Five Ring Circus

“There have never been so many glorious geeks gathered in one place as there are at the 2024 Olympics, unless you want to count heads at a soil dynamics convention. What sweetness comes from total absorption in an eccentric pursuit — and what surprising athletic confidence, judging by the performances of the Gabby Thomases, Grant Fishers and Stephen Nedorosciks, not to mention all the throwers, fencers, shooters and archers.” Sally Jenkins in WaPo (Gift Article): Nerds and geeks are taking over the Paris Olympics.

+ “Although Madaye came 64th out of 64 competitors, perhaps the correct way to see it is that he is the worst, best male archer in the world. The 64th most elite bowsman to draw an arrow from a quiver, a phenomenal accolade given he has had to scrape together funding and equipment, his sport almost unheard of in his homeland.” Olympians who finish near the bottom still marvel at what it took to get to Paris.

+ What it’s like to be your country’s only Olympian.

+ “The race was billed as a bar brawl between the two baddest 1,500-meter runners in the world. Nobody figured the little-known American guy would sneak up on both of them, steal the show and take the Olympic gold medal with him.” American Cole Hocker pulls Olympic shocker in men’s 1,500, leaving Kerr and Ingebrigtsen behind. (After all the hype about the two favorites throwing shade at each other, Hocker’s upsetting of both may have been the event of the Olympics.) Hocker has last laugh after Kerr and Ingebrigtsen’s tiresome war of words. In the end, the only words that really mattered were the ones uttered by Hocker’s dad as his son crossed the finish line. “What the f*ck?”