witnessing HIStory

the one and only dream team. kerri strug landing a pivotal vault on a sprained ankle. michael johnson hitting 23 mph in his 200m run. derek redmond's father helping him limp across the finish line.

these images and events remain embedded in my mind over a decade later. they were memorable for varying reasons. the dream team was the greatest collection of basketball talent ever, playing together and dismantling the competition. kerri strug fought off her own personal pain for the benefit of the team. michael johnson displayed pure, insane athleticism. possibly my favorite, derek redmond, with the help of his father, finished what he set out to finish.

now there's a new image.

i thought the 4 x 100 freestyle relay was a nail-biter. phelps' teammates, especially lezak, stepped up and pulled out a victory. but phelps showed why he is the best during the 100 meter butterfly. why he may be the greatest ever. if it were any other swimmer, i would've conceded victory to the serbian swimmer cavic at the turn, with 25 meters remaining, and in the final 5 meters. but even as cavic reeeeeeeached for the wall, my gluteus maximus rose from the couch and i pumped my fist as phelps willed himself to victory with an extra half of a stroke. the replay was close. really close. 1/100ths of a second close.


on a slightly negative note, phelps could only manage an olympic record. his previous six races resulted in world records. step it up, mike!

but now phelps has 7 gold medals in one olympic games. his name will live forever. on saturday night, he and three other American teammates will decide whether his name will stand alone or with spitz.