US Cyclists Apologize to Olympic Hosts

It is a courteous thing to do, apologize to your host when you say their house stinks. Like I said in my previous post, I can see how the Beijing hosts would feel a little ashamed if their visitors wore masks to their home. And, I'm sure that some big wig US Official convinced the US Cyclists to write the letter of apology. Let's not forget that most Olympic athletes are very young and their whole life has revolved around sports and being as health conscious as possible. So, in their defense, I don't think they meant to cause any political tension.

This statement from an article found here sums it up. "The perception that Beijing's pollution, which prompted a shutdown of factories and reduction in auto travel during the Olympics, was so harmful that Olympians needed masks on arrival was seen as a slap in the face to organizers." Hey, everyone understands that measures are being taken to reduce the pollution problem that evidently exists, but precautions are being taken by the athletes on a personal level because they want to maintain peak performance. As stated by US Olympic Committee chief executive Jim Scherr, "fractions of seconds can decide the fate of the competitors involved and that each was simply looking for every possible edge by wearing the masks as a precaution."

If your whole life led up to this competitive point, the world Olympics, what would you do in this situation? Keep in mind that the US Olympic Committee issued these young athletes the masks to begin with.