:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/shawmedia/BFHBUGR22VDQPCGTDAEP2ISOQM.png)
Regarding the recently completed Summer Olympics in Paris, the opening ceremonies wowed me, the athletes’ backstories engaged me and the sporting events drew all my attention and enthusiasm. And, of course, NBC’s hiring of Snoop Dogg was inspired.
I did take a break from the action to watch the 1981 film “Chariots of Fire,” about Britons Harold Abrahams and Eric Liddell who ran in the 1924 Olympics. Watching it was apt because it dramatizes a previous time the Olympics were held in Paris.
Abrahams won a gold medal in the 100 meters with a time of 10.6 seconds. This year, American Noah Lyles won gold with a time of 9.79 seconds.
Liddell won gold in the 400 meters with a time of 47.6 seconds. In 2024, American Quincy Hall won gold with a time of 43.4 seconds.
After 100 years of sports medicine, specialized training, and technology, the time difference between Abrahams and Lyles is 0.81, and the time difference for Liddell and Hall is 4.2 seconds. It shows small but crucial progress.
At one point in the film, Abrahams, played by Ben Cross, says, “I believe in the pursuit of excellence, and I’ll carry the future with me.” That, I believe, sums up the spirit and the goal of the Olympics.
Jim Bauman