the women's games.

i heart the olympics, big-time.

i love the global-ity.

i love the eye-popping athletic prowess.

i love becoming an armchair expert about obscure sports
that these athletes have committed their lives to mastering.

i love the ecstasy, the agony, the occasional scandal. the drama.

i love team usa, & the national pride & unity they elicit.

i love watching our stars & stripes rise above the crowd
while listening to the star-spangled banner. *sniff.*

& this summer, i loved loved loved the women.
the ass-kicking, name-taking, medal-winning women of london 2012.

for the first time, all 204 participating countries
included women in their teams [including the first women
athletes from saudi arabia, qatar & brunei].
in fact, women represented a record 44% of the almost 11,000 olympic athletes.

for the first time, team usa featured more female athletes than male [269 vs. 261].
females also outnumbered males on china & russia's teams.

the oldest team usa member was female: equestrian karen o'connor, 54.
the youngest team usa members was female: swimmer katie ledecky, 15.

for the first time, women's boxing was included in the games.
women won 56% of team usa's medals, & 66% of its golds [including one in boxing!].

13 team usa members were moms. :)

so, in honor of what some are terming "the women's Games,"
& to keep the olympic torch aflame a little longer
[did i mention i love the olympics?],
i'll be telling some of the stories of the girls of summer 2012
over the next 16 days, hoping to amaze & inspire
all over again.


image source: florence griffith-joyner, who won gold medals in the 100m, 200m [world record] & 4x100m relay at the 1988 summer olympic games in seoul, via allvoices.com.