I used to hate the Winter Olympics.

I didn’t think there was anything exciting about a person who can cross-country ski and shoot a gun. What do they have to do with one another unless you’re dropped into the middle of Siberia (or Syracuse for that matter)? To be honest, I know that the Olympics can be a bore. But if you think about it, the Olympics are the microcosm of the ideal world.

When the 21-year-old Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili died, people kept talking about how saddened the Olympic community was by his death. Every country represented at the Olympics paid their respects to what they called their fallen comrade. Even the Russian delegation, which had a well-documented 9-day war in 2008 with Georgia, paid its respects.

It’s a shame that it’s only during the Olympics that the scope of our conflicts remains limited to the field of play. Announcers tell us few anecdotal stories about participants and their amazing trips to the Olympics, even if they are from a country the United States isn’t so friendly with.

The Olympics give us a great opportunity to see beyond governments, corruption and the ubiquitous struggles that plague our newspapers and televisions every day. When the Olympics take place there are no conflicts, as the U.N. signs a global treaty for peace during the games.

Instead of seeing all the wrongs, the Olympics show us the perpetual glimmer of hope that all can be right. Two countries that were at war with one another in 2008 can stand side by side and mourn the death of someone who can still be one of their own. When the Olympics take place, it’s OK to cheer for the Russian, Iranian, Iraqi, Columbian or Pakistani athlete, despite their countries not being our friendliest allies.

The greatest moment in American Olympic history is arguably the ‘Miracle on Ice,’ in which a team of U.S. amateurs beat the Soviet Union. This Soviet Union team had beaten the NHL All Stars that year, 6-0, a huge rout in hockey. While the Olympics can have political undertones, as the U.S. and Soviet Union were locked in the throes of the Cold War, they can also prove to be an arena where incredible things can happen. What makes the Olympics so special is that they know no partisanship, stubbornness or inefficiency.

To me, the Olympics represent all the good that the world can be. In the Olympics, petty conflict is replaced with national pride. In the Olympics, joy can come in victory and in some cases defeat.

The Olympics embody pride – pride in country, pride in self and a mutual respect for one another.

Even if it is only for two weeks.

David Kaplan is a sophomore broadcast journalism and political science major. His column appears weekly, and he can be reached at dhkaplan@syr.edu.

Published on February 15, 2010 at 12:00 pm