Olympic Dismounts

Remember the agony of defeat guy on Wide World of Sports? I was explaining to my son who Jim McKay was and that I so missed hearing his voice during the Summer Olympics. I told him that every Sunday night, my family, after the weekly ice cream run, would watch Wide World of Sports. Jim McKay was the voice of WW of Sports and the Olympics for as long as I can remember. I began running through Jim's opening weekly monologue from the show for my son. Spotty recollection at best, but the phrase I do recall vividly - "The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat." I was describing the "agony of defeat" scene that would come into our living room every Sunday. Remember? The ski jumper who would come down the ramp, lose his balance, stumble and crash off the end of the jump, brutal. I did a little research. His name is Vinko Bogataj from Slovenia. His crash of March 21, 1970 was featured from 1970 onward on WW of Sports. I recall hearing that he wasn't actually hurt, but the crash just looked bad (Uh-huh)...I think this is one of the few moments in sports where you remember the loser v.s. the winner.

Oddly enough the gravity of Jim McKay passing in June of this year didn't really hit me until the first day of Olympic events and what a loss it was (for me) not to hear his voice and commentary throughout the summer games. The games are still incredible, but there's just a little less magic without him there...I found this link on utube, a brief tribute to Jim McKay. Paste this link to your browser. Take a moment to watch and listen... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRsuurXCfVk