The Other Olympics

I've been watching on tv and enjoying some of the Olympic contests. Events like this do generate excitement and bring out some fine qualiites in people. Although these games seem to have avoided crass commercialism, it is no secret that you cannot enter the stadium wearing a Nike symbol on your t-shirt (you have to turn it inside out); and to bring in any drink that is not made by Coca-Cola, you have to remove the label.

For a truly non-commercial games, take a look at these, held on the edge of the Brazilian rain forest by a diverse group of local tribes:

"The First Traditional Indian Games of Pará (I Jogos Tradicionais Indigenas do Pará). From 15–20 June 2004, 470 indian men, women and children played ancient and modern games, such as soccer, archery, spear throwing, tug–of–war, canoeing, swimming and running. Some gave stunning demonstrations of traditional sports played only by their own tribes, like the tree–log relay race of the Gavião indians, where men carry 200–pound (90 kilogram) logs on their back, or the hockey sport of the Kayapo indians called Ronkrã."

The full story, beautifully illustrated.