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The Olympics are one of the most emotionally charged events we have in the world.
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This is not just a game of pick-up basketball with your friends on a Sunday.
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This is something athletes have been training for for years.
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In fact, many have been training their entire lives.
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And in the 2016 Summer Games, these athletes have spent their years in the 21st Century preparing for this moment.
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Friends have been cheering them on for years.
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Families have been relentlessly rooting for these superstars for decades.
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And when it comes down to it, the emotion can be overwhelming.
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Think of all of the adrenaline it takes to perform at that level.
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Think of the courage athletes have to muster up to be competing at such a prestigious international event.
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They need to focus every ounce of energy into a few minutes that could change their lives.
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These athletes do nothing but eat, sleep, and breathe Olympics.
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Sometimes, the outcome is more than they had hoped for, and they're overcome with happiness.
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Other times, in their best effort to leave it all in Rio, something goes wrong and they're painfully hurt.
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Either way, competing in the Olympics means they're at the height of their emotions.
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They give the Games everything they've got.
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These athletes do not just show up. They stand up.
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They push themselves to physical limits that seem impossible to the rest of us.
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Here's to the men who have trained too hard and worked for too long to conceal their emotions.
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May they walk away from Olympic village knowing they could not have possibly tried any harder.
