It’s time for the summer Olympics and I could not be more excited! It’s time for the weekly Friday Five linkup with me, Mar, and Courtney, and what better time than the day of the Opening Ceremony to have a “Fitness” theme. Join in by linking up your “Five” post at the bottom and link back to one of us in your post!

So here are my five thoughts on why I’m excited about the Olympics.

1. Olympic Triathlon. OMG, so exciting. This is the first Olympics that I’ll watch after having become a triathlete and I could not be more excited! The US has a full team of 3 men and 3 women competing and it should be really exciting. The events are on August 18 & 20. More info here. I’ve been reading up on the Olympic triathlon athletes in my Triathlete magazine.

2. Celebrating the athletes. I love that every four years we celebrate the dedication and talent of athletes. It motivates and inspires people around the world, and I always hope that carries through in the intervening four years.

3. I heart Olympic swimming. There’s not much more to say… I can’t get enough of Olympic swimming. I am obsessed with it every four years. For real.

4. Discovering new sports and athletes. I love checking out “non-mainstream” sports during the Olympics. It’s a great way to broaden my horizons beyond the sports that I typically see. And by following along I discover so many talented athletes who excel in these sports that I didn’t know about before. It’s very cool!

Think about it – rugby, table tennis, badminton, fencing – these are not things you see every day. We’ve been into handball because of having international au pairs live with us who were into the sport, but it’s also not something you see every day in the United States.

5. Inspiring my kids. My 10 year old daughter always gets so excited about the Olympics, but this is the first one where my 6 year old son is aware of what it’s all about. He’s completely soccer-obsessed and has already been watching women’s soccer games that started the other day. I want my kids to see the talent, passion, and dedication that the athletes have, and how hard work has gotten them to the Olympic games.

For a full schedule of the Summer Olympics, check here. I’m actually on vacation from work during most of it so it’s perfect timing for me to watch as many Olympic events as possible!

Are you watching the Olympics? What’s your favorite summer Olympics event?

Link up with us for the Friday Five!

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