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3,000 athletes from 73 countries participated the recent World Triathlon championships in Alberta, Canada … my wife was one, finishing in the top 10 in her age group, and my reason for attending the event as her domestique.
A sense of wonder prevailed in all the venues and served as a testimony to the human conditions of genuine goodness and joy – a welcome relief from the news which we left at home before beginning our journey – and a topic that I have editorialized about before.
The supernatural para athletes were well supported by family and friends; pomp and circumstance added a new dimension to our experience unseen at the local level; and national pride was amplified and ubiquitous. Personal stories abounded.
Innovation and creativity was part of the mix as evidenced by the transformation of a sludge-filled duck pond into a world class swimming pool. This was a transformation made possible by the removal of 990 dump trucks loads of sludge, the placement of a 25 acre pool liner, and the judicious application of over a ton of pool chlorine.