Every four years, the Winter Olympics is held to showcase the best athletes from around the world. The competitors have trained their whole lives for this moment, with only the most driven and passionate athletes earning a spot in the games. 

In the opening ceremony, the IOC’s President said to the athletes: “for the next two weeks, you’re going to give us something truly special. You’ll show us what it means to be human. To dream. To overcome. To respect one another. To care for each other. You’ll show us that strength isn’t just about winning–it’s about courage, empathy and heart.” 

In Rebecca Lowe’s interview with U.S. figure skater Maxim Naumov, Naumov shared his gratitude for all of the trials he overcame to make it to the Olympics. “I’m most proud of the journey that it took to get here. I’ve had an unbelievable year. It’s been a very difficult process for me to get to be sitting here with you and call myself an Olympian. I’m proud of all the decisions to keep going, all of the roadblocks and things that were in my way, and the willingness and desire to continue no matter what. All of those decisions, whether they were big or small, all led to me being here. That is what I am most proud of.”

Naumov, as well as many other Olympic Athletes, encourage the world to strive for greatness in whatever they do, regardless of what stands in your way.

Of course, even when you do your best and aim for your highest goal, there is still the possibility of failure. Alpine skier Lindsey Vonn returned after her retirement from the sport at age 41 and attempted to compete again with a torn ACL. Unfortunately, she fell during the competition and could not finish. Regardless, she showed amazing grit and performed beautifully in her two prior training runs. 

She later released a statement saying, “I tried. I dreamt. I jumped. I hope if you take anything away from my journey, it’s that you all have the courage to dare greatly. Life is too short to not take chances on yourself. Because the only failure in life is not trying. I believe in you, just as you believed in me.”

 This is what makes humanity so beautiful. That is what the Olympians represent; trying your best against all odds to achieve your dreams. 

Another beautiful part of the Olympics is seeing each country come together in peace and camaraderie to create something beautiful that will go down in history. In the opening ceremony U.S. Olympic snowboarder Shaun White claimed, “it’s one of the places where you really feel part of a team. Snowboarding is such an individual sport. You come out here and you join Team USA, you run out in the parade, and you’ll never forget it.”

Team USA has many beloved and talented athletes in this year’s Winter Olympics. Snowboarder Chloe Kim in the Snowboard Halfpipe returned for her third Winter Olympics competition. Freeski Slopestyle and Big Air competitor Alex Hall, who has already won gold in Slopestyle in 2022, aimed for a second gold medal. Husband and Wife Evan Bates and Madison Chock returned for their fourth shared Olympics in the Pairs Figure Skating event. Figure Skater Alysa Liu came out of retirement to compete, as well as Ilia Malinin, who has been undefeated for over two years and is a two time Grand Prix Final champion, as well as the only figure skater to land a Quadruple Axel in history. Hockey players Kendal Coyne Schofield and Hilary Knight are returning gold and silver Olympic medalists with a long history of wins. 

Coming from across the United States, these athletes–and the many Team USA athletes left unmentioned–are a wonderful representation of their country. They have all shown what it means to strive for greatness even when it seems impossible, and continue to demonstrate true camaraderie, both in Team USA and among their fellow competitors.