RIO DE JANEIRO -- There are 11,551 athletes competing at these Olympics, all striving for that elusive gold, silver or bronze medal. While Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky and Simone Biles have won multiple golds, around 10,500 of the athletes will go home without a single medal of any color. After the years and years of training and sacrifice, that is devastating for some. But they and others still will take home lessons and emotions that are nearly as important as any medal.And perhaps more so.The Olympics to me are permission to continue wanting things that I may or not get, distance runner Alexi Pappas said. Because I see so many people around me trying so hard as well. Its motivating to be around that. The Olympics are permission to keep believing in yourself because hundreds of other people believe in themselves, and they want something. And its a scary thing to want something but its less scary to be in a whole village of people who want something they may or may not get. ...Theres an element of it being a celebration. People want to do big things here, but everyone recognizes that its an achievement to be here and that the competitions themselves are celebrations.Of Greek-American lineage, Pappas grew up in the Bay Area and attended Dartmouth. In Rio, she competed for Greece in the womens 10,000-meter run, finishing in the top half (17 out of 37 entrants) with a personal-best time of 31:36.16. Like every Olympian, there is more to know about her than just her time in a competition.Pappas is also a writer. And an actress. And a filmmaker. And a poet. She writes poems for Womens Running Magazine, including a recent one titled Before, Olympics 2016, about such pre-competition preparation as knowing where bravery hides so she can draw it out.Every word matters in poetry, Pappas said. That helps me as a writer to appreciate words, and it also helps me as a runner. Because in poetry there are certain limitations, but there also is a lot of creativity within it, and I think that running is similar.Pappas and her fiance, Jeremy Teicher, co-wrote and co-directed the recently completed film Tracktown, which is set in Eugene, Oregon (aka, Tracktown USA). Based on some of her own experiences in the sport, the movie is about an intensely focused runner, played by Pappas, who competes at the U.S. Olympic trials in Eugene. The film also stars SNLs Rachel Dratch and Andy Buckley of The Office.She eventually wants to become a full-time filmmaker -- I would like to make things with Jeremy for the rest of our lives -- but she also wants to run as long as she can.A top runner and vibrant personality in the States, Pappas could have competed for the U.S. but chose to run for Greece instead -- she was able to thanks to dual citizenship since her grandmother is from Greece. She said it was an easy decision.My goals are to compete at the highest level, which you can do regardless of where you run. But also to have an impact on the sport, she said. Im doing that already in the U.S., but I think I can extend it to a place where distance running was born. But Greece has never had the leadership or role models in distance running. This was an obvious opportunity for me.While Pappas time in the 10,000 was more than a minute behind Ethiopian gold medalist Almaz Ayanas world record, Pappas said the race was the highlight of the Olympics. Thats because the Olympics are not just about winning or medaling. You can draw something just from being here and competing against the worlds greatest in your sport, regardless of what that sport is.Everyone at the Olympics is among the best, not just the ones who win gold, Pappas said. There is a remarkable energy to be around.Pappas was saying this outside the Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre, where she had just watched Greek teammates compete in synchronized swimming. She turned to Teicher and her father, telling them how odd it was that she and they were Olympians despite vastly different sports. But that is another beauty of the Olympics. It is about athletes in so many sports.Were different creatures, but were all trying to be at the highest level of something very specific, Pappas said. And none of these things are life or death matters. Win or lose here, youre going to be OK. But that you care about something so much that you almost make it a life or death thing is really special. And to be around it is emotional. Were all doing things that are not life and death every day, but if we can dedicate ourselves to it like these women I watched today, thats the best.Thats the lesson of the Olympics. Medal or no medal, the key is dedicating yourself to doing your best in what you love, whether that is running, swimming, poetry, film, technology, medicine, education or anything at all. Win or lose, succeed or not, the experience alone can be equally important. Carson Wentz Eagles Jersey .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again. Chuck Bednarik Eagles Jersey . -- Tony Stewart is 20 pounds lighter and has a titanium rod in his surgically repaired right leg. https://www.eaglessportsgoods.com/Womens-Nick-Foles-Inverted-Jersey/ . PAUL, Minn. Seth Joyner Eagles Jersey . LOUIS -- Valtteri Filppula assisted on three of Tampa Bays four goals, and the Lightning beat the St. Clayton Thorson Eagles Jersey . LOUIS -- Heading into the final stretch of the season, the issues for the Chicago Bears banged-up defence only seem to be getting worse. COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Even when it would have helped Ohio State for its rival to win, the Buckeyes still couldnt bring themselves to cheer for Michigan.After falling into a precarious scenario in the Big Ten East Division race thanks to the upset loss for the Wolverines on Saturday night against Iowa, the Buckeyes made it clear that the bad blood between the programs trumped any self-interest in preserving a three-way tiebreaker that would potentially allow them to advance to play for the conference title.The Buckeyes were always going to need to win their closing games to stay in contention for a Big Ten championship, including the huge showdown with the Wolverines on Nov. 26. But now theyll also need Penn State to lose once more to avoid losing a head-to-head tiebreaker with the Nittany Lions. For now, though, that doesnt appear to be troubling the Buckeyes.No, I dont root for them, junior captain Raekwon McMillan said. No. I mean, as a player and as our rival, I really just dont root for them at all. Its not a thing that I do, and I dont feel like anybody at our university should, either. It is what it is.None of my teammates were mad about them losing. That was our rival. We did want to play the best, highest-ranked team or whatever, but thats all I have to say about that.The Buckeyes might be comforted by their improved chances of making the four-team Colleege Football Playoff field without winning the Big Ten -- with a potential path opening up ahead of them thanks to not only Michigans loss but also upsets of previously unbeaten Clemson and Washington.dddddddddddd.Ohio State moved up to No. 2 in the AP poll on Sunday. And, after checking in at No. 5, according to the playoff selection committee a week ago, it will likely move into position to contend for the national championship when the new rankings are released Tuesday night. And the ability to stay there will ultimately come down to winning Saturday against Michigan State and in the finale against the Wolverines, whether they get help in the division or not.You know, no, not really; we dont really ever want to root for those guys, center Pat Elflein said. It was just an exciting football game to watch. I was watching with my roommates, and youre thinking about those scenarios and all that, but what I said is we have to win out. First win against Michigan State, then win the rest of our games, if we even want to dabble with the playoff and the championship. We have to win Saturday before we can even talk about that.I was watching, though. I knew No. 2, 3 and 4 went down. It was an exciting night of football -- a lot of upsets. ' ' '