1. Becoming an expert on swimming strokes and distances, which information I will probably promptly forget. I loved it when Adrian won his gold medal because I was tired of Phelps and Lochte. I also had to suppress my laughter every time they interviewed that one female swimmer who gave her interviews in a voice that sounded like it was still underwater. It wasn't cruel laughter, I promise.
2. Gymnastics. I eat that stuff up. I loved the total emotional breakdown of the Russians during the team competition - obviously some countries don't media-coach their athletes to not cry and pout in front of the camera. They were just so honest about their disappointment. As I mentioned before, I also enjoyed Maroney's perfect vault and that guy from the Netherlands who did a perfect bar routine. Could we maybe, just maybe, have the girls do tumbling passes instead of floor routines with music, though? The guys get to do tumbling passes and it's so much more dignified. If you pay attention, the girls aren't really dancing to the music, anyway.
3. The awesome insanity that is BMX racing. We watched a whole bunch of races in quick succession and I swear to you there was one race where all the bikers except one crashed in a big heap. So that guy cruised on to victory (I think it was a prelim).
4. Track. And. Field. I love it all. Even the events that are really weird to me, like high jump (no matter how much I watch it, I can't figure out how they do that with their bodies) and pole vault. My favorite moment was probably when Galen Rupp (above) got silver in the 10,000m run. If you follow distance running at all, you know what a big deal that is. And of course, the relays are always fun! Too bad there was no dramatic baton-dropping this time around.
What were your favorites??