One of our last days in Rio we used the guest passes Jason had for us to enjoy the hospitality at the USA House. The kids loved the VIP treatment. Jared made a killing on pins that day. It seemed like everyone there wanted to trade with him or better yet just give him pins. There was plenty of food, drinks, treats and TVs to watch everything that was going on around Rio. We watched Brazil beat Germany in the men's gold medal soccer match. Everyone in the USA House was definitely cheering on Brazil for redemption from the embarrassment Germany handed Brazil two years ago in the World Cup. We also had fun cheering on Team USA to another successful night at Track and Field. The best part of the day though was mingling with the athletes who were there. We met several athletes with such inspiring stories. These aren't the ones you hear about on TV and they might not have won any medals but their dedication and hard work to make it to the Olympics were inspiring to hear about. When we had all grab a plate of dinner we were trying to find a place to all sit together to eat. I went to a table with some extra chairs and asked to borrow some chairs without really looking at who I was talking to. Then I looked up and realized it was Desi Linden. I was a bit tongue tied at first not knowing what to say. I congratulated her on a great marathon. Later I got up the courage to go back and chat with her a bit more about my experience at the Olympic Trials, running for Brooks, and ask for a picture. She was very kind and I loved the good fortune of being there at the same time she was!
We also had the privilege of watching Ryan Crouser who won the gold medal in shot put give an award to his mentor. We had a few minutes afterward to meet him. He tried to convince Jared to throw the shot put since we told him he isn't fond of running but we'd love to keep him in the track and field family! Then he posed for a picture and even let Kaitlyn hold his gold medal!
It was a lot of fun seeing the amazing atmosphere that Jason had been working in for the last few weeks! The games were winding up but we were able to catch a few more events. We watched the bike and run for the men's and women's triathalon on the road. We also went to the lagoon to watch the canoe sprint finals. There weren't any US teams in the finals but we enjoyed celebrating with the home crowd when some Brazilian's medaled. The last event was the men's marathon. Again we went to Botafoga and watched the race come past three times. Some of the highlights were watching local runner Jared Ward run an outstanding race finishing 6th, Galen Rupp winning the bronze medal and Meb Keflezgi in his last Olympics.
Later that day a storm was blowing in. The wind was howling and the beach front was deserted and downright eerie. The wind was painfully blowing the sand in our faces as we rushed back to our hotel. We sat safely in the hotel watching the closing ceremony while the storm raged outside, wind howling and rain pelting the windows. The show was a typical Brazilian party and I found a wave of emotions coming over me as I watched. Memories from the week flooded my mind, a love for the Brazilian culture and the city of Rio, and sadness that it was all over. What an incredible experience it was and one that we will never forget!
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