10 Reason Everyone Should Cheer For Clyde Getty At The Olympics

When I tell people that I am cheering and supporting a 48 year old freestyle ski jumper from Argentina at the upcoming Vancouver Winter Olympics, their first reaction is that they think I'm making up a story. When they find out that I'm not, they wonder why I would support such an obscure athlete. Here are 10 reasons why you should consider cheering on Clyde Getty at the Vancouver Olympic games:

10. Daffy!



9. It's always more fun to cheer on the underdog.

8. Freakin' triple back-flip layouts.



7. Because you should hope that you can be as active when you are 48 years old.

6. He does back flips off of jumps he builds after it snows in his back yard.

5. It's not often you get a chance to root for an Olympic athlete with a touch of gray.

4. Because he can casually announce that he displaced his 10th rib on a jump as if it were nothing more than a normal training hazard.

3. Freestyle skiing take off ramps



2. How can you not root for someone who feels he has already received his medal simply for making it to the Olympics?

And the number one reason that you should be rooting for Clyde Getty at the Vancouver Olympics is:

1. After taking a face plant like this:



as Clyde did in Torino, not only did he jump up and wave to the crowd, he decided that he wanted to try the jump again in the next Olympics:

Sliding Down A Sheet Of Ice At 45 Years: Kazuhiro Koshi's Olympic Dream

Proving that age isn't the limit that we assume it is when it comes to the Olympics, Kazuhiro Koshi, the "resolute samurai" is aiming to qualify at the skeleton at the age of 45 (I'm nearly his age and I can barely get myself out of bed in the morning without injuring myself). Here is his story:



When Kazu began his skeleton career after the 1992 Albertville Winter Olympics where he failed to qualify for bobsled, he managed to do so despite the fact that there were no skeleton coaches or athletes in Japan at the time. He's persevered despite numerous setbacks including job changes and losses -- obstacles that would have made most people quit long ago.

Kazu is currently competing in World Cup races in an attempt to qualify for the Vancouver Olympics. Follow his blog and support his effort to make it to another Olympic games. How can you not want to support a 45 year old that is willing to slide down a sheet of ice face first because he loves it so much?