Saturday, February 22, 2014

David Murdoch and Lockerbie

If you have some time and want to read one of the most heart-warming and gut-wrenching stories to come out of Sochi, then I'd suggest you read this tale by Jeff Passan of Yahoo! on David Murdoch and his home town of Lockerbie. It's truly a great read. 
The story revolves about the Scottish town that is a curling powerhouse but also known as that place where Pan Am 103 crashed down and how that had a chance to change at the Olympics. Here's a touch of it, based on Murdoch's parents: 
About a half-hour before the match started, the bagpipers took a short break. It was time to go into the arena. Before Matt and Marion headed toward their seats, Matt turned toward me. 
"It's finally a happy story about Lockerbie," he said.
When it didn't work out for Murdoch, at least not with a gold medal, the skip -- who is simply one of the nicest guys you'll meet on the curling ice or, hopefully, in the bar afterwards, felt horrible, obviously.
David Murdoch cried when the match ended. He took the classic Olympic bromide about letting his country down and localized it. This wasn't his gold medal. It was Lockerbie's, or was supposed to be, and instead, Murdoch said, "It just feels like a little bit of a kick in the teeth."

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