Aug 21, 2016; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Photographers gather for the medals ceremony following the men’s cross country mountain bike competition during the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games at Mountain Bike Centre.

As with my first Olympics blog from Rio, I’m penning my final one from an aircraft 38,000 feet somewhere over the Caribbean. Admittedly, I’m not returning from Rio on this flight, however, but from a lighting design gig with Anthony Hamilton in Cura

Aug 17, 2016; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Colombia’s Mariana Pajon during individual seeding in the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games at Olympic BMX Centre.

Aug 13, 2016; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Keith Sanderson (USA) in the men’s 25m rapid fire pistol qualification in the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games at Olympic Shooting Centre.

With just a little over a week left here in Rio, myself and pretty much everyone on the USA Today Sports Images team has reached the point that we like to refer to as Groundhog Day (a take on the 1993 Bill Murray film where the same day keeps reoccurring over and over again). Groundhog Day at the Olympics usually entails having trouble remembering what day of the week it is, experiencing difficulty remembering whether you

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Denis Gargaud Chanut of France celebrates after winning the men’s canoe single final in the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games at Whitewater Stadium.

I believe one of the most inspiring things a person can do in life is to be genuinely gracious towards someone who’s come out ahead of them. I’m extremely fortunate that, back home, in my inner-circle of friends, we’re continuously celebrating each others’ accomplishments, even if one or more members of the circle could be viewed as “ahead” of the others at a given time. I think we’ve all realized that the more people we surround ourselves with who are achieving their goals and dreams, the more likely that their momentum of success will transfer to us with regards to our pursuits.

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