One of the benefits of having recently spent a couple of
weeks on holiday was that the break coincided with the 2016 Olympic Games in
Rio. This meant that we could manage to
watch a fair amount of the coverage, and even, on occasions, stay up into the
early hours for particular events, knowing that we wouldn’t have to feel guilty
having a lie-in to recover!
Overall, this has been an excellent Games for the British
team. Remarkably, the team have come
away with more medals than they achieved during the 2012 London Olympics, and
came second in the medals table, finishing above China. Some have called Britain a “sporting
superpower.”
For some competitors, their four years of hard work and
preparation has paid off, with their dreams of Olympic gold having been
realised, and there have been some outstanding successes. Mo Farah managed to accomplish the “double-double,
having repeated his 2012 gold medal success in the 5,000 and 10,000 metres;
Andy Murray was among a number of British athletes who were able to gain a
second successive Olympic gold medal in their event. Max Whitlock became the most successful ever
British gymnast, winning two individual gold medals and a team bronze. The
British women’s hockey team won a dramatic penalty shoot-out in their final
match against the Netherlands, amidst scenes of great joy and celebration. The British cycling team’s achievements were
astounding, with the “golden couple” of Jason Kenny and Laura Trott now having
won 10 Olympic gold medals between them.
The list of successes was a long one.
For others, however, their dreams lie in tatters, some losing
out by the tiniest of margins. Adam
Gemili, for example, came fourth in the 100 metres race, declaring himself to
be gutted at missing out on a bronze medal by a mere three one thousandths of a
second. Lutalo Muhammad led his
taekwondo bout until almost the last second when his opponent overtook him with
a scoring kick, leaving the British athlete distraught and in tears. Well-known diver Tom Daley stated that he was
heartbroken at failing to reach the final of the 10m platform diving
competition, despite being one of the favourites for gold.
In a sense, of course, the varying experiences of the
British Olympians reflect the realities of life in general. Every person’s life has its ups and downs, its
successes and failures, its good times and its very tough times. The important question for us all is how we
manage to deal with whatever life throws at us.
Some gold medal winners may feel that the pinnacle of their sporting
career has been reached and they can now rest on their laurels; for others, it
will be an incentive to strive for even greater success in the future. Perhaps some who experienced bitter disappointment
will have been scarred forever by the experience; others will find failure to
be a driving force for the future.
The apostle Paul wrote this to Christians in Philippi, ‘I have learned to be
content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in
need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being
content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living
in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives
me strength’ (Phil. 4:11-13). Paul found his strength, purpose and fulfillment
in his relationship with Christ, which meant that the ups and downs of life
didn’t shake his confidence.
However wonderful it must be to win an
Olympic gold medal, there is something of far greater and lasting value to
which we are called. Paul himself uses
the image of an athlete when he writes, ‘Do
you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize?
Run in such a way as to get the prize.Everyone who competes in
the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not
last; but we do it to get a crown that will last for ever’ (1 Corinthians 9:24-25). What we have in relationship with Christ
Jesus is of far greater and more lasting value than an Olympic gold medal!
