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When you read this article, it is likely the 2010 Winter Olympics will already be coming to a close. When watching, I must admit that I am not exactly a nationalist. Frankly, I root for anyone I think doesn't have intercontinental ballistic missiles.

That being said, I must explain my love of the Winter Olympics. The Summer Olympics, while far more publicized, cannot entice me to waste summertime in front of a television. However, when I am miserably cold, craving stimulation, and watching nuclear winter melt into a slushy hell, I watch sports that no one cares about.

The biathlon is a cross-country skiing race followed by a .22 rifle range. The rifles are built specifically to function at the conditions of the biathlon. Mechanical targets at a distance of 50 meters are the standard target for the athletes. For a marksman, this target is not difficult to hit, if you haven't been pushing your body to its limit in the bitter cold; on skis. This event was derived from a form of military training.

For NASCAR fans, the Skeleton, now famous for its reintroduction to the series of events, is quick and dangerous enough to draw the eye of any adrenaline junkie. With your face held inches from ice, pulling five Gs, even the strong of heart can falter.

However, while watching these sports, I'm often left with an ethical question. Do these games encourage a change in sentiments towards other nations? The United States' immense presence in the games and the quality of life we are so fortunate to have cannot be seen as unrelated phenomena.

Michael Phelps, despite his dolphin genetics, was a kid from Maryland. He had access to equipment, trainers, and the support that nurtured him into the most successful Olympian of all time, as of the writing of this article.

This leads me to wonder if the success of Americans in the Olympics, and the occasional gloating that follows, presents a na've and selfish persona to the citizens of the world.

That being said, no one remembers the Olympics. A few forgotten faces are draped in ribbon and some precious metal and a week later they're forgotten. They are a source of inspiration to aspiring athletes, but to the common man, they simply wear the flag of our land.

Athletics, on the whole, are a polarizing topic. Some ardent athletes become a disgrace to the sport; others become a beacon of hope to the disenfranchised. Yet a batting record, a gold medal, a brief speech at a convention, are no sign of an individual's character.

When one pursues a career in athletics, it requires self-examination. A goal of self-fulfillment in athletic pursuits is mysterious. Records are broken, ancient paragons are immortalized in bronze and left to the rain in Baltimore.

So why do we have athletic programs? What drives a person to compete? The rush of victory is inexplicable to one who hasn't experienced it, but at a deeper level, competition tests the fiber of the mind and body. To be tested in your utmost skill, at the most rigorous standards and be judged the best among your competitors is the zenith of physical accomplishment.

Yet few will reach this goal. Many will be genetically disadvantaged. They aren't tall enough, they aren't proportioned right, or they just aren't good enough. But in this pursuit, this trial of the body, one learns their limit of exertion. To become greater, one must push their limit to a greater benchmark and move beyond what they believe they can do.

Those who win gold are the best. They defeated the best of the best and until they must defend their record, they will be the best. But beyond this recognition, one finds a way to communicate with others. A common denominator of intense training creates camaraderie among competitors and from this, respect for those who they are pitted against leads to a growth in character one can find nowhere else.

Thus, when I watch the Olympics, I feel inspired by the athletes who didn't live in cushy suburbia, with a pool membership. When I see respect between these people, it helps me to believe that even at the pinnacle of competition people can shake hands.

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