Ed Rendell: Olympics give us many reasons to swell with pride

The Olympics were a great success by almost any measure. The games filled us with excitement, wonder, pride and a renewed sense of the diversity of the world we live in. Despite years of doubt and the continuous presence of an armada of naysayers, the Brits did a great job.

For those of us who couldn't see the games in person, NBC did a great job with its coverage and human interest stories. Bob Costas added to our enjoyment by being the consummate anchor. For most of us the games were a 17-day hiatus from the ordinary, and we viewed the Closing Ceremony with more than a touch of sadness. These games ran the gamut of human emotions - exhilaration, excitement, empathy for those who failed, joy for those who won, a renewed admiration for the determination of the human spirit and a strong sense of national pride.

Who could not share the happiness of LeBron James or Serena Williams, among the richest athletes in the world, over winning Olympic gold? This unbridled joy is something usually found only in young children, and it reminds us all of the purity of athletes competing for the love of their sports. We were all transfixed by the incredible, indomitable courage shown by South Africa's Oscar Pistorius, a double amputee, who amazed us by not only competing in the 400-meter individual and relay races, but by turning in very good times and qualifying in both.

Then, American Manteo Mitchell accomplished a similarly impressive feat in a 400M relay qualifying heat when he broke his leg halfway through the race and ran the remaining 200 meters in intense pain, so that his U.S. team could compete for a medal.

"I didn't want to let the team down, so I just ran on it", he said. "It hurt so bad." Thanks to Manteo, the United States took silver.

Examples of amazing determination abounded. Like the young Irish woman, Katie Taylor, who had spearheaded an international campaign to have women's boxing be part of the games. With the hopes of her country riding on her back, she overcame that incredible pressure and an array of challengers to win a gold medal.

"She has lifted the spirit of a nation," Irish President Michael Higgins said. Another female boxer, 17-year-old high school senior Claressa Shields, won gold in the middleweight division, and in doing so lifted the hearts of her embattled hometown, Flint, Mich. She dedicated her medal to her hometown, where 10,000 residents went to a local arena to cheer her on.

But perhaps the best example of determination came from two American women's water polo players, Brenda Villa and Heather Petri. They had competed in three previous Olympiads and had gained the podium three times, but never won gold. Both decided to take one more shot at winning gold and thus endured 4 more years of rugged training, missing out on the ordinary pleasures we all take for granted. But this time, it paid off, and the look on their faces as the clock wound down in the gold-medal game was priceless. You simply couldn't help but shed a tear for them.

So it was a great Olympics, and we are all proud of our U.S. team, which won the medal race, winning 16 more medals than our closest competitor, China.

But watching Grenada's Kerani James win the 400M, breaking the United States' 28-year dominance in the event, it occurred to me that maybe the 204 competing nations should be ranked by number of medals won per their population. If we used that measuring stick, Grenada, with only 105,000 people, would be No. 1, with its one medal. Jamaica would be second, with 12; New Zealand, fourth, with 13; and Hungary, eighth with 17. The Big Four - the United States, China, Russia and Great Britain - would finish 49th, 74th, 33rd and 23rd, respectively.

The chart on Page 13 shows the complete rankings for medals by population.

Contact Ed Rendell at asktheguv@gmail.com.