My Experience at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics

"He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life."                                -Muhammad Ali

 

I know as a child, we all at some point in time, have watched the Olympics on television and dreamed about being there because of the host country, supporting our country in particular events, and/or just wanting to see the Olympic experience. I've always dreamed of going to a summer Olympic games to watch track & field, beach volleyball, gymnastics, swimming, and see the opening or closing ceremony. (Also, because it's warm.)  I know in 2016, I was highly tempted to buy a flight to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil just to be in the environment. Well, I've fulfilled that dream, almost.

Living in South Korea, I got a once in a lifetime opportunity. I was able to attend the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics.😆 Back in 2016 when I was deciding to teach overseas, I wasn't really pressed about the Olympics being in South Korea. But, after 2 months being here, I made a quick decision that I was going to go. I followed the websites and researched for the release date of tickets to the public and how to maneuvering through Olympic venues. It felt like I was working on a 10-month research paper. After months of trying to find someone to join me, my friend Liz voiced her interest in going to the opening ceremony with me. We were two of the lucky ones to get the cheapest tickets. (It wasn't until a month later I found out those sold out fast.) That was the only thing I had planned to see. Due to a change in travel plans home, I ended up having the opportunity to see other events. Like I mentioned before, I would have preferred the summer Olympic games, but since I'm living in Korea, I thought I could handle the cold and attend a couple of events at the Olympic games. I won’t lie, the only winter sport I’m ever interested in is figure skating. For all other events, I’m just just like "Go Team USA!" for the athletes (in spirit) to win in their event(s). But, this experience was different.

I had a remarkable experience from the start to finish. During my commute to my hotel, I met some Americans that live in Korea, as well, and are volunteering for Team USA. We were able to share our cultural experiences here in Korea as an expat, what we’re looking forward to experience during the Olympics, and they shared with me volunteer opportunities with Team USA and some benefits for future Olympic games. The OPENING CEREMONY: it was a very surreal moment once I got my ticket scanned to go into the Olympic Stadium. I felt like I had just walked into Disney World with so much excitement. We met up with my American soror to take pictures, and next thing I know, we were asked if we wanted to be interviewed by Craig Melvin from the Today show!! (My 5-second TV shine.) We heard we were supposed to get a blanket and hot packs to keep us warm but hadn’t received anything after walking in. Time was ticketing, so Liz and I headed to our seats. We got to our seats and found a 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic swag bag! Inside the bag were hot packs, a blanket (that I lost 😑), a raincoat, a North Face beanie, a seat cushion, a cultural drum, and a pen light. I immediately wrapped the blanket around my legs and activated about 4 hot packs. As you probably saw on TV, we were freezing. Throughout our excitement, we noticed these cheer squads singing songs and waving flags. The Korean guy next to me informed me that they were the North Korean cheer team and they were holding the unification flag. (I won’t lie; Liz and I tried figuring out what country was on the flag, but didn't know. It looked familiar, but unusual. The world views the countries separately, so when they’re actually one, it seems unfamiliar.) It was interesting to witness the North Korean cheer squad cheering on KOREA a section over from us. I won’t go in detail about the entire opening ceremony, but I’ll tell you my two memorable moments. 1. I got to see Team USA walk in and cheer them on as they walked along the path, and 2. I was very close to see the lighting of the Olympic torch. Those are 2 things I’ve always wanted to witness at an Olympic Opening Ceremony. With all the excitement, it wasn’t until the end I realized my toes were frozen and numb. On the bus ride back towards my hotel I ended up talking with a lady that participated in the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Laurence Bonici talked about her experience as an Olympic athlete, director, and spectator. I was in awe!

#TeamUSA / #TeamCanada

Day 2: Figure Skating Practice. Figure skating is a very popular event, so tickets sold out fast for the competitions. To get some type of experience, my sorors and I decided to sit in and watch the Olympic athletes that were competing the next day practice their routines. From Team USA, we saw Chris and Alexa Knierim and Bradie Tennell do their practice routines; we saw French skaters, Vanessa James, Morgan Cipres, and Mae Berenice Meite practice their routines as well. While cheering on Team USA, we found other Americans near us cheering on our country’s athletes. After the events, we walked around the venues in Gangneung, touring the area before our departure. At dinner time, we sat next to and talked with Norwegian Olympic Athlete, Mons Roisaland’s family. The next morning, we had talked with a Canadian athlete's parents. We came to a consensus that a good amount of people staying at our hotel were parents of the athletes and the Australian Olympic team. We got a chance to hear from some, their perspectives of raising and traveling with an Olympic athlete, as well as, the sacrifices and things parents of athletes do/make throughout their child's Olympic career. I salute all the parents of Olympic athletes!

Frostbite for the Win! Our final Olympic event wasn't until later in the evening of our last day. We stayed in bed to get enough rest, so that we could make it through a long cold night. We went to the Luge competition to see Chris Mazdzer, Taylor Morris, and Tucker West.  Mother nature decided to freeze everyone out of the stadium that night. We were there for  part of run 3. By the time we got there, my fingers were frozen in my gloves, and I started to lose feeling in my toes. During run 3, we stood out their long enough to watch Taylor Morris slide by and a few other athletes. After that, we found a shelter house to defrost in. I sat right next to the heater, feeling pain as my toes started to defrost. I decided to stay for run 4, as I wanted to see Chris Mazdzer medal. I had enough feeling in my fingers and toes to see Tucker West's run and Chris Mazdzer get the silver medal! That was a memorable moment for me. After that I was out of there.

Chris Mazdzer's run to secure the Silver for Team USA!

Tucker West's final run!

For my first ever Olympic experience, everything was amazing to me. I enjoyed every moment! I will say that this was my first winter Olympics and probably my last🙄. That cold weather is something else. Living in Korea for the past two winters, I thought I could handle it. But, it could have been just the Korean winters that are unbearable. I wish I was able to see the US flag for Chris Mezdzer at the Awards ceremony the next night; I'll catch an award ceremony for the US athletes at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics!😎

Thanks to my home state's news channel, KARK 4 News that's covering the Olympics, for a small story they did me. Click Here!

Until the next adventure,