Post Olympic thoughts from Kara Patterson (part two)...

EDITOR'S NOTE: After things settled down, paulmerca.blogspot.com caught up with Vancouver's Kara Patterson (above/photo by Victah Sailer, The Running Network/photorun.net), who threw 54.00m/177-2 on her first attempt in the women’s javelin, finishing 21st in her flight at the Olympics in Beijing.

Kara, who is finally back in school at Purdue University in Indiana, was kind enough to share her thoughts on the competition, and the entire Olympic experience.

She talks about the Olympic experience:

The Olympics is something I don't think anyone can be truly prepared for.

At least in my personal experience, I'd never been in a truly world class competition before; my international experience has come from Pan Am Junior Championships and NACAC Under-23 Championships, so seeing so many different athletes of so many different shapes and sizes from so many different countries all living in the same Olympic Village has been extremely eye-opening.

There are computer labs in the Village where people talk on Skype to their families, and it's so much fun for me to listen to the many different languages mixing together. As unique as individuals are when they come from different nations, it was fantastic to see that, when it comes to competition, we're all focused on realizing goals. Experiencing and becoming accustomed to the diversity that I have here, I almost worry that it'll take me a while to readjust to the good old USA!

One of the coolest things about the Olympics that I've taken note of is the fact that the whole thing is a big celebration. Anyone who watched Opening Ceremonies knows that.

I don't think I understood how MANY events are contested at the Olympic Games before coming here, and catching glimpses of medal ceremonies for such a wide array of events is really neat. Not only are we celebrating athletic success, we're celebrating such diverse kinds of athletic success that the Games truly can be an inspiration to just about anyone on the planet.

Final thoughts:

I am really, really excited to see my Purdue teammates again!!!!!! I'm so happy to be returning to Purdue for one last season and am looking forward to the success that I know Purdue Track and Field will enjoy.

After I get a little rest in, I can't wait to be cheering teammates on at fall conditioning practices and beyond. Boiler UP!