Around the Bluhmin’ Town

By

Judy Bluhm

So long, Olympic breakdancing! We will never again have to endure the spectacle of whatever that “sport” had to offer at the Olympics. Because it was completely weird, and barely watchable. How the Paris Olympic committee thought that this was a good idea is another question that probably will pale in comparison to some of the choices made for the opening ceremony.

Every host city gets to “try out” a new sport when they host the Olympics. So, when the breakdancers took the stage, it was really a head-scratching moment. Possibly the craziest performance was by the Australian breaker Raygun (real name Rachel Gunn), who scored zero points and did a “kangaroo hop” in the middle of her routine. The gold medalists didn’t seem much better (my humble opinion) at this new “dance-sport.”

The World DanceSport Federation (WDF) has been campaigning for breakdancing to become an Olympic sport for years. Well, it happened, was watched, became the source of viral memes and now is put to rest. What’s next? Hopscotch? Kite-flying? Hula hoop contests? So, what will Los Angeles bring new to the Olympics in 2028? It seems they are playing it safe with sports like baseball, cricket, squash and flag football.

At the end of the Olympics many folks are left sad and missing those two-and-a-half weeks of excitement. We loved thrilling to the races, games, and individual stories of strength, courage, victory and redemption. We feel for the athletes who tried so hard and came so close. We were able to applaud America’s dominance in so many events. Then it all has to end. Oh, athletes, how we miss thee!

We were able to get in a few good laughs watching Snoop Dog, who has become an American ambassador of the Olympics. Well, put him in a riding suit like an equestrian champ and let the good times roll. There were plenty of “special moments” at the Paris Olympics. Like when USA champion sprinter Kendall Ellis got stuck in a porta-potty before her race and had to scream for help to be let out when the door got stuck. Already Ellis has struck up a partnership with toilet paper brand Charmin, turning her mishap from “backside to trackside.”

One breakout star of the Olympics was the Turkish shooter, who without any special gear, glasses, or gloves just walked up with an air pistol and shot a bullseye to medal. White tee-shirt, one hand in his jeans pocket, he took silver in the 10m air pistol mixed team event. His casual approach made him an internet sensation.

Tom Cruise wowed us with his closing ceremony stunts. At age 62, he gives new meaning to the term “senior citizen.” Yep, let’s just rappel into Paris’ Stade De Fance, greeting Olympians, grabbing the Olympic Flag and then roaring off on a motorcycle. But don’t stop there! Next is a pre-filmed video of Cruise skydiving out of an airplane in Los Angeles and slapping the Olympics logo on the Hollywood sign. Maybe stunts should be a new Olympic sport. Give the guy a gold medal.

Au revoir, adieu, Games of Summer. They have ended, but the memories linger.