Joannie Rochette Won Bronze--the Medal of Tears and Courage the Farewell Gift to Her Mother

Joannie Rochette won bronze figure skating medal and by winning it only days after her mother had died she gave us something truly extraordinary-the ultimate and true Olympic moment. With her grace she stole our hearts. With her determination and her courage she touched us in a way only greatness can.

The Olympic Games have always been special. The heroic Olympic ideals, their mystique and aura and the agony and ecstasy associated with them are legendary. It is difficult to resist them. It is difficult for audience at large. It is even more difficult for the athletes. In four years the athletes have only one shot to reach the Olympic glory.

Nobody is immune to the promise of the true Olympic moment. Hungry for it, we are demanding from our athletes impossible. We want them to give us that one shiny moment that is going to inspire us all, that true transcendental moment that will give us the taste of what Olympic really means.

And Joannie Rochette gave us this moment, this true Olympic moment. Rochette's flawless short and long program performances only days after her sudden death of her mother were a farewell gift to her mother. But they were also a gift to us all.

Over a few days, Joannie Rochette went from the thrill and excitement of Olympic Games to the tragic loss and overwhelming grief. Nobody prepares you to go so quickly from exhilarating hope to debilitating despair and sadness. And out of her despair and sadness the courage came, the courage to go on in spite of her unbearable loss, to go on and skate. And skate she did.

To skate like Joannie Rochette did is more than a testimony to her mental, emotional and physical and technical preparedness and it is more than a test of her focus and her maturity. It is her way of saying thank you to her mother. She could not give up. Not competing was not possible. It became quite impossible. She had to finish what they started so long ago with her mother and father.

Long, long ago, Joannie Rochette, her mother and her father devoted their life to Olympic dream. The father worked three jobs to support her daughter's passion, and as Joannie Rochette shared with us after the Olympic competition her mother had taught her how to be tough in face of life challenges. With so much family devotion to the sport, it became necessary for Joannie Rochette not to let it go. She had to perform. She had no choice. Her kiss to the heavens at the end of her final performance said it all.

In the face of the overwhelming personal loss Joannie Rochette responded to the challenges of the Olympic Games with focus and grace thus giving us the ultimate Olympic moment. Her emotional resilience came from within. Only in pursuit of excellence she found a big enough gift worth giving to her mother. And in giving it to her, she gave it to us all.