There’s been some excited Olympics watching at the Circles’ holiday home over the past week – especially on Super Saturday when Team GB appeared to be on a magical gold rush that culminated in an electrifying three golds in 47 astonishing minutes of track and field euphoria.
I think we all know we only get nights like this once in a lifetime, and we were jolly well going to make it our night to shine. The feelgood factor had been mounting all day following gold medals in rowing and cycling – then Jessica Ennis sprouted wings. It honestly wouldn’t surprise me if there was a baby boom in nine months’ time, such was the jubilation felt by Britain on Saturday night, and then again on Sunday when Andy Murray won the tennis (which we missed, gutted!).
If you haven’t already seen the clip showing the British commentators’ reaction to long-distance runner Mo Farah’s win, it’s really worth watching – and is indicative of what went on in British households that night.
Olympics camp – well, you have to start somewhere! [whispers quietly, and when they’re being naughty, it’s a great threat]
Our minds have also turned to how you become an Olympian, and while I know that’s a path my kids are unlikely to go down (BB is tall, but being left-handed, he’s very confused about which hand to throw with), we’ve had fun learning about all the athletes – and it does seem that many of them are built for Olympic success.
Take America’s swimming legend Michael Phelps. His 6ft 7in arm span is greater than his height (6ft 4in); his lung capacity is said to be 12 litres (double the average man’s) and his size 14 feet are more like flippers. I’m sure I read somewhere that his ankles are also double-jointed, enabling him to paddle his feet with extra thrust.
“Wow,” said BB, as we discussed this after Phelps’ 100m butterfly race win on Friday. BB, who does a lot of swimming in Dubai and really loves it, then glanced down at his feet to see if they might ever grow to this size, stretched his arms out, and, wide-eyed with curiosity, asked, “Does he have gills too?”
An amphibious Olympian – in the eyes of an awe-struck six-year-old who’s just learnt to fish, why not?
He might as well have gills he is so fast!!
My two here are debating which sport they would like to represent Ireland in…. its great that the olympics have got all these kids interested in sport.
It’s even got me running (ok, speed walking!) round the park during the light evenings here! And I can’t help watching all the kids playing tennis at the park, and even peering into the swimming pool, to see if there are any budding future Olympic champs!
Ha! It does seem entirely possible, doesn’t it?
We caught a little bit of Olympic coverage before we left the US, but the coverage here in Korea is a bit more challenging to follow. We’re watching a lot of badminton these days…
Fascinating to hear how other nations report on the Olympics – I hear the BBC has been in trouble for focusing a little bit too much on Team GB’s success this year – we’re just astonished, that’s why!
Haha, we’ve had similar conversations here as to how the swimmers can hold their breath so much underwater. And I’m now phoning up local establishments to inquire about trampolining and gymnastics lessons…
Loved your comment on FB about whether Bolt or a cheetah was faster!
When I young, we used to hold a mini Olympics with the kids in our lane. Each day, there would be a different ‘event’ and we would collect points throughout the summer holidays with rewards at the end. It was brilliant because everyone was good at something different and we woke up each morning excited for the next activity. Love Olympics!
Oh I love that! What a great thing to do 🙂 Hope you’re over the worst of that horrible pregnancy sickness and feeling blooming lovely! x