Today is the opening day of the XXXI Olympiad in Rio! And I am beyond excited. Television sports and I don’t usually mingle very well (except for maybe baseball), so this is the only time every 4 years that you’ll see me cheering at the T.V. over athletic bravado. I grew up watching the Olympics with my whole family, and I was privileged to live in Atlanta during the 1996 Olympics—and as an 8-year-old, that was pure awesome sauce. There are so many reasons why I find the Olympics so exciting, but probably the most important reasons are the athletes themselves.

A number of these athletes are underdogs, unknowns, or people who have faced so many challenges and so many setbacks just to get to the Olympic trials that they really should be considered heroes. Truth is definitely stranger than fiction, and if you’re looking for some good stories, just find some Olympic athlete bios (Top 30 inspiring olympians or this double amputee runner). Kerri Strug will always be one of my personal heroes. Who else can say that they braved through agonizing ankle pain to land a perfect vault?!!  The true athletes, I believe, are the ones who are doing it for their families, their country, and the glory of the Lord, no matter the obstacles.

The Olympics should truly inspire all of us to persevere and never to give in to evil or failure. It is also a rare occasion when this world and its plethora of diverse cultures can be united. So stop watching all the presidential election garbage ::cough:: news and watch something worthwhile: your fellow human beings defying gravity, pushing the limits, and finding victory in their God-given talents.

(No, NBC did not pay me for this message… )