So look, it turns out, watching two weeks of non-stop sport pretty much all day, every day can be a bit much. I’m a gibbering wreck. But I’m also still loving it and don’t want it to end tomorrow. It’s hard to reconcile the two positions but I’m powering through to enjoy every minute before the main Olympics disappears for another four years and we can turn our attention to the Paralympics.

A little bit of everything

I’ve recently realised how much I enjoy multi-discipline events. The heptathlon was gripping this year, and so happy that KJT finally got her Olympic medal - a shame not to be gold because she looked like she had the form, but it doesn’t matter, she’s overcome a lot of demons to get this result and it’s brilliant.

The track cycling has been captivating, and the omnium (om-nom-nom) is a fantastic part of it. Chaotic and tricky when you have to do live maths during a race where it’s not entirely clear who’s in the lead, but worth watching.

I’ve even got into the modern pentathlon this year. I’m neutral on horse jumping, and not that bothered about the fencing but I do like the format of the lowest ranked going first and getting to stay on when they win a bout, gaining more points the longer they can last. The real treat is the laser run though - the athlete has to get five shots on target before they can move on and that can really change things up if they go super quick, or get stuck not being able to get the fifth one.

In the rhythm

The other surprising sport that I’ve really paid attention to this year is rhythmic gymnastics. I’ve always seen it in passing and thought it was clever but not that interesting, but when you actually pay attention, what these ladies are doing is so intense and clever. A Guardian note during their live blog agreed:

A real mystery why people say “not a real sport” about something that only women compete in, and something that has a style element. Wonder why that could be… But athletically it’s extraordinary. The level of co-ordination to control not just your own movement but the apparatus as well. We lose our minds when some footballer volleys the ball to themselves, but they don’t do it with a 10-metre elevation while doing a couple of back handsprings.

Actually, the Guardian have been really doing good work this Olympics cycle, in fact. A very broad live blog with intriguing articles alongside including this interesting one about how to rank the countries, detail on the free healthcare available and how that’s boggling some athlete’s minds and of course, how to hang on to the optimism in Paris once the highs of sporting success are over and the realities of politics return.

Take a beat

They also wrote a positive review on the introduction of Breaking to the Games. I tuned in for a bit, but it wasn’t for me. I’m not hugely into the combative things and whilst this isn’t exactly boxing, it’s still a bit argumentative for my tastes. I do like the vibe of it though, cool people doing cool things to cool music with a lot of crowd appreciation. I wonder if Breaking will be back or not.

The real winning moment of the Olympics for me, though, has been a mascot getting a lift in one of the javelin cars. Adorable.