Unfair and unhappy: weightlifting at the Samoa XVI Pacific Games in 2019. From left, Feagaiga Stowers (silver), Laurel Hubbard (gold), and Iuniarra Sipaia (bronze) / Samoa Observer
Like many children of the 70s, I came of age watching Olympians like Mary Lou Retton, Greg Louganis, Scott Hamilton, and Carl Lewis.
They were like young gods; the world held its breath as they gracefully broke the rules of gravity, time, distance, force and speed. The laws of nature appeared to bow to their incredible talents.
For a brief season, mere mortals like me could contemplate the world’s best athletes in awe and admiration. I studied the physiques and mindsets of the female athletes and wondered if I would grow up to have the spring-like stature of a gymnast, the steady hands of an archer, or the endurance of a marathoner.