The Olympics Used To Be About Connection

“The goal of Olympism is to place sport at the service of the harmonious development of humankind, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity.” The Olympic Charter un.org

Yesterday I wrote about the need to organize special preparation before any major physical event. What am I saying? If we want everything to go smoothly and have more control over how things turn out, we need to consciously invest in our connection long before the physical event begins. The Olympics is no exception. It kills me to see the hopes and dreams of so many people crushed like this, not to mention how the bad vibes from the Olympic Village are radiating around the world.

Since it is the most international event highlighting so many types of sports, the Olympics should actually be a shining example for all other events. There are representatives from all over the world coming together to compete - people with very different mindsets, backgrounds, traditions, cultures, habits and food preferences. For some athletes this is their first major international competition, others have won many gold medals. But no matter who they are, this year the Chinese Government is treating anyone who tests positive exactly the same - like crap! Once again the virus is the great equalizer.

The foundation and vision of the Olympic Movement is to "build a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sports", which is precisely what we must do.

Everyone thought things would calm down by now, and authorities were so careful to keep everything on the smallest possible scale to avoid infection. But in reality, more than 350 Games participants, including dozens of athletes, have tested positive since arriving in the Chinese capital since Jan. 23. They are sent to isolation in terrible conditions with many of them are missing their event.

Here are some of the headlines and you literally can't make this stuff up - I'm pretty sure someone will have to make a documentary about athletes not having basic necessities before their big day that they've worked toward their whole life -

Market Watch - ‘I want all this to end.’ Some Beijing Olympics athletes say they’re starved for food and information at the 2022 Winter Games

ESPN - Olympic organizers, athletes discuss living conditions at isolation hotels in Beijing after complaints

Fox Sports - ‘Completely destroyed’: Athletes fume over Olympics nightmare

NPR - No internet, bad food and dirty rooms: Olympic athletes struggle in COVID quarantine

New York Post - Olympians in tears over poor living conditions, lack of food at Winter Games

DailyMail - Life in the Olympic gulag: Athletes are 'crying like crazy' in hellish quarantine with miserable food where 'hope is dead' as DOZENS miss out on their events after testing positive and being carted off to isolation camps

USA Today - Short track speedskater?Maliszewska tested positive for coronavirus on Jan. 30, when she was ruled out of Saturday's?qualifying race for the 500 meters, her strongest event. But Maliszewska was unexpectedly released from isolation on the eve of the race, only to test positive a few hours before it started and was immediately ushered back into quarantine. The next day?– Sunday, the day after the qualifying event?– she was released after again testing negative.

I remember writing about US Olympic swimmer, Ryan Lochte, who drew international attention after lying about being robbed at gunpoint in Rio. He was trying to cover up how he and his teammates had vandalized a gas station under the influence. These are competing Olympic athletes representing their country abroad! Faces that anyone can recognize! What a scandal that was. It’s quite remarkable to see how the behavior of one individual in our time can anger and embarrass an entire country. I said at the time that if these events don't increase human warmth and connection it's pointless to continue doing them. And that athletes need to be educated about how to behave. The foundation and vision of the Olympic Movement is to "build a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sports", which is precisely what we must do.

Unfortunately, these aren't Olympic games anymore. The sportsmen gather to beat each other. It isn’t a sports festival or?celebration of man’s physical achievements. Politics, money, and drugs have deeply penetrated the sports because the goal is now victory at any cost and not the actual cooperation and sportsmanship itself. Instead of being a festival of friendship, the Olympics have turned into a great clash of egos. This toxic environment is the reason why so many don’t want to be involved in it anymore.

Even without an official boycott, as in this year’s Winter Olympics, the war still rages and the athletes pay the price. They are doped, suffer frequent injuries, and are often verbally, physically, and even sexually abused by their coaches. Spectators, too, are pitched against each other in the name of national pride, the exact opposite of the spirit of unity that should prevail in the Olympic games.

The International Olympic Committee writes on its website that the Olympic Truce was established in ancient Greece through the signing of a treaty between three Greek city-states—Elis, Pisa, and Sparta—to allow safe participation in the Olympic Games for all athletes and spectators, who were otherwise in constant conflict with each other. Today’s three superpowers—the US, China, and Russia—are doing just the opposite, using the Olympics as a stage for political warfare that only increases animosity. Worse yet, despite the UN General Assembly resolution of October 25, 1993, to observe the Olympic Truce, the rest of the world takes sides in the feud.

Even without an official boycott, as in this year’s Winter Olympics, the war still rages and the athletes pay the price. They are doped, suffer frequent injuries, and are often verbally, physically, and even sexually abused by their coaches. Spectators, too, are pitched against each other in the name of national pride, the exact opposite of the spirit of unity that should prevail in the Olympic games.

Competition is great when it motivates us to improve ourselves. We should compete over who helps the world the most, not over who exploits and abuses others the most. Are these the values we want to pass on to our children? Are these the kind of people we want them to grow up to be? If we want them to live in a world where they can trust others and have friends to associate with, we must at least try to set an example of unity and mutual consideration. Afterwards, we should encourage them to follow in our footsteps. But if the Olympics do not promote the spirit of unity, then what's the point of it all?

We're starting to see how the human ego will simply not let us enjoy these events any more in their current format. What new format am I suggesting? We can't simply throw people together and expect them to go through such an intensive process together in a healthy and uplifting manner. We're going to have to help the process by actively investing in connection right from the initial planning stages of the event, and at every gathering associated with the big event. If we want harmony rather than chaos, we will learn to do this sooner rather than later.

My connection method is a fun human experience where people actually get a natural high from connection. The more diverse the group, the more profound the experience will be. With all due respect to our physical abilities, expanding our EQ is what the future is all about.