So after all the hype (not that I’m challenging her injury at all) about the bruise, Ms. Lindsey won her first gold at the Olympics yesterday. Good for you Lindsey. You go girl.
Now, let’s talk. Here are the facts.
She announced long before the race (days) that she might not be able to compete.
She refused to get an x-ray to see if her leg was fractured. She said it was because she didn’t really want to know.
We heard daily for one week about the injury and so did her competition. We even heard about the cheesecloth remedy.
Then she blew the entire field out of the water by more than a half second (which in football terms would be like winning 100-10).
“What is your point, Christine?” I hear you ask.
Well, I’m not sure, but what happened to not wearing your weakness on your shirtsleeve in public? How many athletes are in pain or in physical trouble when they are competing and we don’t know? “There is no complaining in Olympic sport.”
My ex and I used to play a lot of tennis; mixed doubles. He was a racquet thrower. Ok, maybe he didn’t throw his racquet a lot but I remember one time he missed a shot and yelled, “Did you see that bird!?” I looked up at the roof of the indoor court we were playing in, and I said, “Why no, dearest love, I did not see that bird.” Anyway, once we were playing on opposite sides with a very prominent banking personage and his wife. My ex yelled something or other, and my partner turned to me and said. “I am surprised he does that, I would never want my competition to see that I was upset at missing a shot. It gives them such an advantage.”
He was right of course, and I try to remember that lesson – not just in sports which I really no longer do – but in life. Don’t give that co-worker the knowledge that they upset you, and so on.
The problem with all the hype about Lindsey is that it really took away from her success yesterday in my humble, I have no right to even have an opinion about Lindsey Vonn, opinion. Now, especially because she never got an x-ray, people are questioning whether she was injured or not. And, her exposure of a weakness so openly becomes a tactic rather than a simple statement of reality.
At any rate, you go Lindsey Vonn! Congrats on the gold. I hope you continue this successful quest for skiing greatness, you deserve it. And, just for the record, I’m not interested in hearing about the leg anymore. Sorry.
