We’ve been glued to the Lympics (that’s what Isaac calls them) here at Team Sublett headquarters. But we may have turned a corner in terms of allegiance. For the first few days it was pretty heated around the house. Josie and Isaac were demonstrably pro-China. Levi, Lilly, and Sadie were most vociferously pro-USA. I’m pretty sure that Annabelle was trying to stir things up by rooting for whoever was competing at the time. USA had the edge coming out of the pool, but China has done the hard work of pulling back ahead in both the Gold Medals and the total medal count.
Things escalated the other day to the point that I was about to step into the fray. Blows were not exchanged, but battle lines were clearly drawn. There was clearly a ruckus happening in our living room. And I’m pretty sure that Isaac and Josie were smiling as the ruckus ensued!
But there came a turning point, or at least a softening. Josie found out about the Chinese (and other Asian) badminton teams tanking games to gain an advantage in later rounds of play, she was jacked up. She’s not the most competitive Sublett in the fam, but she definitely believes in giving your best effort. Olympic competition or backyard baseball, your opponents deserve your best, and respect for the game matters. And of all sports–Josie loves badminton.
She took this as a personal affront. I’m pretty sure that she’s waiting for an apology from the offending players. I doubt that she’ll be getting an apology any time soon; the Chinese went on to sweep 5 golds in the Badminton tourney.
It was interesting to process through the issue of cheating with our kids. I am a stickler for fair play and sportsmanship. We haven’t done a lot of organized sports as a family, so it’s good to have an opportunity to talk about ethics and integrity with them.
And as soon as these Games are over I’m pretty sure that I’m going to need someone to help trim the tree limbs in the back yard. We’re OK for wiffle ball, but my guess is that it’s going to be China vs USA in mixed doubles badminton. Anyone want to help referee?
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