I don’t fall in love with the Olympics every four years because the games showcase famous athletes at the height of their careers. I swoon for the regular folks who step forward out of obscurity and shine. It’s the people who could live in our neighborhoods, shop next to us in the grocery store, and bring their pets into our clinics that hold me in rapt attention. In these athletes, I see people in my community… and I see people at their best.
Did you know that Morelle McCane, the US boxer, funded her trip to the Olympics by working as a birthday party clown, daycare supervisor, and mailroom worker? Team USA canoeist and gold medalist Nevin Harrison had to put her education at San Diego State University on hold so she could train but she kept her part-time job working at a bar. And let’s not forget the now mega-famous college student Stephen Nedoroscik (aka Pommel Horse Guy) who showed up in Paris to do just one gymnastics event… and COOKED. I cheered my cheeks off for that guy even though I had never seen him before in my life.
It’s not just the athletes who shine during the games either. When Maggie Steffens, three-time gold medalist and captain of the USA’s Olympic women’s water polo team, posted on social media about how she and others on her team were working two or three jobs to be able to support themselves, the legendary hype man Flavor Flav decided to sponsor the team! He said he is a “girl dad and supporter of all women’s sports” and he wants to “have their backs.” I did not have Flavor Flav bringing a tear to my eye on my 2024 bingo card.
The superstars we all know are impressive, and I wouldn’t want to take anything away from them and their amazing accomplishments. For me, however, it’s the joyfully crying families in the stands that grab me. It’s the babies wearing ear protection, the beaming fiances with mascara running down their faces, and the mothers who (for some reason) are wearing heart rate monitors so we can see them hitting 160+ bpm while their grown children are tearing down the home stretch. It’s the hugs and tears… the respect and sportsmanship.
The Olympics are magical because they have the power to make us feel connected to the athletes (and the families) who go there. They remind us that we are all capable of incredible things and make us believe it could be, in some alternate universe, us out there. The games show us the greatest athletes in the world and remind us that they are people just like we are. In this way, the Olympics unite us.
So how is this good for vet medicine?
One of the hardest parts of veterinary medicine is deciding day after day to assume the best about people. It’s a challenge to see ourselves in the people who are having their worst day ever. It takes a toll to work with people who are rude, angry, ashamed, dismissive, or afraid. It becomes easy to harden our hearts, roll our eyes, and decide that we just don’t like humans.
Veterinary medicine has an unfortunate habit of showing us people at their worst. The Olympics are good for us because they show us people at their best. The games remind us that the people who bring their pets into our clinics may be capable of amazing things. They may be overcoming great obstacles, chasing a dream, working multiple jobs, developing talents we’d never guess, or supporting a growing family or aging parents. Yes, the humans in front of us may be struggling right now, but we share their humanity.
The Olympics are good for veterinary medicine because they can lift up the human side of the human-animal bond and remind us that our work helping families is as meaningful as helping their animal companions. Yes, the Olympics may come with an extra serving of cheese these days, but they are still magical if we choose to let them be so.
