“...in the true spirit of sportsmanship, for the glory of sport and the honour of our teams.” This oath will be taken in July by the 10,000 plus athletes fortunate enough to be known as participants of the XXX Olympiad in London.
Ask any Olympic athlete what his or her greatest accomplishment is and they will not tell you about the “thrill of victory.” Rather, they will tell you representing our country, on the greatest stage in the world, is tops. Our youngest and brightest athletes will compete for “the glory of sport.”
The Olympics have, in modern times, served to unite us, from sea to sea, as our team proudly wears the red, white and blue of Old Glory. With the Summer Olympic Games scheduled to start July 27 and the Closing Ceremony scheduled for August 12, the world's attention will, momentarily, be diverted from war in the Middle East and genocide in Darfur to more innocent endeavors.
Perhaps the Olympics will function as a two-week respite from the everyday frustrations of higher gas prices and the economy's downturn. The Olympics have served as a morale-boosting factor for our military across the globe in times of war as well as peace. 10,500 athletes are expected to compete in 302 events in 28 sports.
The American contingency will be more than 600 strong — the greatest number of athletes in a summer Olympiad ever. In a time when US-bashing seems to be a global pastime, these young people will represent us
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to the very best of their abilities. They are proud to be citizen-athletes of the United States. With the scandal of doping and steroid use in our professional sports and the negative press they've been receiving, we can only hope our Olympians will resist the temptation to use performance-enhancing drugs. They will take an oath, to that effect, in the Opening Ceremony.
Whether or not you are an Olympic junkie, and watch as much of the 3600 hours of televised events — all in high def — as possible, or not, it is amazing what has been accomplished in the name of the Olympics. Olympic hopes and dreams are a part of our culture.
The international event is the ultimate goal for countless young athletes. With so any venues from which to choose, it seems there is an event for almost everyone to enjoy. NBC News is estimating that more than 4 billion viewers, worldwide, will witness the games.
The fulfillment of so many childhood dreams as well as the springboard for countless careers, the Olympics is one of those once-in-a-lifetime occasions that we are privileged to witness. It is pure, unadulterated athletic competition at it's best.
I know this. I was one of the fortunate few.

Candy McMichen is the editor of the Alvarado Star and was a member of the 1976 US Olympic Team in Montreal, Canada. She has been a part of several Olympics since, including being a member of the French Olympic Committee for the 1992 Albertville Olympics in France.