In
the wake of the Jamaican 4x100m victory, I posted some remarkable statistics attesting
to the strength and depth of the island’s pool of sprinters. I was annoyed, (but not surprised) by the ensuing
vitriol for the Jamaican team’s celebrations and those of Usain Bolt in
particular. “He’s an arrogant SOB,”
quipped one person while someone else sided with Carl Lewis’ speculations that
the Jamaicans had been doping all along.
In the wake of a Jamaican 1 2 3 in the 100m dash, Bolt was heavily criticized for taking a camera off a journalist and recording the moment for posterity.
Picture courtesy of The Guardian
Why
are we so quick to label confidence as arrogance? Though there is a fine line between the two,
I believe there’s a clear demarcation. So
let’s look at two Olympic happenings that, at least for me, helped chalk up the
boundary.
The
women’s 100m hurdles. American and
former world champion Lolo Jones places fourth behind compatriots Dawn Harper
and Kelly Wells who manage a silver and a bronze. Later in an NBC interview the two medal
winners express their disgust at how Jones’s defeat is getting more airtime
than their second and third place achievements.
US Athlete Lolo Jones.
Picture courtesy of nationalconfidential.com
It turns out that Jones – a devout Christian and beautiful to boot – has been on the media “A” list for some time now. Earlier this year, after tweeting that preparing for the Olympics was nowhere near as hard as preserving her virginity, the media spotlight turned on her with an intensity that few other members of Team USA experienced in the run up to the games.
In
the news industry, it’s the newsmen who decide what’s newsworthy, a fact that
seems to have either eluded or been spitefully ignored by Jones’ fellow
teammates. Rivalry between sportsmen and
women is to be expected – but jealousy over a fellow team member getting more media
attention than you – especially when you won a medal – well that’s arrogance
of the highest order.
Then
of course there’s Usain Bolt and lesser-known Olympian Robert Harting. Thanks to a few thoughtful journalists, we
have an alternative explanation to the allegations of arrogance we’ve been
hearing all along. Of Bolt et al, Tim
Adams of The Guardian says the following:
In among all the choreographed celebrations … there has always been
just a trace of an emotion that it is hard to imagine the great sprinter owning
up to: relief. Relief that his gift remains intact. Relief that the gods continued to smile on
him on this the biggest stage … Few athletes appear to show as much joy in
victory as Bolt, but like all the greatest sportsmen you guess he is fuelled
equally by a raging fear of defeat…
Though
never televised, the reaction of German discus thrower could attract as much
criticism as the Jamaican speedster. Upon
winning the Gold medal, Robert Harting ripped off his shirt, draped himself in
his country’s flag and began bounding over hurdles which had been set up for
the women’s 100m event. Instead, Tony Manfred of Business Insider described Harting’s
reaction as one of “adrenaline fueled passion and child-like joy”.
Discus Gold Medal Winner, Germany's Robert Harting
Picture courtesy of Business Insider
So, perhaps what some have labeled “arrogance” is in fact a sublime
form of relief alloyed with the unfettered and eruptive joy of
vindication. Which leaves one final
question: why does it make some people
uncomfortable?
Are
we really that squeamish about success, particularly that of the inordinately
gifted individual, the one with whom we could never hope to compete anyway? Have
we forgotten that the Olympics apart from being the rarefied litmus test of going faster,
higher and further are a celebration of the human spirit too?
One
Facebook friend wrote that the Brits actually loved the Jamaicans for their
exaggerated celebrations and said, “their arrogance was not taken
seriously”.
Interestingly, she also said
this: “We Brits find it easier to fail
than to show off”.
It
was a courageous admission though probably not limited to the Brits.
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