A snapshot of the Olympic spirit

So, now that Tom Cruise has closed the show in spectacular style, carrying the Olympic flag off to Los Angeles on the back of his motorbike, and the curtain falls on another spectacular Summer Games, it's time to take a moment to reflect on the past two weeks, before the hard work of another Olympic cycle begins.

And what a fortnight it has been! Loaded with thrilling sporting action, feats of strength, skill and perseverance, and, of course, a bucketload of medals for Team China.

But, aside from the fierce competition, there were remarkable acts of sportsmanship, kindness and friendship, proving, again, that sports can conquer political, ideological and cultural divides like very little else.

Among the heartwarming highlights, the world heaped praise on He Bingjiao, who took silver in the women's singles badminton at the expense of Spain's Carolina Marin, who retired injured from their semifinal. In a show of empathy that won the hearts of millions, He carried a pin of the Spanish flag onto the podium with her in tribute to her fallen opponent, saying that she hoped to bring the spirit of Marin to the final. Lauded in the Spanish media, the country's NOC personally thanked He in Mandarin on social media.

Another wonderful — and literal — snapshot of the Games was that of China's mixed doubles table tennis gold medalist Sun Yingsha directing an impromptu podium photo shoot with teammate Wang Chuqin and the silver medalists from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Ri Jong-sik and Kim Kumyong, and the bronze medalists from the Republic of Korea, Shin Yu-bin and Lim Jong-hoon. The resulting pictures became a viral sensation, proving that, among athletes, there are no borders, only the crucible of competition.

Perhaps one of the most high-profile moments, though, came poolside at La Defense Arena. After breaking the United States' six0decade stranglehold on the 4x100m medley relay, and following a bitter, media-fueled spat between their respective anti-doping agencies, the American team rushing to congratulate the Chinese quartet of Xu Jiayu, Qin Haiyang Sun Jiajun and Pan Zhanle, and then emphasizing China's dominance in the podium photos that followed, went a long way to bridging the rift. Pan burying the hatchet with Australian swimmer Kyle Chalmers after an earlier misunderstanding between the pair, and swapping swim caps and contact details, will stand as an example of the magnanimity that is forged by intense sporting competition, and is perhaps something we can all learn from. After all, we're only human, even if there are those that are, arguably, more superhuman.

mccarthy@chinadaily.com.cn