by
John Stevenson
My
Mar. 7 essay described the media adoration of the “diversity” of two 2016
summer Olympians. To the point where
they celebrated the Islamic identity of one competitor while completely
ignoring her lack of success in the actual competition. And in the other instance---an actual gold
medalist!---they focused so much on her race that their headline failed to
identify her by name.
Fast
forward to the 2018 Seoul winter games. The
Olympic motto is “faster, higher, stronger.”
Fox News Executive Editor John Moody criticized the U.S. Olympic
Committee’s effort to increase the representation of Blacks and gays. He wrote that the USOC’s goal was to make the
team “darker, gayer, different.” Ooops.
Moody
questioned how that effort would contribute to representation on the medal
stand. Moody’s question was loudly
booed, including by Fox News itself, which effectively disowned him: “John Moody’s column does not reflect the
views or values of Fox News and has been removed.”
Well,
it turned out Moody’s concern was correct: Team USA gathered 23 medals---fewest
since 1998.
The most
front-and-center, in-your-face, of the “darker, gayer, different” contingent
made their mark not in their competitions but in their sideshow antics. These were speed skater Shani Davis,
freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy, and figure skater Adam Rippon. Here’s what happened:
Shani
Davis and luge athlete Erin Hamlin were among the nominees to carry the Stars
and Stripes in the opening ceremony. According
to USA Today, “….the vote was tied 4-4 between Davis and Hamlin. The USOC’s official
procedure, determined last year and communicated to athletes, dictated that a
coin flip must be used to break the tie.”
Hamlin won the toss.
Davis
did not accept this gracefully. USA
Today reported that he tweeted: “…when I
won the 1000m in 2010 I became the first American to 2-peat in that event. @TeamUSA
dishonorably tossed a coin to decide its 2018 flag
bearer…#BlackHistoryMonth2018…” And
he then chose not to march in the opening ceremony parade with his
teammates. So apparently Davis thought
his color and his prior-year medal entitled him to be the flag bearer---rules
be damned.
Officially
gay Gus Kenworthy failed to medal in his freestyle skiing event. But he got his moment in the spotlight. At the conclusion of his failed event, his
boyfriend Matthew Wilkas was waiting for him, rainbow flag in hand and wearing
a shirt emblazoned USAGAY. According to
time.com, Kenworthy had been vocal about representing LGBT Americans at the
Seoul games. Kenworthy and Wilkas shared
a televised kiss in front of an ecstatic crowd.
And
just to be sure the world knew (as if the world cared) of his disdain for the
current Administration, Kenworthy tweeted:
“Everybody here has worked so hard
to make it to the Olympics…Everyone except Ivanka. Honestly, tf is she doing
here??” [tf is an abbreviation of
wtf, see urbandictionary.com]
Flamboyantly
gay (if you doubt it, google him) figure skater Adam Rippon spent his Olympic
energy criticizing Vice President Mike Pence, who was charged, along with his
wife Karen, to lead the U.S. delegation at the Seoul games. Reports differ, but it appears that Pence offered
to meet with Rippon but was rebuffed.
Unlike
Davis and Kenworthy, Rippon actually won a share of a bronze medal in a team
event. Rippon was always-on: calling
attention to himself, stirring up controversy, and yakking up a storm. After his competition in the games, NBC
offered Rippon a gig as a correspondent for their coverage. But, as reported on money.cnn.com, Rippon
turned down the offer, saying he needed instead to stay with his teammates and
friends in the Olympic village.
Fortunately,
the Seoul games were not all about diversity and grievance.
Space
won’t permit listing them all but there were many highlights, including a gold
for women’s hockey and a surprise first-ever gold in curling. And the only American woman to land a triple
axel in any Olympics. A total of nine
gold medals, and no raised fists or rainbow flags on the medal stand.
And
finally there’s Lauren Gibbs (who is African-American). Gibbs and her teammate Elana Meyers Taylor
won silver in the women’s bobsled. Gibbs
took several selfies with Ivanka Trump and White House Press Secretary Sarah
Huckabee Sanders. Along with the
selfies, Gibbs posted the message in the paragraph below. What a refreshing and encouraging contrast to
the rudeness and disrespect displayed by the aggrieved.
“It’s
important to remember that we don’t have to agree on everything to get along,
be civil to each other and enjoy each others company. #itsforamerica it was a
pleasure to meet you both! Lauren
Gibbs (@lagibbs84) February 25, 2018.”
