate here.
And Kruegers comeback here.
4. Siblings can get along (and win medals!)
As a mother, this is mind-blowing. My kids cant even make a peanut butter sandwich together without fighting. But the Shibutani siblings, Maia and Alex, have been skating together since they were kids and won the bronze, becoming the first U.S. siblings to win an Olympic ice dance medal.
Maia had this to say about her performance with her brother: Its the Olympics. Youre going to be a little nervous, but at the end of the day I know that Im out there with Alex and we just really trust and believe in each other and in ourselves.
To my kids, unless youre bickering about whether youre going for the silver or the gold, please take a note from the Shib Sibs and get it together.
See the siblings free dance here.
5. Fighting until the bitter end
Who doesnt love a last-minute, heart-in-your-throat victory?
The USA womens hockey team delivered just that in their victory against Canada, winning the gold in a 3-2 shootout that kept spectators on the edge of their seats until the final moment. Both teams gave 100 percent until the final buzzer, exemplifying the Olympic idea that its not over til its over. The win was the first for the USA womens team since 1998.
See the coverage and the winning shot here.