[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1992-1993, Book II)]
[August 11, 1992]
[Pages 1338-1339]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



[[Page 1338]]


Remarks Congratulating the United States Olympic Team
August 11, 1992

    These guys are fired up, listen. I am so sorry about the weather. We 
had a spectacular event planned out there. But it can't diminish this. 
May I salute Bill Hybl, the president of the committee, and of course, 
Arnold Schwarzenegger, who's Chairman of our Fitness Committee and led 
our official delegation over there to see you all magnificent athletes. 
And welcome to the White House. It's an honor to have this marvelous 
U.S. Olympic team right here. I didn't recognize you almost without Bob 
Costas as a voice-over.
    But I want to welcome you to the White House and to extend this 
message: Whether you won a gold, silver, bronze, or simply gave your 
best, I believe that you all are winners in the eyes of your countrymen. 
You really set a great example.
    The last couple of weeks we were completely caught up here at home 
by this Olympic spirit. Barbara asked me to help rearrange a couple of 
chairs upstairs. And I said, ``What's the degree of difficulty?'' 
[Laughter] But on and on it went, everybody reflecting the glory that 
you all helped bring to this country for 16 days, over 100 hours. You 
showed how competition lifts the human spirit and that now that spirit 
really lifts the American character. When I was a kid I read about the 
game being well worth the candle burned long into the night. Now I'm 
told your nights in Barcelona were long, but I'm betting that that 
candle is going to still last longer.
    Each Olympics is one for the record books. This one was one for the 
history books. Our world has been remade since those Seoul Olympics, and 
we Americans, I think, can take pride in the fact we helped remake it. 
But in 1989 the wall came down in Berlin, and this summer more barriers 
tumbled there in Barcelona. This was an Olympics, this is why I say it's 
historic, without boycotts, without terrorism, without politics. And 
it's just exactly as it ought to be.
    You all must have sensed it there in the village in meeting East and 
West Germans, black and white South Africans, North and South Koreans. 
One by one these old divisions gave way. The world watched as countries 
that didn't even exist in the last Olympics took their place on the 
field and the medal stand, too. Think of that. You know what it means to 
make America a winner, but think what it must mean to be the first 
athlete to bring a medal home to Latvia or Croatia. They, like you, made 
this an Olympics worthy of its name.
    Today we honor here in the White House all of you, the fastest, the 
strongest of America's athletes. And here's what I like even more: 
You're among its most inspirational. With us today is Shannon Miller, 
back here in the front row, who overcame a bone chip in her elbow; Gail 
Devers overcoming Graves' disease; Charles Barkley overcoming his 
shyness. [Laughter] That brings me to Ron Karnaugh, who wore his 
deceased father's hat and made every father proud. And Oscar de la Hoya, 
he not only brought home the gold, he brought honor to his mom's memory. 
Each of them competed, competed to win for the wonderful family called 
America.
    Ask diver Mark Lenzi what it takes to get the gold. He'll tell you 
about Dad's carpools or Mom's care packages, his favorite brownies, her 
special lasagna. Talk to Summer, Summer Sanders, one of swimming's new 
kids on the block, and she'll say that success--is she making signs--
[laughter]--success comes down to the support of people around you. And 
let me add, I'm especially amazed by the synchronized swimmers. Maybe 
it's because I live in a city where it's tough to get any two people to 
agree on anything, say nothing to do it in tandem.
    Family: Look at the Oden sisters, Kim and Elaina, volleyball's 
``sisters of smash.'' Then there's the men's wonderful bronze medalist 
volleyball team. It was sensational. I saw that last game. We've had a 
lot of athletes proudly represent the symbol of the bald eagle. They're 
the first ones that looked like bald eagles. [Laughter] From Trent Dimas 
and Chris Campbell and Janet

[[Page 1339]]

Evans, Carl Lewis, from Gigi and Mary Joe Fernandez to the woman Leora 
``Sam'' Jones representing those who won not only medals but also our 
hearts, and look, this list goes on and on, on and on. Suffice to say 
that in Barcelona this Nation became your family. And why not? Sports 
are not abstract. Fitness is not abstract. These things mean something. 
Sports are flesh and blood. Americans see you, and then they relate to 
you.
    Wrestler Bruce Baumgartner shows what I'm talking about. Watching 
him on TV, he's even stronger than I thought he was. Anytime he wants to 
come here, and weightlifting equipment isn't good enough, he's welcome 
to drop by and bench-press the Federal budget. [Laughter]
    Eighteen days ago Bruce called his 2-year-old son, Bryan, in western 
Pennsylvania. That day was doubly special. It was the opening day of the 
Olympics, and it was the kid's birthday, too. But he doesn't know what a 
gold medal is yet. The kid doesn't know that, but his mother coached him 
to say, ``Bring home the gold medal.'' Two years old. Last Thursday 
Bruce did exactly that. Now, he had a lot of company, for instance, the 
Dream Team which sent basketball soaring.
    My good friend Arnold Schwarzenegger, who led this delegation to 
Barcelona, our official one, once starred in a movie where he uttered 
those famous words, we all remember them, ``Hasta la vista, baby.'' 
[Laughter] In Barcelona that's what all of you said to opponents and to 
couch potatoes. You inspired the mother who plays softball with her 
kids, the dad shooting hoops with his boys or girls, the family who 
knows that sports are ageless. Take Pablo Morales--front row, where is 
he, can't find him, but he's in there somewhere; whoops, there he is--
the swimmer. He missed out in '84, didn't make the team in '88, then 
came back this year to earn a gold medal at the ripe old age of 27. That 
just goes to show, youth and inexperience are no match for maturity and 
determination.
    This summer the entire world was barely a match for you all. In 
Barcelona you KO'd the opposition: 108, and I want to repeat this one 
for the cameras, 108 medals, the most ever since 1904 in a nonboycotted 
Olympics.
    And you really paved the way magnificently for a knockout punch in 
Atlanta. I just can't wait until 1996. A proverb says, ``On the day of 
victory, no one is tired.'' Today we celebrate Olympians, like America, 
who are victorious, refreshed, and free.
    Thank you so very much for coming to the White House. May God bless 
this great country that you've made so very proud, the United States of 
America. Thank you all very, very much.

                    Note: The President spoke at 5:05 p.m. in the East 
                        Room at the White House. In his remarks, he 
                        referred to William Hybl, president of the U.S. 
                        Olympic Committee.