Aug

13

It’s About More Than Medals.

Posted by Christopher Waldrop

August 13, 2008 |

The country of Tuvalu is making its first Olympic appearance in the Summer Beijing Olympics. Tuvalu’s population is less than 12,000 people, crowded onto nine islands that have less than ten square miles of land between them. They’ve sent three athletes: Asenate Manoa and Okilai Tinilau in athletics, and Logona Esau, who’s competing in weightlifting. Somewhere I read a description once of Tuvalu as a place to really get away from it all because it’s so small and so far away from anything. I probably wouldn’t have even known about Tuvalu, even though I think island nations are incredibly fascinating, if, as a coin collector, I hadn’t been lucky enough to find a set of Tuvalu coins in a dealer’s discount box.

And I’ve gotta add that it always irks me whenever commentators say Tuvalu or other small nations probably won’t win a medal. Even Tuvalu’s country profile says they’re “not expected to contend for a medal at the Beijing Games.” It’s more than unnecessary to say this. While it may be true that the odds are against a particular nation, do they deserve to have it rubbed in their faces? Maybe we should stop to think for a minute about how the medals are really secondary, especially when a nation can take pride in their first ever appearance at the Olympics alongside people from so many other parts of the world. I may not be from there, but, because of what they represent, when Manoa, Tinilau, and Esau get out their in their respective fields, I want to wave a flag and scream, “Go Tuvalu!”


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