[MGSA-L] Olympic sportsmanship at its best

[Christos D. Katsetos]

Kirani James' victory in the 400 meters in the 2012 London Olympics has brought
special joy and pride to the Eastern Caribbean nation of Grenada*, a member of 
the British Commonwealth of Nations.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/olympics/19158041


But James' athletic accomplishment is surpassed by his exemplary sportsmanship. 
Indeed, the 19-year-old Afro-Caribbean champion may have captured the world's attention by winning the gold in the 400 meters last night, but his most memorable and inspirational moment in the Olympics came a day earlier when, after his victory
in the 400-meter semifinals, he approached South Africa's double amputee sprinter,
Oscar Pistorius, embracing him and asking to exchange race name tags. Having 
finished last in his group, Pistorius failed to advance to the 400 meters final but did
doubtless win the respect of his fellow athlete and competitor.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXkZpz6TuiU

http://www.sportsgrid.com/video/oscar-pistorius-nametag-swap/#0_undefined,0_


Kirani James has already distinguished himself as a role model for young athletes
worldwide. Let us hope that his Olympic sportsmanship will inspire others whose
choices of words and actions were less than virtuous.  

 
On this occasion, I can't help but reflect on the sardonic "joke" --tantamount to a
sheer racist innuendo-- made through the social media by an aspiring female athlete 
(which led to her exclusion from the Greek Olympic team); even more so, I wish to 
lament on the collective denial of moral responsibility in this regard expressed by
a growing segment of the Greek society which, in the face of adversity, is drifting to
the far-right fringe becoming increasingly confrontational, hostile, intolerant and 
xenophobic.

[*] I have many reasons to rejoice in Kirani James' victory. At the age of 19 
(in the late '70s) I found myself in the island of Grenada as a freshman medical 
student. Nearly three and a half decades later, I remain profoundly grateful to the 
"Island of Spice" and its warm, generous, and kind people for offering me a unique cultural experience and for having had an enormous influence on shaping 
my perspective of the world.
 
Christos D. Katsetos, MD, PhD, FRCPath
http://www.drexelmed.edu/Home/AboutOurFaculty/ChristosKatsetos.aspx
http://www.stchristophershospital.com/find-a-physician/120
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