I hope you
all got to watch the Opening Ceremony last night! From what I gather, they were
spectacular! I only caught bits and pieces on TV and some of the fireworks from
my balcony…I’m hoping Justin remembered to record it so that I can watch it
when I get back to the States! See pictures below for what the Opening Ceremony
is like from a USOC staffer point of view!
As you cheer
on Team USA over the next few weeks, I would like you to keep in mind something
that is very special about our American athletes and something that motivates
all of us at the USOC each and every day. The United States Olympic Committee
is one of the only countries in the world that does not receive government
funding. Yep that’s right – not one cent. Which means the USOC is actually a
non-profit organization that operates from the funds provided by sources such
as the NBC contract, awesome sponsors like Coke, McDonald’s, P&G and Nike
(just to name a few) and private donations from American citizens JUST LIKE
YOU!
Every dollar
is valuable and we try very, very hard to be strategic, focused and deliberate
with how the funds are spent. Many of our resources go towards the National
Governing Bodies (NGBs – who, by the way, are also all non-profit organizations)
for each sport and to their athletes. Believe it or not, most Olympic and
Paralympic athletes are just barely scraping by and have to make significant
sacrifices to be successful. In a very American way, our athletes are achieving
their Olympic dreams based on sheer grit and love for their sport. And seeing
them achieve those dreams is why many of us in the US Olympic Family get up for
work every day!
Below is a
link to a story that I came across. It summarizes this unique situation much
better than I can. Enjoy!
P.S. Shout
out to the Mountain Iron-Buhl girls’ basketball team! Congrats on your recent
win and keep up the good work!
P.P.S. Team USA won the first medal today AND it was the first gold medal! Whoo-hoo!
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| The Ralph Lauren style guide app that we all received and used to ensure that athletes looked perfect! |
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| The men's version. |
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| My roommate, Jamie, and I. |
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| Team USA preparing to march! Trivia: How many countries are competing at these Games? |
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| Team USA marching towards the Olympic Park! Our job was to usher them to the gate. |
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| Love the USA on the back! |
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| The Bolshoy, home of men's hockey! |
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| How we watched the last few minutes of the big OC! |
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Our job for the night is done!
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| The fireworks from our balcony. |
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Awesome!
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We did watched on t.v. and its was amazing. Very beautiful cultures! I think U.S.A. will get more gold this time! Take more pictures and try catch pictures with famous athletics! Go U.S.A!
ReplyDeleteGlad you all got to watch! Keep cheering!
DeleteHey Julie! My students (and I) are very jealous of your job! We had our own opening ceremonies in class on Friday! They were complete with the parade of nations, the Olympic fanfare, and an Olympic Ring relay race! We are starting our two week competition tomorrow and all of my students are watching and getting involved in the games! They did come up with one question to ask you, have you ever met Usain Bolt? We will keep reading and watching from Buffalo Lake Hector Stewart!
ReplyDeletePs. You give your dog a birthday shout-out and not even your own favorite little sister?!? What kinda crap is that?!? :)
Hi Jodi and Ms. Schmitz's students at Buffalo Lake Hector Stewart! I am so glad you are enjoying the Games and have a whole physical education unit on them! Great idea! I have never met Usain Bolt but I have seen him several times in the London athlete village and when he competed in London.
DeleteP.S. Happy Birthday little sister! I hope you had a great day! :)