Chapter 1031: Chapter 7 Lithuania
[Barcelona is a big city with millions of people, and like all big cities, traffic congestion is a common problem.
During the Olympics, this problem was even more severe.
Because we didn’t stay in the Olympic Village, it often took an hour to travel from the hotel to the venues.
But our bus was different; with the escort of local police cars, it only took us 20 minutes to get to the venue each time.
On the road, the sound of police sirens was incessant, and the streets were empty, just like scenes from the movie "Supreme Detective"—our bus whizzed past as vehicles on both sides waited.
One night we had a match against Puerto Rico, and we were once again on the bus, heading to the venue under police escort.
I saw the roadside full of waiting cars and buses making way for us.
As it turned out, one of them was carrying the Puerto Rican team, and I happened to see my friend Jose Ortiz sitting on the bus.
I waved at him, and he saw me too, waving back, but then we both realized what a strange scene it was.
We were both Olympic teams, heading to the same venue for a match, yet I was on the road, and he was making way for me.
Realizing the irony, his smile vanished, while I smiled awkwardly, unsure of what to say.
It’s a light claim to say that our Dream Team was spoiled by escorts. Once, I got caught in a traffic jam in Barcelona returning to the hotel after watching track and field.
I saw a subway entrance and decided to take the subway, confident that with my fame, skin color, and attire, chances were slim that anyone would recognize me.
So my family—including my 70-year-old mother-in-law—followed me into the subway station, and a few teammates imitated me.
This detour saved us 40 minutes on the road but probably shaved 4 years off the life of NBA’s security director Ballmer.
When the empty bus returned to the hotel, you couldn’t imagine the expression on Horace Ballmer’s face.
I must admit, Ballmer contributed a lot to us; we slept well because he and his team practically never slept.
It’s important to note that when I wasn’t with my teammates, I hardly needed any security work.
That’s why I knew I could safely take the subway without worrying about being mobbed for autographs.
When I participated in activities or walked the streets in Barcelona, I was never recognized; wearing a T-shirt and jeans, I was no different from a regular tourist.
The NBA, upon learning this, provided me with a portable camcorder to document my anonymity on the streets.
I accepted this suggestion and walked along the Rambla, filming the incoming tourists, with my wife and children accompanying me, taking candid shots of everything.
As expected, no one recognized me; I was like an average American tourist until I greeted a woman wearing a Dream Team T-shirt with the faces of 12 Dream Team players printed on it.
The woman was American, yet she still didn’t recognize me. I asked her about the Dream Team, like "Who is your favorite player?" "Have you met any of them?"
The woman replied, "I like Ah Gan the most."
I regretfully told her, "Ah Gan isn’t part of the Dream Team, he’s Chinese."
She had met Ah Gan and even Charles Barkley, pointing at Barkley’s picture printed on her clothes.
It was at this moment that my two sons couldn’t hold back anymore and pointed to my portrait on her shirt, shouting, "That’s our dad!"
Only then did the woman react, and soon the camera crew caught up, with more fans gathering for photos and autographs—even though most of them probably didn’t know who I was; they were just following the crowd.
However, some people recognized me, saying, "You’re Ah Gan’s college teammate."
Being Ah Gan’s college teammate was a more famous identity than being part of the Dream Team.
Many were curious about how Ah Gan commuted to the venues daily; during the Olympics, he stayed with us, receiving NBA security services.
He didn’t ride with us but took a helicopter, bypassing all roads and vehicles, straight to the venue.]
———Excerpt from John Stockton’s autobiography "Assisted," published in 2012.
The 1992 Olympics opened on July 25 at the Montjuic Olympic Stadium in Barcelona.
The opening ceremony was grand, with delegations from various countries entering the stadium in turn. It was the first Olympics after the end of the Cold War, and significant geopolitical changes had occurred.
Each country sent its largest and most complete delegation; the two Germanys unified and sent a joint team, no longer divided into East and West Germany.
Yugoslavia split, with Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia and Montenegro, and other countries establishing their own national Olympic Committees.
The same fate befell the Soviet Union, a former Olympic hegemon and sports powerhouse that would vanish from the Olympic medal table.
In its place were small countries like Lithuania, Estonia, and the special "Independent Union."
China sent 118 male athletes and 133 female athletes, participating in more than 20 events.
The male athletes wore all-white suits and trousers, while the female athletes wore white skirts and red jackets, making them quite eye-catching.
The heavy responsibility of being the flag bearer for the Chinese delegation undoubtedly fell on Gan Guoyang, as it was a long-standing tradition for the flag bearer to be a tall basketball player.
