The 2002 Winter Olympics have drawn mixed reactions of disinterest, patriotism and international brotherhood from ETSU students.
“It’s all good, it’s the Olympics,” George Wagner said.
However, some students have no interest in watching the Winter Games in Salt Lake City. It may appear to be just like watching a Sunday night football game.
“They aren’t significantly different from other athletic competitions,” Josh Bremseth said.
The opening ceremony was moving in certain aspects. The American flag that had been hung on the World Trade Center and survived the terrorist attacks was used in the opening ceremony.
“I wouldn’t really call it patriotic, I would say it had a lot of culture to it,” Garrett Line said.
Angela Parton said: “People feel more of a connection with their fellow Americans. They want to see them succeed and prove that terrorism hasn’t affected our way of life. We will rise above.”
Rachel Brandon said: “The Olympics are about coming together on a global scale. They are not about one particular country’s tragedy.”
A lot of students had preconceptions as to who would light the torch. These included George W. Bush or Rudy Giuliani. Many students were disappointed to see that it was the 1980 gold medal-winning hockey team because they didn’t understand the significance, yet many were very pleased.
“It was nice to realize that they would recognize them 20 years after it happened because it was such a big defeat against the Russians,” Line said.
Lisa Przbyszeski said: “Maybe to someone who was older it was more special. I wasn’t even alive when the hockey team won the gold in 1980.”
Despite the differences of opinion regarding the Olympics to students, it will continue to be a huge event bringing nations together to compete in a sense of brotherhood.

Author