MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Being an Olympian oftentimes is about more than just playing a sport. It's about representing your country, a sense of pride that some athletes can only dream of.
That's a feeling that Jerry West knows well.
West has been setting the standard for basketball players for quite some time. Not only is he the inspiration for the logo that appears on NBA jerseys, but he was a co-captain for what many consider to be the greatest basketball team of all time, the 1960 Olympic gold medal team. West and that 1960 team are in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame together as a unit, one of only 10 teams to have such an honor.
To his credit, West has an NBA championship as a player, an NBA Finals MVP award (the only player to win it from the losing team), is a 14-time NBA All-Star selection as well as a one-time All-Star MVP, a 10-time All-NBA First-Team selection, a four-time NBA All-Defensive First-Team selection, led the league in scoring (1970) and assists (1972), and has seven more NBA titles to his credit as an executive with the title of Executive of the Year bearing his name twice.
But...
"The biggest thrill of my life wasn't winning an NBA championship. It was winning a gold medal," West said, reflecting during a recent visit to West Virginia's campus.
Typically, West hasn't considered himself much more than a boy from Cabin Creek, W.Va., who has been able to live out his dreams twice, once as a professional basketball player and then again as an executive for multiple NBA teams. But when it comes to the Olympics, West and his teammates were more than just basketball players.
"That point in time, the world was in turmoil with communism, the threat of nuclear war, racism at its height," West said of 1960. "It was like you were fighting a cause and out to defeat communism."
So, when West and that 1960 version of Team USA blew through the competition in Rome, Italy with an 8-0 record and an average margin of victory of more than 40 points, it was for more than just bragging rights.
When the National Anthem played as he and Oscar Robertson accepted the gold medals, West said the feeling was indescribable
"The national anthem, I just wish people knew what I felt like during that. I was so proud," West said, a smile coming to his face. "I felt like we had won a cold war."
Jerry West has become an iconic figure among the professional basketball world. — GETTYTICKETS PUNCHED
The following athletes with ties to the region will represent their respective countries in the Summer Olympics:
Leah Smith, Mt. Lebanon, Oakland Catholic High School, U.S. women’s swimming
Amanda Polk, Bloomfield, Oakland Catholic High School, U.S. rowing
Christa Dietzen (Harmotto), Aliquippa, Hopewell High School, Penn State, U.S. women’s volleyball
Alisha Glass, Penn State, U.S. women’s volleyball
Meghan Klingenberg, Gibsonia, Pine-Richland High School, U.S. women’s soccer
Natalie Burton, West Virginia, Australia women’s basketball
Jessica O’Connell, West Virginia, Canada track & field
Yelena Leuchanka, West Virginia, Belarus women’s basketball
Max Holt, Penn State, U.S. men’s volleyball
Matt Anderson, Penn State, U.S. men’s volleyball
Aaron Russell, Penn State, U.S. men’s volleyball
Carlos Guerra, Penn State, Mexico men’s volleyball
Joe Kovacs, Penn State, U.S. men’s track & field
Darrell Hill, Penn State, U.S. men’s track & field
Ginny Thrasher, West Virginia, U.S. rifle
Kadeisha Buchanan, West Virginia, Canada women’s soccer
Ashley Lawrence, West Virginia, Canada women’s soccer
Sarah-Anne Brault, West Virginia, U.S. women’s track & field
Frank Molinaro, Penn State, U.S. wrestling
Daniel Gomez Tanamachi, Penn State, Mexico men’s fencing
Miles Chamley-Watson, Penn State, U.S. men’s fencing
Monica Aksamit, Penn State, U.S. women’s fencing
Katarzyna Trzopek, Penn State, U.S. women’s fencing
Shane Ryan, Penn State, Ireland men’s swimming
Alyssa Naeher, Penn State, U.S. women’s soccer
Ali Krieger, Penn State, U.S. women’s soccer
Bobby Lea, Penn State, U.S., men’s cycling
Matt Baranoski, Penn State, U.S., men’s cycling
Nicco Campriani, West Virginia, Italy rifle
Ziva Dvorsak, West Virginia, Slovenia rifle
Petra Zublasing, West Virginia, Italy rifle
Bekzod Abdurakhmonov, Clarion, Uzbekistan wrestling
Note: If you notice there are any local athletes who have or you believe may have qualified for Rio, please do not hesitate to contact us or mention them in the comments below. We don’t want to miss anyone.