the good doctor On: I See! I won!
Blog Vol.II, # 14. Olympics: I see! I won!
I can remember back in 2016 at the closing ceremonies of the Rio Games, the Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe, led us through a spectacular animé production that transported us to Tokyo, home of the 2020 games. It was definitely something to look forward to. Fast-forward five years… and the world just witnessed the most digitally streamed Olympics ever. The Covid pandemic had a lot to do with this, of course, as there were no spectators allowed at the events. As always, the level of athletic achievement was amazing.
As an optometrist, I was impressed with the visual accuracy and the eye-hand co-ordination that was on display over the 16 days. I was streaming a volleyball match in the preliminary round between the men of Brazil and Argentina, always excellent drama when these two sides meet. During the game, one of the players had to take a time out for a trainer/eye doctor to remove, clean, and re-insert a contact lens. Sports like volleyball, table tennis, tennis, baseball, archery, shooting (ten different events at this games), and countless others require superb vision and co-ordination. When it comes to the games, there is much mention of the dedication of coaches, parents, and support staff; I would like to give a special shout out to all the sports vision optometrists who make this level of excellence possible.
Eye protection was also in much use at the games. I could not help but notice that our own André De Grasse, who took home medals in three different sprinting events, was sporting a pair of pretty nice sunglasses in his races. How cool was that? Not only did he look good, but he also had glare control and sun protection. How about the swimmers with their tiny goggles? I could not help but notice that Canadian, Maggie MacNeil, was wearing goggles when she won gold in the 100 metre butterfly. Did you notice that when she finished her race, she removed her goggles and had to really scrunch up her eyes to see if she won? She was wearing prescription goggles. (Contacts lenses should not be worn under goggles.) Then, when she was receiving her medal on the podium, she showed up wearing glasses for her nearsightedness. The games through an optometrist’s eyes.
Even us regular people need eye protection when participating in athletic activities. Swimming and protective goggles all are available with prescription lenses as are sunglasses. In fact my wife and I are getting my son a pair of prescription swim goggles for his birthday, shh! Don’t tell.
Til next week,
the good doctor, Dr. Mark Germain, Burlington Optometrist
