Remember the famous old line from ABC’s “Wide World of Sports”?
“The thrill of victory, and the agony of defeat.”
From Jordan Chiles’ gymnastic dynamism to basketball stars that can dance as well as hoop, UCLA athletes are making sports fun again.
These are athletes who inspire, and whom we can admire. Getty Images These are women who command their fields, leave politics on the sidelines, and delight us with their love of craft and performance chops.
This week, to cap off a 28-1 regular season, three UCLA basketball stars caused a sensation by busting moves with the Bruin dance team at halftime of the men’s basketball game against Nebraska.
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When Charlisse Leger-Walker, Lauren Betts and Gabriela Jaquez showed off choreography they’d learned in just a day, it was spunky and spirited and sheer, simple fun.
Meanwhile, UCLA’s star-studded gymnastics squad, among the best in the nation, have gone 9-0 this season, led by Olympians and rising stars.
The team is best known for the viral perfect-10 floor routines of Jordan Chiles, who has banished the boring tumbling run in favor of choreography exuding fun, ingenuity, and undiluted passion.
These are athletes who inspire, and whom we can admire.
At a time when many stars choose to lecture the country on politics, the UCLA women have stayed centered on sport, performance, and love of craft.
Sports should be a refuge from politics, an escape from the red-against-blue strife, a break from the daily onslaught not only of news, but also of chores and traffic and daily irritations.
Sports should be about the thrill of victory, the agony of defeat, and the delight of performance.
And to the broader sports world: More of the good stuff, please.
