The Olympics

I *LOVE* the Olympics! As you probably know, I enjoy watching sports as a whole, but the Olympics are so special and unique. It is thrilling to watch all of the different sports and witness the passion and excitement as athletes compete not just for themselves or for one particular team, but for their entire country. It is remarkable to think of the dedication, hard work, and perseverance the athletes have displayed as they made sacrifices and overcame obstacles to achieve their goals. We are blessed to live in a great country and I, for one, am proud to cheer on all of the men and women who will be competing.

There is one athlete that I am particularly excited to cheer on and that is Chris Klug, a downhill snowboarder. He competes in the men’s parallel giant slalom and this will be his 3rd Olympic appearance. In 2002 Chris won the bronze-medal – just 2 years after he had received a life-saving liver transplant. Many of you have seen and commented on the autographed picture of Chris that I have hanging in my office. One of my favorite memories of Chris came when he was preparing to speak at a Donor Family Recognition ceremony in Florida. I was sitting with a donor family in the row behind Chris and his (now) wife, Missy. We started talking to them and Chris stopped working on the final details of his speech to talk to and take pictures with the brother of a young boy who had died in a tragic sledding accident and saved the lives of others after his death by being an organ donor. The kindness and compassion that Chris showed to this family – complete strangers to him – was incredible. I can promise that I will be cheering for Chris and I was so excited when I learned that he had qualified for the Olympics again this year. Here is a video clip that aired of Chris today.

I hope you enjoy the Olympics!