Day 48- An Olympic Dream Come True

Today I went two hours northeast of Beijing to the Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park. The bus ride was long, but I met some fun Canadians along the way.

I'm born and raised in Montreal, but haven't managed to meet any "Montrealais" yet. All have been from Toronto and Calgary.

There were several events at the rowing park today, most included either Team USA or Team Canada. Both teams did very, very well! Each picked up at least two medals at today's rowing events.

The Canadian 8-man rowing team was favored to win Gold, so the Canadian section was excited to see the event. The American 8-woman rowing team was favored to win Gold as well. Canadians in particular had been excited for this event because we didn't have ANY medals before Saturday rolled around!

At the venue, I met some Canadians from Toronto. They were really nice and we all flew our Canadian flags when the teams rowed by us. We were in a larger group of fans from Great Britain. Unfortunately, there weren't any fans in our section from the USA, or many on our side of the stadium for that matter!

Team Canada's men scullers took off and had a great lead time. They were almost a full 3/4 boat length ahead of the American team. Great Britain was coming in a close second, but Canada stayed strong. All of the fans were cheering so loud. As the teams got closer to the finish line, the Americans got a second wind and hauled full-speed ahead. We all had our eyes glued to the scoreboard and television monitors. Canadians were in a similar position in Athens, but lost any medal hopes in the last seconds.

The race finished. In the distance, the Union Jack, the Stars and Stripes and the Maple Leaf were all being waved back and forth. We knew which teams were going to get medals, but who was first? Who pulled it off? Then silence. The time was flashed up on the scoreboard. "Team Canada: 5:23:89"...

...then a ROAR from the Canadian cheering section. GOLD FOR CANADA!!!

It was a surreal and unique moment for each of us. Although some were in their 60's and some as young 6 years old, none of us had ever witnessed our country win a Gold medal! It was so exciting... I can't imagine what it's like for the Rowers!!!

We decided to head towards the flag poles and medal podiums. We had to see the ceremonies up close! We waited for almost 30 minutes, but our time came.

In Women's 8-person rowing, the Americans won Gold! I sang the US anthem, but got confused with some verses. It was actually the first time I had tried singing it. (An it was at an Olympic Event!)

Earlier in the day, Great Britain won a Gold, so I also was able to sing "God Save the Queen." Some lady saw me sing all three and asked how many more anthems I knew... I laughed and told her those were the only three I knew. I lucked out!!!

After the American anthem, the stage was all for Canada! We were so excited for the moment we could all sing "Oh Canada!" The medals for the men's event were awarded and the flags were brought out. The music started and we all burst out in song! It will be one of the most memorable moments in my life. It was on my "bucket list." I always wanted to sing the Canadian National Anthem at an Olympic event. I got my chance. That is what the Olympics are all about! Making dreams come true.

I highly suggest you all try it sometime. WOW! Still excited about it!

USA is ranked 1st for medals. Total: 65; Gold: 19; Silver: 21; Bronze: 25. WAY TO GO TEAM USA!!!!

Canada is ranked 17th for medals. Total: 7; Gold: 2, Silver: 1; Bronze:4.

Mark

Going for Gold!

Tonight, fate intervened in my life.

Tonight, I decided I wanted to go watch Swimming at the Water Cube, but accidentally ran into Brian William's assistant instead. I explained that I report for KOMU (an NBC affiliate) and asked her if she could get me a ticket to the Today Show. She had one in her hand and told me I could have it and to have fun. It just so happened other Mizzou students were there, so I met up with Sarah and Paige and we waited for almost two hours for the show to start.

I wanted to share one experience that I had at the Today Show this evening, but first a bit of background. I went to South Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte, N.C. At the time, my high school had an outstanding swimmer. His name was Ricky Berens. Everyone in Charlotte knows Ricky's name, he's a great guy and has an amazing reputation as a swimmer. Anyways, Ricky graduated the year after me and I found out he went to U-Texas at Austin and pursued swimming.

Well today, Ricky and the Team USA 200-meter freestyle relay team set a World Record and won Gold Medals at the Water Cube. I was working at the Field Hockey venue and had a chance to catch a glimpse of the race...needless to say, I was screaming at the screen! The Chinese people around me thought I was crazy for yelling that "I know him! I went to high school with him! I know his sister too!"

I can't explain how excited I am for Ricky and his family!

Well, if you watched the Today Show this morning, you saw Matt Lauer interview Ricky. I couldn't believe, of all days, I was there the day Ricky was interviewed! As soon as he appeared on the set, I wasn't sure if I would say hi since it's been almost 4 years since I last saw him. I decided to go and say hi, even if I would awkwardly explain that we went to high school, in case he didn't recognize me. As I walked over to the set, Team USA supporters chanted his name, took pictures and requested autographs. When I managed to get over to his area, I yelled out "RICKY!". Luckily, and to my relief, he remembered me. Not only did he recognize me, he knew who I was! He came over and I congratulated him over and over again, and said how proud I am to say I know him. We chatted for a bit, and I answered "So what exactly are you doing in Beijing?"

After his interview with Matt, Ricky came over one more time and I asked to take a picture with him. You can see the picture above. What you can't see is what happened moments before that picture was taken. Ricky let me HOLD HIS GOLD MEDAL!! I can't even describe how awesome it was! I couldn't believe I had an Olympic Gold Medal in my hands! (Although it was still attached to his neck!) It wasn't too heavy, was embossed with the Olympic logo and had jade set in the other side. It was so awesome, I can't say it enough.

If you couldn't tell, I'm still excited about my adventure over to the Olympic Green today. There are tons of more stories to share, but this is the story about one event that will stick with me for the rest of my life.

I could've decided to stay home and watch events on TV; I could've bought a ticket for the Water Cube; I could've walked past Brian Williams' assistant...but instead, fate intervened.

Mark