Distractions & delights of Olympic proportions

Also: Gen Z voters need Kamala Harris to be more than "brat" [❤️ Donate]( [View in Browser]( August 4, 2024    Dear Cog reader, I watched a lot of sports before I became a parent. Baseball, tennis, football, soccer, the Tour de France - I loved it all. But the arrival of children meant a lot less free time, and spectating didn't make the cut. With one exception: the Olympics. Every four years, I give myself a free pass.  I've been up way past my bedtime since the Games began because I just can't turn away. On Tuesday night, even though I knew Simone Biles and the U.S. Women's Gymnastics team won gold, I had to see it for myself. This was after I caught "[Steve]( fever on Monday. (Steve, of course, is [Worcester native, Stephen Nederoscik]( the bespectacled pommel horse specialist.) I also became very invested in the outcome of the 800m men's swimming final, which - I'm sorry - is borderline mind-numbing to watch. But I was wrapped up in the story of Bobby Finke, who nearly squeaked out a come-from-behind victory to repeat his gold medal win in Tokyo. He fell .55 seconds short.  I happened to flip on table tennis as I was folding laundry one early morning this week. I like pingpong; I thought I understood it. Then I was introduced to [Kanak Jha,]( 24, an American pingpong prodigy. He's competing in his third Olympics! As I attempted to fold what felt like a gazillion kid socks, I watched him pummel 44-year-old Panagiotis Gionis, of Greece, to advance to the round-of-16. No American athlete has ever gotten so far in the Olympic singles tournament.  I didn't know who [Ilona Maher]( was until four days ago, and now I can't stop watching [her TikToks](. She's the 5-foot-10, 200-pound, lipstick-wearing American Rugby player from Vermont, who has gained millions of followers on social media since the Games started. Perhaps you've seen clips of her savagely stiff-arming Australian players on the way to the U.S.'s first-ever medal in the rugby sevens? Or deadpanning about [meeting her future husband]( the food line at the Olympic Village? She's incredible.  The distractions and delights afforded by the Olympics are endless. They've felt like a desperately needed shot of joy. (Women's soccer fans: Check out Julie Foudy on Instagram, she can hardly contain her glee about the American "[trifecta]( of Mallory Swanson, Trinity Rodman and Sophia Smith.) But the factoids about this year's Games are notable, too. Some of my favorites: In 2024, of the 10,500 athletes from 206 countries competing, there are nearly as many women as men. ([According to the International Olympic Committee]( it's the closest the Games has ever come to "full gender parity on the field of play.") Every Olympic medal handed out in Paris contains iron that was once [part of the Eiffel Tower](. For the first time ever, there's a [nursery]( in the Olympic Village for athletes who are parents.  Watching these young men and women compete is inspiring - for many of them, the Olympics are the pinnacle of their careers. I've also been thinking about how they've done the one thing so many of us fail to do (but actually could) - they show up, consistently, over and over. Through injury, low motivation, various setbacks. I'm hopeful their commitment is rubbing off. I've worked out harder in the last eight days than I have in months. And I don't think I'm the only one. I saw a guy, probably in his mid-50s, going all out on the trail near my house.(I swear he was humming the Olympic theme as he chugged by, arms pumping, gasping for air.)  I know the Olympics are a big-money operation. The [Council on Foreign Relations]( put true cost estimates for the host country between $19 billion and $34 billion; and the IOC earned [$7.6 billion in revenue]( from the 2020 Tokyo Games. But I am still swayed by the romanticism of the Games. The idea that for two weeks, the world comes together to participate in sport. Imagine what might happen if we could always be so collegial? So many of these Olympic athletes are people who pay the bills with regular jobs, as teachers, and retail and business owners. Just [ask Flava Flav]( who is now an official sponsor of the U.S. Women's Water Polo team. We've been doing this modern-era version of the Olympics since 1896, but we humans have been playing many of these sports for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. The [ancient]( Olympic Games - we're talking 600 B.C. or thereabouts - including running, long jump, shot put, javelin, boxing, pankration (a wrestling/boxing combo) and equestrian events. Gauzy, Olympic-Cloe [wishes the Games were in Boston]( this year afterall. Practical Cloe is intensely relieved not to be battling somehow-even-worse traffic. But wouldn't it be something to witness these feats of human glory in person and not just on TV?  It made the Cog team wonder how other people feel about the Olympics. So, we did a[round up]( of what Cog's contributors, readers and our own colleagues are looking forward to this year, and their most salient memories from the Games gone by. We hope you enjoy it.  Thanks for reading,  Cloe Axelson Senior Editor, Cognoscenti Editor's note: We have a new address: newsletters@email.wbur.org. Be sure to add us to your contacts - or for Gmail users, move us into your primary folder - so you never miss a newsletter. Reply to this email if you have any questions; we'd love to help. Must Reads [We asked, you answered: The Olympics, Paris edition]( The Olympics could have been in Boston this year. But it wasn't meant to be. We asked Cog's readers, contributors and our colleagues at WBUR to tell us about their favorite Olympic memories from years past and what they're most looking forward to this year. [Read more.]( [We asked, you answered: The Olympics, Paris edition]( The Olympics could have been in Boston this year. But it wasn't meant to be. We asked Cog's readers, contributors and our colleagues at WBUR to tell us about their favorite Olympic memories from years past and what they're most looking forward to this year. [Read more.]( [Gen Z voters need Kamala Harris to be more than 'brat']( If embracing the brat aesthetic has any impact on Harris' support and nomination win, that's great, writes Emma Weisberg. But what I'll be looking for in the days leading up to the election are the policies and promises of a leader, someone who will make this country a better place for future generations. 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His call list was endlessly long, his inbox bursting at the seams, and there was always a line outside his door, which is exactly how he liked it. [Read more.]( [FROM THE ARCHIVES: The best beach books have 5 things in common]( I'm not a snob about books, writes Laura McTaggart. But I do have standards, and even my beach reads must meet them. In fact, I have even higher standards for my beach reads, because everything about a summer reading experience should be idyllic. [Read more.]( [FROM THE ARCHIVES: The best beach books have 5 things in common]( I'm not a snob about books, writes Laura McTaggart. But I do have standards, and even my beach reads must meet them. In fact, I have even higher standards for my beach reads, because everything about a summer reading experience should be idyllic. [Read more.]( [FROM THE ARCHIVES: Simone Biles Can Fly, But She's So Much More Than Her Wings]( I am constantly reminding myself that I don't have anything to prove, writes Theresa Okokon. Neither do you. And neither does Simone. [Read more.]( [FROM THE ARCHIVES: Simone Biles Can Fly, But She's So Much More Than Her Wings]( I am constantly reminding myself that I don't have anything to prove, writes Theresa Okokon. Neither do you. And neither does Simone. [Read more.]( What We're Reading "Kareem Maddox is either the world's coolest audio producer, or the world's nerdiest professional basketball player." "[How Kareem Maddox Went From Public Radio To The Olympic Stage]( Defector. "The forces of American culture and politics are pushing men and women under age 30 into opposing camps, creating a new fault line in the electorate and adding an unexpected wild card into the 2024 presidential election." "[America's New Political War Pits Young Men Against Young Women]( The Wall Street Journal. "It's been six weeks since I graduated, but it hasn't taken long to discover that I was a misled curmudgeon, focusing too much on my generation's dedication to academics." "[College students study enough. What they need is more social life]( The Washington Post. "In the media, young voters are often infantilized in a way that divides us all. If Harris's campaign wants to relate to Gen Z and Millennial voters, it will take more than connecting to our taste in music and pop culture trends. - Emma Weisberg, "[Gen Z voters need Kamala Harris to be more than 'brat']( ICYMI [Trump says crypto will save the fossil fuel industry. Spoiler alert: It's magical thinking]( Donald Trump once declared he was "not a fan" of cryptocurrency, but now says he loves bitcoin. His flip-flop reveals a willingness to pander to special interests at the expense of consumers and the environment, writes Frederick Hewett. [Read more.]( [Trump says crypto will save the fossil fuel industry. Spoiler alert: It's magical thinking]( Donald Trump once declared he was "not a fan" of cryptocurrency, but now says he loves bitcoin. His flip-flop reveals a willingness to pander to special interests at the expense of consumers and the environment, writes Frederick Hewett. [Read more.]( If you'd like to write for Cognoscenti, send your submission, pasted into your email and not as an attachment, to opinion@wbur.org. Please tell us in one line what the piece is about, and please tell us in one line who you are. 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 🔎 Explore [WBUR's Field Guide]( stories, events and more. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.](   [Donate](   # # Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences](.   I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. Unsubscribe from all WBUR editorial newsletters [here](.   Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here](. 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