Spencer Jemelka - 2008 Olympics

Liu-sing it: Pressure, injury and bad luck

[caption id="attachment_164" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Watching Liu Xiang's race in the subway"][/caption]   I saw the group ahead of me as I walked down the stairs of the subway. They were all huddled around a large flat-screen. I stopped to see what they were looking at, and there was Liu Xiang’s face. He looked strong and determined as he warmed up on the track. This was his first race of the 2008 Games and all of us, although [+]

A Long Way from “One World, One Dream”

There is a crucial cultural component to Chinese relationships- face. Face is like a form of currency, you can get it, give it and lose it. To receive face is extremely important in establishing a reputation and having a standing in society. In this respect, the Chinese government is a great example of how far the country is willing to go to save face. The government has cleaned up “petitioners” and destroyed hutongs to make [+]

A Walk on the Walled Side: The US Wrestling Team and I Visit the Great Wall

[caption id="attachment_125" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Rulon Gardner (2000 Gold medal Olympian who beat Alexander Karelin, 2004 Bronze) and Me on the Great Wall"][/caption] I used to wrestle for Boulder High way back when (2000-2004). When at BHS I also wrestled for Colorado Team Excel, coached by Steve Knight. At the time Steve was also an assistant coach to the US Wrestling Team in Colorado Springs. About a month ago I shot him an email asking how I [+]

Fencing for Gold- Boulder’s Touché

[caption id="attachment_108" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Three Boulderites: Andrea Lagan (US Fencing), Theron Haan, and Me! (Check out our sweet US Fencing Pins)"][/caption] I went to my first Olympic event ever yesterday. My good friend, Theron Haan, whom you might remember from a previous post, gave me call and invited me to go to the fencing (sabre) quarter and semi-finals. As it turns out, Andrea Lagan, the US Fencing Team Director of Sports Performance and a Team Manager, [+]

Caution: Chinese Crocs-ing!

After all these buzz-kill, serious posts I decided to do a warm and fuzzy one. I was on my way to watch my friend’s modern dance performance when I noticed something out of the corner of my eye. Crocs! Remember those rubber shoes with holes that everyone wore (still wears?) in Boulder. I heard that the guy who owns Crocs lives in Boulder, right? So in the spirit of cross-cultural interaction during the Olympics here is [+]

Media Censorship and the Olympics

I decided to show you in person the censorship issues in China. Here’s a quick example of how “sensitive” searches can kick you off sites like Wikipedia and Google. Pretty good all around example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Bck3Zoattg [caption id="attachment_62" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="Freetibet.org: IE Message of Doom"][/caption] (It took me many hours to put this post up. The internet was a lot slower when I was editing this and I had to go through a lot of hassle just to [+]

Why no one is coming to the Olympics

  I don’t know why this isn’t screaming across news headlines. Buried in a report I can no longer find on the BBC website (my search engine crashes when I look for it…) only 45,000 foreigners are here for the Olympics. (All I can find now is a BBC report that says "...tens of thousands of world leaders, athletes and spectators [are] expected in Beijing for the Games: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7545593.stm)  I actually heard about this first from a [+]

Beijing’s Pollution- yesterday at 278 micrograms/cubic meter?!

  [caption id="attachment_19" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Today, August 11th"][/caption]  Yeah, I know it’s hackneyed but I’ll write about it anyway. The first thing you’ll notice about Beijing is the pollution. The heavy fog, mist, smog, smist or whatever it is that drapes the city in a gloomy cloud really can affect your mood. Being from Boulder I’m used to a brilliant blue sky. So, every now and then the fogmistsmogsmist opens up and the city is dazzling. Some [+]

Actually Being at the Opening Ceremony

[caption id="attachment_9" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Before the Bird's Nest"][/caption]         (I wrote this the day after the Ceremonies, but didn't get a chance to post until today). China put on one of the greatest shows on Earth last night. I wouldn’t know, actually I have yet to see the Opening Ceremonies. I had quite an experience last night. My friends and I were determined to see the fireworks. We figure the country invented the stuff, so the Ceremonies [+]

Opening Ceremony

Today is the day of the Opening Ceremony. The entire country has been on a national countdown to this moment. The tension and excitement is almost palpable. Two years ago I remember sitting in the back of a taxi cab staring at the Olympic rings, or in a gym where a TV had been set up with a special news station dedicated to progress made on the Olympic venues. Everyday when I walked to school [+]