AMIGOS PARA SIEMPRE

AMIGOS PARA SIEMPRE (Friends For Life)
1992 Barcelona Olympic Games Theme Song
Sarah Brightman and José Carreras
http://frostwhisper2012.blogspot.com/2012/12/amigos-para-siempre.html



 

   
YOUTUBE:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TK5WP83t6Xk


Sarah

    I don't have to say
    A word to you
    You seem to know
    Whatever mood
    I'm going through
    Feels as though
    I've known you forever

José

    You
    Can look into my eyes and see
    The way I feel
    And how
    The world is treating me
    Maybe I have known you forever

Both

    Amigos para siempre
    Means you'll always be my friend
    Amics per sempre
    Means a love that cannot end
    Friends for life
    Not just a summer or a spring
    Amigos para siempre

    I feel you near me
    Even when we are apart
    Just knowing you are in this world
    Can warm my heart
    Friends for life
    Not just a summer or a spring
    Amigos para siempre

Sarah

    We share memories
    I won't forget
    And we'll share more,
    My friend,
    We haven't started yet
    Something happens
    When we're together

José

    When
    I look at you
    I wonder why
    There has to come
    A time when we must say goodbye
    I'm alive when we are together

Both

    Amigos para siempre
    Means you'll always be my friend
    Amics per sempre
    Means a love that cannot end
    Friends for life
    Not just a summer or a spring
    Amigos para siempre

    I feel you near me
    Even when we are apart
    Just knowing you are in this world
    Can warm my heart
    Friends for life
    Not just a summer or a spring
    Amigos para siempre

José

    When
    I look at you
    I wonder why
    There has to come
    A time when we must say goodbye

Both

    I'm alive when we are together

    Amigos para siempre
    Means you'll always be my friend
    Amics per sempre
    Means a love that cannot end
    Friends for life
    Not just a summer or a spring
    Amigos para siempre

    I feel you near me
    Even when we are apart
    Just knowing you are in this world
    Can warm my heart
    Friends for life
    Not just a summer or a spring
    Amigos para siempre

    Amigos para siempre
    Means you'll always be my friend
    Amics per sempre
    Means a love that cannot end
    Friends for life
    Not just a summer or a spring
    Amigos para siempre
    Amigos para siempre

HAND IN HAND

HAND IN HAND
1988 SEOUL OLYMPIC GAMES THEME SONG
Koreana

http://frostwhisper2012.blogspot.com/2012/12/hand-in-hand.html

YOUTUBE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEeH5MiDK8I

See The Fire In The Sky

We Feel The Beating Of Our Hearts Together

This Is Our Time To Rise Above

We Know The Chance Is Here To Live Forever

For All Time 

Hand In Hand We Stand

All Across The Land

We Can Make This World

A Better Place In Which To Live

Hand In Hand We Can

Start To Understand

Breaking Down The Walls

That Come Between Us For All Time

Arirang

Everytime We Give It All

We Feel The Flame Eternally Inside Us

Lift Our Hands Up To The Sky

The Morning Calm Helps Us To Live In Harmony

For All Time

Hand In Hand We Stand

All Across The Land

We Can Make This World

A Better Place In Which To Live

Hand In Hand We Can

Start To Understand

Breaking Down The Walls

That Come Between Us For All Time

Arirang

Hand In Hand We Stand

All Across The Land

We Can Make This World

A Better Place In Which To Live

Hand In Hand We Can

Start To Understand

Breaking Down The Walls

That Come Between Us For All Time

Hand In Hand (Breaking Down The Walls Between Us)

Hand In Hand (Breaking Down The Walls) 

 

REACH

REACH
1996 ATLANTA OLYMPIC GAMES THEME SONG
Gloria Estefan
http://frostwhisper2012.blogspot.com/2012/12/reach.html

YOUTUBE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aP_PVKNUtLw




Some Dreams Live On In Time Forever
Those Dreams, You Want With All Your Heart
And I'll Do Whatever It Takes
Follow Through With The Promise I Made
Put It All On The Line
What I Hoped For At Last Would Be Mine

If I Could Reach, Higher
Just For One Moment Touch The Sky
From That One Moment In My Life
I'm Gonna Be Stronger
Know That I've Tried My Very Best
I'd Put My Spirit To The Test
If I Could Reach

Some Days Are Meant To Be Remembered
Those Days We Rise Above The Stars
So I'll Go The Distance This Time
Seeing More The Higher I Climb
That The More I Believe
All The More That This Dream Will Be Mine

If I Could Reach, Higher
Just For One Moment Touch The Sky
From That One Moment In My Life
I'm Gonna Be Stronger
Know That I've Tried My Very Best
I'd Put My Spirit To The Test
If I Could Reach

If I Could Reach, Higher
Just For One Moment Touch The Sky
I'm Goona Be Stronger
From That One Moment In My Life
I'm Gonna Be So Much Stronger Yes I Am
I've Tried My Very Best
I'd Put My Spirit To The Test
If I Could Reach
If I Could, If I Could
If I Could Reach
Reach, I'd Reach, I'd Reach
I'd Reach' I'd Reach So Much Higher
Be Stronger

LI NING (李宁)

LI NING (李宁)
http://frostwhisper2012.blogspot.com/2012/12/li-ning.html

 

4 AUG 1984: LI NING OF CHINA IN ACTION ON THE POMMEL HORSE AT THE 1984 LOS ANGELES OLYMPICS. 
NING WON THE GOLD MEDAL WITH A SCORE OF 19.95 POINTS.

Li Ning started training at the age of eight and he was selected into the national team in 1980. In 1982, he won six of the seven medals awarded at the Sixth World Cup Gymnastic Competition, earning him the title "Prince of Gymnastics" (体操王子).

Li is most famous for winning 6 medals at the 1984 Summer Olympics, which was the first Olympics in which the People's Republic of China participated. He won 3 gold medals (in Floor Exercise, Pommel Horse, and Rings), 2 Silver Medals, and a Bronze Medal. Li became the most decorated Chinese athlete at their first Olympics.

 

OLYMPIC JOURNEY

In 1984, the Chinese gymnastics team excelled, but in the team event it lost the Olympic title by 0.6 points to the USA. Ning’s first Olympic medal was a silver one, and this heralded the start of an impressive harvest.  In the All-around competition, Ning made a mistake on the Parallel Bars, which penalised him for the final ranking. With 118.575 points, the Chinese gymnast finished third behind America’s Peter Vidmar, silver medallist, and Japan’s Koji Gushiken, who won the gold.

He made up for this in the Floor Exercises, winning his first gold medal with the excellent score of 19.925 out of 20. He beat his compatriot Lou Yun, who managed 19.775.  Two gold medallists, twice.

On the Pommel horse, the competition was even tougher. Ning Li produced a remarkable performance which earned him the score of 19.950. The American Peter Vidmar also achieved an excellent performance. The two athletes had identical scores, and both stood on the top step of the podium. On the rings, Ning Li this time had to share the honours with Japan’s Koji Gushiken, as both men finished with the score of 19.850.

In the vault, for the first time in this event, four gymnasts tied for second place. With a score of 19.825, Li won silver, his sixth medal, making him the athlete with the most medals at the 1984 edition of the Games. This achievement earned him the nickname of “Little Prince Of Gymnastics”.

All in all, Li won 14 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships titles.
Li took part in his second 1988 Olympics despite carrying injuries. It was an end to an illustrious career, as he was off-form and made crucial mistakes which robbed him of the chance of a medal.


Li Ning was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2000, becoming the first Chinese inductee.

 

THE FINAL TORCHBEARER

Li Ning lighting the torch at the 2008 Summer Olympics

At the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics Li Ning ignited the cauldron at the Opening Ceremony after being hoisted high into the air with cables and miming running around the rim of the stadium.

After his sports career, Li founded his own sports equipment company. He married his compatriot Youg-Yan Chen, a gymnast like himself and a bronze medallist at the 1984 Games. The Little Prince has today made a success of his post-competition career.
 
Li Ning Company Limited is one of the leading sports brand companies in China, mainly providing sporting goods including footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories for professional and leisure purposes primarily under the LI-NING brand.

Li-Ning is the Official Outfitter of the Argentinian and Spanish National Basketball Teams and is a major world outfitter in Badminton.

NBA Miami Heat's Dwyane Wade became Li-Ning's newest NBA Endorser on September 10, 2012.


SOURCES
Wikipedia
Olympic.org

MARY LOU RETTON

MARY LOU RETTON
http://frostwhisper2012.blogspot.com/2012/12/mary-lou-retton.html

Mary Lou Retton launches off the vault on her way to Olympic gold in 1984. (Getty Images)

Mary Lou Retton became America's darling and changed women's sports forever in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games.

Inspired by watching Nadia Comăneci on television, Retton took up gymnastics in her hometown of Fairmont. She was coached by Gary Rafaloski. She then decided to move to Houston, Texas, to train under Romanians Béla and Márta Károlyi, who had coached Nadia Comăneci before their defection to the United States. Under the Károlyis, Retton soon began to make a name for herself in the United States, winning the American Cup in 1983 and placing second to Dianne Durham (another Károlyi student) at the US Nationals that same year. Retton missed the World Championships in 1983 due to a wrist injury. Nevertheless, Retton won the American Classic in 1983 and 1984, as well as Japan's Chunichi Cup in 1983.


After winning her second American Cup, the US Nationals, and the US Olympic Trials in 1984, Retton suffered a knee injury when she was performing a floor routine at a local gymnastics center. She had sat down to sign autographs when she felt her knee lock, forcing her to undergo an operation. She recovered just in time for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California.


In the competition, which was boycotted by the Soviet bloc nations except for Romania, Retton was engaged in a close battle with Ecaterina Szabó of Romania for the all-around gold medal. Trailing Szabó (after uneven bars and balance beam) being 15 hundredths behind, with two events to go, Retton scored perfect 10s on floor exercise and vault--this last event in an especially dramatic fashion, as there had been fears that her knee injury and the subsequent surgery might impair her performance--to win the all-around gold medal by 0.05 points.

Mary Lou Retton for the win. (Getty Images)

At the same Olympics, Retton won four additional medals: silver in the team competition and the horse vault, and bronze in the floor exercise and uneven bars. For her performance, she was named Sports Illustrated magazine's "Sportswoman of the Year". She appeared on a Wheaties box, and became the cereal's first official spokeswoman.




SOURCES:
Wikipedia
Yahoo Sports
 

GREG LOUGANIS

GREG LOUGANIS
http://frostwhisper2012.blogspot.com/2012/11/greg-louganis.html

GREG LOUGANIS started competitive diving as a 10 year old. He took part in his first Olympic Games, the 1976 Montreal Games, aged just 16 and claimed silver in the 10m platform. Four years later, he was firmly established as the world’s best diver, but the United States’ boycott of the 1980 Moscow Games meant that he had to wait another four years to taste Olympic gold.

Louganis was coached by Korean-American Dr. Sammy Lee, a two-time Olympic champion.Of Samoan and European descent, Louganis studied classical dance for many years, and this training provided the basis for the elegance and artistry of his performances. In addition to his Olympic titles, he won six World Championships and held many records for the highest marks ever achieved in competition.





1984 LOS ANGELES OLYMPICS


At the 1984 Los Angeles Games, Louganis found himself competing in front of his home crowd in California. He won the gold medal in both the 3m springboard and 10m platform events. This made him the first Olympian in 56 years to achieve this spectacular double.
He won the 1984 Olympics 3m Springboard Competition by a whopping margin 94 points, in a sport where the winning margin is measured in the Decimals.




In winning both the springboard and the platform at the 1984 Los Angeles Games, Louganis became the first man to pull off that Olympic double since American Pete Desjardins in 1928. He also was the first to pass 700 points in both events in the same Olympics. His 710.91 points remain the most recorded in the Olympic platform competition since the advent of the current scoring system, and his victory in the springboard was the most lopsided in the history of the Games.

SEOUL - SEPTEMBER 19: Greg LOUGANIS of the USA diving team hits his head on the board during competition at the 1988 Seoul Olympics on September 19. Photo shows him right after hitting his head.(Photo by Pascal Rondeau/Getty Images)

1988 SEOUL OLYMPICS


Four years later in Seoul Olympic Games 1988, Louganis was now a veteran of his sport and faced a number of upcoming younger rivals. Yet despite striking the board with his head in the 9th Dive of the 3m Springboard Qualification rounds, Louganis dramatically retained both his Olympic titles. Given his dominance, it is highly probable that the 1980 boycott prevented Louganis from winning the diving double at three consecutive Games, which would have been an unprecedented feat.

 
I watched this Event myself and this CEMENTED Greg Louganis' Legacy as the Greatest Diver Ever. He thwarted the threat of People's Republic of China's Tan Lian De, Xiong Ni and upcoming Chinese diving stars for 2 Olympic Games.


 


SOURCES
Wikipedia
http://www.olympic.org/gregory-louganis
Youtube

THE 1984 LOS ANGELES OLYMPIC GAMES

THE 1984 LOS ANGELES OLYMPIC GAMES
http://frostwhisper2012.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-1984-los-angeles-olympic-games.html


 

The 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games was the first time that the Olympics became Mainstream.

It was the first Olympic Games that I watched on the Television and Home Video.
I was mesmerized by this event, and till this day I consider myself an Olympic Games Fan.
The 1984 Summer Olympics are also often considered the Most Financially Successful Modern Olympics.

The Games of the XXIII Olympiad were held on July 28 - August 12, 1984 with
the Opening Ceremony held at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
The Olympics were opened by US President Ronald Reagan.
Los Angeles is the only US city to host the Summer Olympics twice.
The US Host Broadcaster was ABC Sports.

Philippine Sports Heroes - Lydia de Vega, Isidro del Prado, Leopoldo Cantancio,
Elma Muros and Christine Jacob competed in the 1984 LA Games.



THE STORY
 

After 52 years, the Summer Olympic Games returned to the United States in 1984, and once again, the Games came to Los Angeles. Looking for respite after the previous three difficult Olympics, the IOC would not find it in Los Angeles.

In May 1984, the Soviet Union announced that it would not attend the Olympics in Los Angeles, citing concerns over the safety of its athletes because of the "anti-Soviet and anti-Communist activities" in the Los Angeles area. Most people considered the boycott one of retribution for the United States' refusal to compete in Moscow. Most of the Eastern European countries joined in the Soviet-bloc boycott, notably East Germany (GDR), and they were joined by Cuba. Although only 14 invited countries did not compete in Los Angeles, the absence of the U.S.S.R., Cuba, and the GDR made many of the events mere shadows of what was anticipated.
 
The United States and it's Allies boycotted the previous 1980 Moscow Olympics as a result of the Cold War.

Still, more countries and athletes competed at Los Angeles than in any previous Olympics. However, what the 1984 boycott lacked in numbers relative to the 1980 boycott, it made up for it in its impact on the competition. Boxing, weightlifting, wrestling, gymnastics, and track & field would have been dominated by the boycotting nations. The nations which did not compete were: Afghanistan, Bulgaria, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, Ethiopia, German Democratic Republic, Hungary, Laos, Mongolia, North Korea, Poland, South Yemen, Vietnam, and the U.S.S.R. Bravely, Romania defied the boycott and competed at the Olympics, receiving an ovation at the opening ceremonies second only to that of the host country. Yugoslavia, not Soviet dominated, was the only other country from Eastern Europe to compete.

For the first time ever, the Games were managed in an entrepreneurial fashion.
Organizing committee President Peter Ueberroth insisted that the Olympics be designed to break even or even provide a profit. Again, the Europeans, used to the simon-pure idealistic image of the Olympics for the Olympics' sake, rebelled against this philosophy. But Ueberroth was determined not to have another white elephant like Montréal and he succeeded admirably in that regard. So admirably, in fact, that when the final tally came in, the organizing committee had made several hundred million dollars. It should be pointed out, however, that Ueberroth's marketing methods, though decried by the Europeans, have since been copied by all organizing committees and even the IOC itself.

Olympic Mascot - Sam The Eagle

OPENING CEREMONY HIGHLIGHTS
 

The 1984 Los Angeles Olympics Opening Ceremony featured the arrival of Bill Suitor by means of the Bell Aerosystems rocket pack (also known as a Jet Pack).

A Release of Huge White Balloons into the sky

A Mosaic of World Flags on the Background

John Williams composed the theme for the Olympiad, "Olympic Fanfare and Theme". This piece won a Grammy for Williams and became one of the most well-known musical themes of the Olympic Games, along with Leo Arnaud's "Bugler's Dream"; the latter is sometimes attached to the beginning of Olympic Fanfare and Theme. NBC, Official USA broadcaster continues to use this Theme in its Olympic Coverage.

As a result of an IOC agreement designating the Republic of China (Taiwan) Chinese Taipei, the People's Republic of China returned to the summer Olympics for the first time since Helsinki 1952 and won 15 gold medals.

Rafer Johnson was the Final Torchbearer. He ran the whole track and ran a whole long flight of stairs where he
lit a specially-designed Cauldron with 5 Burning Olympic Rings

LEVIS was the Official USA Outfitter








SOURCES:
http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1984/
Youtube
Wikipedia

DREAM TEAM 1992 VS. 2012

USA BASKETBALL
DREAM TEAM 1992 VS. 2012
http://frostwhisper2012.blogspot.com/2012/11/dream-team-1992-vs-2012_6.html

It was in the London Olympics 2012 wherein a nasty Kobe Bryant Online Comment
sparked the debate of


WHO IS THE BEST?
1992 DREAM TEAM VS. 2012 DREAM TEAM

In my opinion and the consensus of experts....
1992 Dream Team HANDS DOWN!
WHY?!
They have the 7'0" Centers - Patrick Ewing and David Robinson
PLUS
They have Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen - 6-TIME NBA World Champions!
11 out of 12 1992 Dream Teamers are BASKETBALL HALL OF FAMERS NOW!



Charles Barkley, now a NBA on TNT Analyst says,
THERE IS NO OTHER DREAM TEAM
1992 WAS THE ONLY DREAM TEAM
NO OTHER TEAM COMES CLOSE



Incidentally, this 2012, is the 20th Anniversary of the DREAM TEAM!
Well, I am writing this topic now because this Debate has triggered
A HUGE Interest in USA Basketball History
by the New Generation.


I am writing this account to share my Personal Experiences on the matter.

THE 1992 DREAM TEAM

In 1989, FIBA, International Basketball's governing body allowed Professional Players
to participate in the Olympics for the first time.


The USA won the Bronze Medal at the last 1988 Seoul Olympics -- bannered by David Robinson and Collegiate Players.  USA Basketball was looking for REVENGE!


The Team assembled by USA Basketball for the tournament in Barcelona in 1992, was arguably the most illustrious collection of talent fielded on an actual competitive team in the history of sports. Of the 12 players on the team, 10 would be named in 1996 to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team, the NBA's official list of the 50 greatest players of the league's first 50 years. Because of this star line-up, the team's games usually featured opposing teams asking for pre-game photos with their U.S. opponents — and idols.



 

ROSTER
NO	PLAYER NAME
4	Christian LAETTNER
5	David ROBINSON
6	Patrick EWING
7	Larry BIRD
8	Scottie PIPPEN
9	Michael JORDAN
10	Clyde DREXLER
11	Karl MALONE
12	John STOCKTON
13	Chris MULLIN
14	Charles BARKLEY
15	Magic JOHNSON

The First team to unfortunately feel the Dream Team's WRATH
in Olympic Competition was lowly ANGOLA.
And they were CRUSHED!


USA won the GOLD MEDAL beating CROATIA
Led by Toni Kukoc, a future member of the Chicago Bulls,
Dino Radja and the late-Drazen Petrovic.


In the Victory Ceremony, there was a Marketing Controversy.
The Official Apparel of the US Olympic Team was REEBOK.
Jordan, Barkley, Johnson...all NIKE-contracted Athletes,
Covered the REEBOK Logo on their Jackets with the American Flag.
The American Flag was used for more than Patriotic Reasons that time.


This was also the first time Croatia and Lithuania earned medals
since declaring their independence from Yugoslavia and
the former Soviet Union USSR, respectively.
 

Team USA cruised through its qualifying round with a 6-0 record. The team then took on Angola in the opening game of the Olympic competition. Charles Barkley had 24 points in a team USA 116-48 romp. Next, the Dream Team took on a talented Croatia team and beat them soundly by 33 points, led by Michael Jordan's 21. The United States team then defeated Germany behind Larry Bird's 19 points and Karl Malone's 18. In the next game, seven USA players scored in double digits and Barkley set the new single game Team USA scoring record with 30 points in a 127-83 rout of Brazil. Team USA then closed out pool play with a resounding 122-81 drumming of Spain.


In the quarter-finals, Mullin scored a team high 21 points as the Dream Team scored a 115-77 victory over Puerto Rico. Team USA rolled on in the semis with a 51 point win over Lithuania. Nine US players scored in double figures. Jordan led the way in the gold medal game against Croatia, scoring 22 points. Patrick Ewing had 15. Barkley had 17. The final game was the closest of the entire Olympics, with the Dream Team winning by 32 points in a 117-85 blowout to take the gold. The average win margin by which the United States won throughout the Olympic tournament was 43.8 points a game.

What is not publicly commonly known about the
1992 Dream Team was the Origins of the Team.

EARLY SCRIMMAGES 

A Select Team of NCAA all-stars scrimmaged with the professionals.
 

USA Basketball selected college players whose play, it hoped, would resemble that of the Europeans the Dream Team would face.  Members included the penetrating guard Bobby Hurley, the all-around players Grant Hill and Penny Hardaway, the outside shooter Allan Houston, and the tough Chris Webber and Eric Montross.

Consequently, in the above list, only Hurley and Montross did not become
NBA Legends.

In late June 1992 the Dream Team first met together in La Jolla, California,
astounding and intimidating the collegians who watched the professionals practice.

On June 24, the Dream Team LOST to the NCAA All-Stars 62-54, however, after underestimating the opposition.

Coach Chuck Daly intentionally limited Jordan's playing time and made non-optimal substitutions; Krzyzewski later said that the head coach "Threw The Game" to teach the NBA players that they could be beaten.

The teams played again the following day, with the Olympians winning decisively in the rematch. The college players visited Jordan's hotel room afterwards and asked
Their hero for his personal items as souvenirs.
 


The Real Competition for the 1992 Dream Team started in the FIBA-Americas Tournament of the Americas. The Dream Team had to win this Tournament in order to qualify for the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.

AND WIN THEY DID!


The Dream Team made its International debut on June 28, 1992, at the Tournament of the Americas, an Olympic qualifying event in Portland, Oregon. (Home of the Portland Trail Blazers)

The team defeated Cuba 136–57, prompting Cuban coach Miguel Calderón Gómez to say,
"You can't cover the sun with your finger."

Marv Albert, who announced the game, recalled that
"it was as if [the Americans] were playing a high school team, or grade school team.
They were so overwhelming ... a blowout after blowout".

The Cubans were the first of many opponents who were more interested in taking photos
with the Americans than playing them.

The next five games were also easy victories for Team USA,
who ended the tournament on July 5, 1992, with a 127–80 victory over Venezuela.


Magic Johnson in 1991 was diagnosed with the HIV-Virus
and abruptly ending his NBA Career and announcing Retirement.

Magic came back re-instated in the 1992 NBA All-Star Game
in Orlando Arena, Florida to win MVP Honors.

He hit consecutive three-pointers in that Game to cap of his Performance.
The West All-Stars won.

Note that, The last few minutes of the 1992 All-Star Game were not
played any more....as all players stopped playing and celebrated with 
Magic Johnson....a fitting Tribute to the Magic Man. 


The Final Shot was Magic hitting a turn-around three-point shot capping the night.

“     I look to my right, there's Michael Jordan ...
I look to my left, there's Charles Barkley
or Larry Bird ...

I didn't know who to throw the ball to!     ”

— Magic Johnson, on his Teammates

1992 DREAM TEAM LEGACY

Sports Illustrated later stated that the Dream Team was
"Arguably the Most Dominant Squad ever assembled in Any Sport" and compared it to
Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison, the Allman Brothers at the Fillmore East, Santana at Woodstock."

The team was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010,
and is one of only eight teams enshrined in the Hall of Fame.

Charles Barkley later said,
"I don't think there's anything better to representing your country.
I don't think anything in my Life can come close to that."

Larry Bird called the medal ceremony and the playing of The Star-spangled Banner "The Ultimate" experience.

Magic Johnson said "The 1992 Dream Team was the greatest moment of my life in terms of basketball, bar none." 

Michael Jordan said that the biggest benefit for him from the Olympics was that
he learned more about his teammates' weaknesses.

He later defeated Barkley, Malone, and Stockton in Three Future NBA Finals.
Jordan cemented the Chicago Bulls Dynasty in the 1990s winning SIX NBA Championships.

As of 2012, 11 of the 12 players on the roster (except Laettner),
and three of the four coaches (except Carlesimo), have been elected to the Hall of Fame.

Global interest in basketball soared due to the Dream Team.

International Olympic Committee head Juan Antonio Samaranch stated that
"The Most Important Aspect of the Barcelona Games has been the resounding success of the Basketball tournament, as we've witnessed the Best Basketball in the world."

Subsequently, the number of international players in the NBA rose.

On opening day of the 1991–92 season, NBA rosters included 23 international players from 18 countries.  At the start of the 2011–12 season, there were 74 players from 35 countries.

THE 2012 DREAM TEAM

Kobe Bryant and LeBron James said they believed their 2012 Olympic Team would win against the Dream Team.

Bryant said,
"They were a lot older, at kind of the end of their careers.
We have just a bunch of young racehorses, guys that are eager to compete."

Charles Barkley said that he "just started laughing" upon hearing Bryant's comment
and that the Dream Team would win by double digits.

Jordan added,

"For Bryant to compare those two teams is NOT one
of the Smarter Things he ever could have done...
Remember now, they learned from us.
We didn't learn from them."

Bird joked,
"They probably could.
I haven't played in 20 years and we're all old now."

ROSTER
NO	PLAYER NAME
4	Tyson CHANDLER
5	Kevin DURANT
6	LeBron JAMES
7	Russell WESTBROOK
8	Deron WILLIAMS
9	Andre IGUODALA
10	Kobe BRYANT
11	Kevin LOVE
12	James HARDEN
13	Chris PAUL
14	Anthony DAVIS
15	Carmelo ANTHONY

OLYMPIC TOURNAMENT PLAY
 

The Americans went an undefeated 8–0 and averaged 116 points per game,
Winning by an average margin of 32.1 points—the fifth highest in US Olympic history.

Team USA trailed in the fourth quarter only once, against Lithuania in the opening round.
Lebron James became the leader of the team with Kobe Bryant—who would turn 34 in August 2012—stepping back.

James facilitated the offense from the post and perimeter, called the defensive sets, and
provided scoring when needed.

After winning the gold, Team USA coach Mike Krzyzewski said
James "is the best player, he is the best leader and he is as smart as anybody playing the game right now."

Kevin Durant scored a United States Olympics record of 156 Points in the Tournament.
Durant also made 34 three-point field goals, breaking the previous United States mark of 17 set in 2012; Carmelo Anthony (23) also exceed the old record.

Bryant was not in peak condition early, but he played himself into shape and
was a key contributor in the final three games. While Chandler was the team's only true center. Anthony Davis was thin and had no professional experience.
 
Krzyzewski also played Love, James or Anthony as Team USA's de facto center.
Kevin Love led the team with 61 rebounds (27 offensive).

Compensating for its lack of big men, the US played small ball and spread its playmakers
around the three-point line and with a player penetrating and passing the ball back outside.
They won with "basically five players on the perimeter," Spain coach Sergio Scariolo said.

Bryant and Krzyzewski declared at the completion of the tournament that 2012 was their final Olympic appearance. 


 
They both joined Team USA after the disappointing bronze finish in the 2004 Games.
Krzyzewski left with a 62–1 record and a 50-game winning streak in international play for the Americans. He joined Henry Iba as the only US coaches to lead the team to consecutive Olympic gold medals.





LEBRON JAMES HAD HIS FINEST YEAR EVER IN 2012
NBA CHAMPION, NBA MVP, NBA FINALS MVP, GOLD MEDALIST AND OLYMPIC CHAMPION

Despite all the FLAK he received after joining the MIAMI HEAT,
And Losing to the DALLAS MAVERICKS in the 2011 NBA FINALS.









SOURCES:
http://hoopedia.nba.com
Wikipedia

5 Myths About the Ancient Olympics

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5 Myths About the Ancient Olympics

By Christopher Klein
http://www.history.com/news/5-myths-about-the-ancient-olympics
  

Critics who decry the present-day Olympics as being too commercial, too corrupt and too overrun by professional athletes often say the modern games besmirch the ideals of the ancient Greeks who competed in the original Olympics between 776 B.C. and 393 A.D. The idea that the ancient Olympics were a gathering of amateur athletes competing purely in the name of peace and good sportsmanship, however, is just another piece of Greek mythology. Explore five misconceptions about the ancient Olympic Games and discover some surprising similarities to our modern-day sporting festival.

 

 

Universal History Archive/Getty Images

1. Only amateur athletes competed in the ancient Olympics.
The idea that only amateurs should participate in the Olympics is an entirely modern-day concept that developed when the sporting festival was resurrected in 1896. Not only were many ancient Olympians full-time professionals who received stipends from states or private patrons, but the ancient Greeks didn’t even have a word for “amateur.” (To the Greeks, the word “athlete” meant “one who competes for a prize.”) Money prizes were not offered to competitors at Olympia, but they were at other Greek sporting competitions. As is the case today, fame and fortune awaited many ancient Olympic champions when they returned home. States awarded cash prizes to Olympic victors. Athens, for example, showered its champions with enormous sums of money and other rewards such as tax exemptions, front-row theater seats and a lifetime of free meals in its civic building.


2. The ancient Olympics were not plagued by cheating and corruption.
No matter the millennium, the lure of winning can be too tempting for some competitive athletes. Although ancient Olympians stood before a menacing statue of Zeus and swore to play fair, some athletes were willing to evoke divine wrath for the thrill of victory. Athletes breaking the rules could be disqualified and publicly whipped, and competitors and judges found guilty of bribery could pay hefty fines, some of which were used to finance bronze statues of Zeus erected near the entrance to Olympia’s stadium. “Victory is to be achieved by speed of feet and strength of body, not with cash,” admonished the statue inscriptions. Clearly not everyone paid heed: Over the years, fines paid for the erection of 16 statues.

Actors participate in a torch lighting ceremony for the modern Olympic Games at the ancient site of Olympia in May 2012. (Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images)

The first recorded cheating scandal at the games dates to 388 B.C., when boxer Eupolus of Thessaly bribed three opponents to throw their fights against him. Leave it to a politician, however, to take corruption to a new, practically farcical level. When the Roman emperor Nero opted to compete at Olympia in A.D. 67, he bestowed astronomical bribes on the judges, who then agreed to add musical events and poetry reading—activities that Nero considered to be his strong suits—to the Olympic program. The Roman emperor entered the four-horse chariot race with a team of 10 steeds. Although Nero fell out of the chariot and was unable to finish the race, the judges still awarded him the top prize. Nero returned from the Olympics and other Greek sporting events with a haul of 1,808 first-place prizes. Take that, Michael Phelps.


3. Politics and warfare were absent from the ancient Olympics.
With competitors converging from hundreds of independent states, some of them rivals on the battlefields as well as the playing fields, politics inevitably intruded upon the ancient sporting festival. During the Peloponnesian War in 424 B.C., Spartans were banned from competing in or attending the games. While a sacred truce traditionally halted all hostilities during the ancient Olympics, war came right to Olympia during the games in 364 B.C. As the tiebreaking wrestling match in the final event of the pentathlon was taking place, invaders from neighboring Elis attacked. Archers defending Olympia fired from the roofs of the temples. (Security measures for the 2012 London Games, which included soldiers on rooftops with surface-to-air missiles, echoed these long-ago events.) While 5,000 troops engaged in hand-to-hand fighting, spectators used to cheering bloodied athletes in combat sports such as boxing and wrestling stuck around and turned their applause to the warring armies.


4. The ancient Olympics were devoid of commercialism.
The billions of dollars that the International Olympic Committee receives from corporate sponsors and television broadcasters has taken it to a new extreme, but commerce at the Olympics isn’t a modern-day invention. In the ancient games, licensed merchants ran food and drink concessions and sold souvenirs. Artists, sculptors and poets hawked their works. Olympic organizers could hand out on-the-spot fines to merchants who engaged in price gouging or sold inferior merchandise. Champions of the ancient games may not have gotten their photographs on boxes of Wheaties, but their images appeared on specially minted coins and state-commissioned statues.


5. Ancient Olympians trained on their own.
As with many of today’s Olympians, competitors in the ancient games had a wide support network that assisted them in preparation and training. Like many countries today, Greek states invested in sporting facilities and hired trainers who assisted athletes with medicine, nutrition and physiotherapy. Trainers of Olympic champions became famous themselves and penned popular training manuals with advice on exercise and diet.