Olympians

I liked reading about the Olympic maestros of two sports I don't know much about: WRESTLING and JUDO.

This story about Helen Maroulis was almost funny, as it talked about how she tried a lot of different sports before finding the best one for her:

https://www.pressboxonline.com/2016/08/26/helen-maroulis-from-timid-and-shy-to-olympic-gold-medalist


Also she had to diet very strictly to qualify for the weight class at the Olympic level :

"Every night, she would dread the final six hours of the day before she went to sleep, because she was so hungry."

http://www.freep.com/story/sports/columnists/jeff-seidel/2016/08/18/rio-olympics-wrestling-helen-maroulis/88980316/

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There is also Kayla Harrison...And for whatever combination of reasons, she did better in a higher weight class.

KH: I think growing up, especially for young girls in judo or in weight-cutting sports, it's really difficult. You're told the lighter you are, the better you'll fight.

AG: But you don't agree with that.

KH: No I don't. When I teach clinics, when I talk to young girls anywhere, I tell them, "Look, I don't cut weight anymore. I eat like 6,000 calories a day. What I truly believe is that if you're going to win, you'll win at whatever weight you fight." I always preach that strong is beautiful, strong is powerful and you shouldn't change your body for sport, for society, for anything.

http://www.espn.com/espnw/voices/article/16998379/the-conversation-kayla-harrison-first-american-win-gold-olympic-judo

I thought it was interesting. I might not really understand exactly how that works in competitive sports. But it's interesting...
This stood out to me, and so did this:

"That was so powerful to me, that my speaking out or sharing my story can affect someone that much and give them hope. To me, that's bigger and better than any gold medal will ever be."

http://www.espn.com/espnw/voices/article/16998379/the-conversation-kayla-harrison-first-american-win-gold-olympic-judo

I don't think it detracts from her excellence. It's how she felt and it doesn't detract because she still wants to succeed, and clearly she can still appreciate her medal.

Gold medals for both US athletes.