My Olympic Experience: The Beginnings

My Olympic dream dates back to the 80s, when I began to actually comprehend what the Olympic Games signified and what the movement was all about.

1988
I remember standing in my living room in a small flat in Poland, staring at the TV, taking in every single moment of the opening ceremonies broadcast coming in all the way from Calgary, Alberta. It was a cold winter day in 1988, I was 8 years old and right then and there I had my first Olympic dream...

Then there was Seoul, South Korea... summer of 1988. What a show at the opening ceremonies! It's then and there that my appreciation for the Olympic movement was born. The flame symbolizing unity and friendship, the white dove symbolizing peace, the Olympic truce, the Olympic values... it seems that they truly represent all that we consider good in the world and reflect what - at least in my humble opinion - humanity should be all about.

1992
Albertville, France, followed in winter 1992. The Albertville Games were the last Winter Games to be staged in the same year as the Summer Games. And who can forget the summer of 1992? Barcelona, Spain... Freddy Mercury and Montserrat Caballé singing together at the opening ceremonies? One of those moments that sticks with you for a long time...

1994
Then we had Lillehammer, Norway, in winter 1994. In his address at the closing ceremonies, Juan Antonio Samaranch, president of the IOC, named the Lillehammer games “the best winter games ever,” a characterization that has yet to be repeated concerning any Winter Games. Can Vancouver set the new standard? Let's hope so!

1996
Then the Games came back to North America with Atlanta hosting the Summer Games in 1996, with a record-breaking participation of 197 nations.

1998
Nagano, Japan, was the host city of the Winter Games, in which snowboard was introduced as an Olympic sport. Canadian Ross Rebagliati was the first ever to win an Olympic gold medal for that sport, even after testing positive for marijuana (the initial decision to strip him off the medal was later overturned when it was argued that marijuana is not a performance-enhancing drug... unless the competition involves eating junk food, of course...).

2000
Then came the year 2000. No Y2K could stop Australia from staging one of the best Summer Games, the Games of the New Millennium in which 199 nations participated. Sydney delivered.

2002
Two years after, we went back to the United States for the Winter Games staged in Salt Lake City.

2003
In summer 2003, there were no Summer Games but that July was marked by an important celebration nonetheless... Yes, there was Canada Day on July 1. However, just a day after that, Canada kicked off yet another celebration, one that is still going on today... It was on July 2, 2003 that Vancouver won the bidding process to host the Olympics by a vote of the International Olympic Committee, narrowly beating Pyeongchang, South Korea, 56 to 53 votes in the second round. I'll come back to Vancouver later though... (saving the best for last? Perhaps...)
Let's go to Greece now.

2004
Welcome Home was the motto of the 2004 Summer Games in Athens. It was the first time since 1896 that the Olympics were held in Greece, the country where it all began in 776 BC with the Ancient Olympic Games held in Olympia.

2006
In 2006, we moved to Italy, the host country of the Winter Games in Turin.

2008
Beijing completes the list of my Olympic experience to date with the Games of the XXIX Olympiad held in August 2008. Over 11 000 athletes attended from 204 National Olympic Committees (new record) and competed under the motto: "One World, One Dream." According to Wikipedia, there were 43 new world records and 132 new Olympic records set. An unprecedented 86 countries won at least one medal during the Games. Chinese athletes won the most gold medals, with 51, and 100 medals altogether. Michael Phelps broke the records for most gold medals in one Olympics and for most career gold medals for an Olympian, and equaled the record for most individual golds at a single Games. Usain Bolt secured the traditional title of "World's Fastest Man" by setting new world records in the 100 metres and 200 metres sprints. Unfortunately, China's human rights record is not one of the Olympic highlights.

2010
So that brings us to today, 12 of January 2010. Over six years ago we found out that we'll be hosting the world in Vancouver. Now, merely 31 days separate us from the opening ceremonies of what we hope to be the best Winter Games ever. And I couldn't be any more excited about it as I embark on this Olympic journey the way I didn't even imagine possible 21 years ago... when I watched my first Olympic broadcast as an 8-year-old. I have the privilege to participate in this experience as an Olympic Volunteer, one of 25 000 proud individuals that will work hard behind the scenes to make this an experience of a lifetime for the athletes and the spectators on site, and for every single one of you who shares the Olympic dream.

So come along with me on this incredible journey...

With glowing hearts... welcome to my Olympic blog!

-Michal