The Olympic Spirit

The Games have begun!

All of the APU athletes at the Games. 8 of us, plus coach Erik. We make up half of the Olympic Cross Country Team this year! photo: Leann Bentley

A 106 page document exists called the Olympic Charter which lays out the purpose and rules of the modern Olympic movement. I read it the other day, well, okay, I skipped a lot of the boring sections about rules, but I wasn’t in there looking for rules. I wanted to know why the Olympics even exists, and I wanted to know if my internal feelings about it aligned with the actual mission of the whole thing.

So much hype and media and money surrounding the Games is about winning and medals, but that simply didn’t feel like the accurate and complete representation of the Games in my core, so I researched the Charter myself to find out.

According to the Olympic Charter, Olympism exists “to create a way of life based on the joy of effort, the educational value of good example, social responsibility and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles”(Olympic Charter, page 11).

Olympism also strives to promote a “peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity” and stands for the human right that is sport “with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play”(Olympic Charter, page 11). The Charter talks about political neutrality, and inclusion, and the uniting of the world for the Olympic Games. It talks about the history of the modern Olympic movement, starting in 1894, and how Olympism is a “philosophy of life” encompassing the triad of the body, mind, and will. It talks about the importance of educating youth through sport and how the Olympic movement hopes to build a better, peaceful world.

THIS is what the Olympics stands for. Of course, I understand that earning an Olympic medal is incredibly important for those that do, because it is the biggest platform in sport and the easiest way to make money and grow your fan base. But fourth place through 80th place? You won’t see a dime, so this has to be about something more than medals or money, and I can feel that it most certainly is.

I was watching the women’s skiathlon in person on the first day of the Games, and I started tearing up watching my two lovely teammates, Novie and Julia, skiing up the final climb side by side. I felt the Olympic spirit so strongly in that moment and I just couldn’t help but feel the energy and emotion. I could feel my two strong, kind teammates gritting their teeth, digging just a little bit deeper to find the last of their energy up the final climb, having already raced through tough conditions for nearly 20 kilometers. They were embodying the joy of effort, and they were part of a peaceful battle, representing all of us. They weren’t close to the podium on that day, but I still felt the same kind of pride and emotion that spills over while watching an inspiring Olympic podium moment. I was standing there, watching these women make the final turn into the Olympic stadium, and I just couldn’t believe I got to be there, feeling the energy and soaking in the experience of the Olympics.

There is something moving about sports at the highest level, specifically watching endurance sports in person. You can see it in the eyes of the the athletes, you can feel the discomfort and the ability to push through their own internal battles. The joy of effort is undeniably inspiring to see up close, no matter if someone is winning or in 60th place, especially set against the backdrop of the Olympics.

Six of us went to the Opening Ceremonies, but the whole team dressed in the ceremony outfits for a team photo beforehand! It was so fun :) Photo: Gretchen Powers

I got to walk in the opening ceremonies! This is something I had always dreamed about getting to do as a kid, and it wasn’t even close to being an option at the Beijing Games. The ceremonies this year were split across the different satellite villages in Italy, and we had a pretty small contingent in our Predazzo village, which included cross country, Nordic combined, and ski jumping athletes. It was SO fun to dress up in the fancy outfits and celebrate the actual start of the Olympics!!

Our Alaska Opening Ceremony crew waiting to walk into the stadium with Team USA! Hailey, Hunter, Kendall.

This Olympics is already 100x better than in Beijing. The biggest difference is that I have family and friends here that I love SO much. We have team germ policies where we aren’t allowed to be indoors with our loved ones, except in our hotel restaurant wearing masks, but being with them at all is a blessing even though this rule feels a bit extreme. I’ve been going on walks or jogs with them, finding outdoor benches to sit on or dry grass to lay on, and spending time in the hotel restaurant.

Mom and Dad! Aren’t they cute in their Team USA Sweatsuits???? We held our breath for this photo while we took masks off for a moment, don’t worry.

A break from indoor mask hangouts— hiking with Kate and Eli in the mountains <3

Our team does not live in the athlete village here in Predazzo. My understanding is that we are doing this to avoid germs, because illness seems to spread through the villages every Olympics. We are in a nice and comfortable hotel, but it definitely makes this feel more like a World Cup or World Championships than the Olympics. I am so glad I got to walk in the opening ceremony because it was a little taste of village life, with all the nations coming together and uniting under the Olympic movement.

For some reason, people seem to be extra friendly at the Olympics, and that is encouraged and celebrated by trading pins. Each nation brings their own pins to the Games, and you are encouraged to trade pins with other people. It is special, and you see people connecting in small ways to trade pins. At the last Games, since there was so little going on there, I made it my mission to trade with as many countries as possible, but this year, we have very little overlap with teams other than official training or racing days, which makes those little moments of connection harder to curate.

I am racing in the 10k skate race on Feb 12th, unless something crazy happens between now and then! I have been working on my skating a lot the last few weeks, since I have focused much more on classic skiing throughout this season. Some technique changes have recently clicked for me, which is the best feeling, and my training and preparation has been going as well as I could have hoped the last few weeks. I really want this race to go well, as it will determine whether or not I get any other starts the rest of the Games. At the same time, I keep reminding myself that it is kind of insane to be here at all, and it was 6 months and 4 days ago that I decided I wanted to try to go to the Olympics and commit to it. I am proud of how I have stayed true to myself and aligned with my values through this experience.

Thank you to all of you who continue to send me well wishes, subscribe to the Daily Hailey, follow along, and make me feel so loved through this. No matter what happens on the snow, I feel like I can’t lose at this point because of all of you. Let’s go USA!!