I can't count the number of Olympic medal ceremonies I've watched on TV over the years. I even got to see one in person when I attended the 1996 Atlanta Games and saw Germany's Isabell Werth on Gigolo win the individual dressage gold medal over the Netherlands' Anky van Grunsven on Bonfire.
As thrilling as that experience was, last night I learned that nothing compares to hearing one's own national anthem played in person. The USA won the jumping team gold medal in a nail-biting jump-off with Canada, and when "The Star-Spangled Banner" rang out for Laura Kraut, Beezie Madden, Will Simpson, and McLain Ward and the stars and stripes were raised, it made for an unforgettable Olympic moment for this American journalist.
Olympic competition is so tightly scheduled that the medal ceremonies are finished practically before the results sink in, apparently even for some of the athletes. After last night's jump-off, the TV cameras caught Laura Kraut turning to Beezie Madden with a somebody-pinch-me-I-think-I'm-dreaming expression and saying, "Oh my God, we just won the gold medal!" The whirlwind of activity is such that it's hard to savor the moment. I hope the riders were able to do so. I know I did.
