Ad-indum, Ad-outdum...More to the Point(s)

Breathless(?) If you hadn't noticed, I have hardly taken a breather since yesterday's second part of the "Don't" series, after which I thought I would at least get a chance to cool down, take some deep breaths, and get some sustenance to sustain me for the rest of the fortnight in Tokyo. But NO! The same types of unexpected pitfalls I talked with you about awaited me, as the last 24 hours of news from Tokyo (and elsewhere in athletics, as you'll see) have compelled me to write this addendum(s), to share with you additional 'sports illustrated', examples of the five 'don'ts' of aspiring champs:

In-fa mericial: Also known as "Typhoon Fabian", Olympic officials as well as athletes have had to prepare, adjust for this tropical storm, which is soon due to hit parts of Japan, a perfect, unchoreographed example of "weather and other external factors" -- as competitors keep one eye on the weather, make some apparel adjustments, while the officials make some venue adjustments, while they all continue to stay focused on what they came here for. And, speaking of external factors, another living example in the form of British swimmer Tom Dean, who weathered two waves of CV-19 and eventually made waves himself in the pool by winning gold! Finally, also in this category, in the same pool, we find Lydia Jacoby, Alaska's first Olympian medal swimmer...no surprise, given the paucity of pools in a nation adjacent to a HUGE body of water...from a citizen on the port town Seward, known more for its role in the Iditarod dog sled race, which is also know as "Seward-to-Nome", which will also now no doubt be known as "Second-to None" as Lydia will be taking home a gold for the 100 meter breast stroke: "I wasn't really expecting a gold medal, so when I looked up and saw the scoreboard, it was insane!" (this should also resonate posts from past few days about how to stay 'sane' while staying focused on your lane, rather than the clock or your competitors).

Flame Out: Talk about reversal of fortunes, falling off a podium with her name almost etched in the gold medal winner position, an almost foregone conclusion that Naomi Osaka would at least win silver in tennis for her host country. Perhaps distracted by "the hype" (see yesterday), Ms. Osaka went from being an Olympic torch bearer to bearing the brunt of losing in two sets in the third round. Going from "ad in" to "ad out"..."Game, set, match, good-bye medal".  A lesson for the rest of us, to be sure.

A Two-fer: Bermuda can sympathize with Japan for bearing the brunt of tropical storms and for Olympic level disappointment itself, as it has been sending athletes to "The Games" since 1936 and until yesterday had only won a bronze, and that was 45 years ago. A curse that Flora Duffy, who defied the "odds" (or otherwise not being distracted by the odds as I explained yesterday as well, glad she was at least listening), only one of two Bermudans in Tokyo competing, broke through yesterday by winning the women's triathlon...running away from the competition (literally!). Upon reflection, after finally catching her breath, taking it all in, Flora illustrated a second point from yesterday's post: "I tried to keep my composure and not let my mind drift...until the last kilometer..." See what I meant by not "looking beyond the immediate"? Thanks and Congrats Flora!

Covered in/by Pink: Away from Tokyo but worth a second mention, an addendum sort of story I shared here a few days ago regarding  the Norwegian women's handball team that was fined for covering up, for not wearing the requisite bikini bottoms, the singer/performer "Pink" has come forward to cover them...noteworthy itself but also a trend of stories getting attention in these Olympics -- that of "gender equality" how they are covered and how they are not 'covered'. 

OK, I need and deserve a breather but tune again, don't stay away too long, as there's a lot more illustrations awaiting us, to be sure!

P.S. Wow! Proof of this was found almost immediately upon putting this post to print, discovering that one our national favorites who has become the face of gymnastics, the role model of so many young athletes (gymnasts or otherwise), Simone Biles, pulled out of competition, citing too much pressure, both of an external nature and that she was internalizing, precluded her from going on, taking such risks under these conditions. So even the most seasoned of athletes can be adversely affected by "all the hype"...We are all so sorry to see her go and hope for Simone's return...