The Olympics are over. I know. I got into Closing Ceremonies. I saw the Olympic flag lowered. I watched the flame distinguished. I was in the mass of humanity pushing itself into the Athens night.    I love the Closing Ceremonies. It is a big old party. The Opening Ceremonies are more ceremonial. The teams march in separately. But in the Closing Ceremonies, just the flags come in alone. Then all 10,000 Olympians come in as a group. All mixed up, one big world family. The Ceremony is a lot of dancing and singing and smiling. It is a bunch of fun.    During the Closing Ceremonies, they award the medals for the men's marathon. It was with great pride that we saw a U.S. athlete win the silver medal. And the gold medal was won by an Italian athletes. Sitting behind me were some citizens of Italy, and they sang with passion and joy the Italian national anthem. It was very touching to me.    For me, the Olympics ended with the last medal ceremony in wrestling, when Khadjimurad Gatsalov received the 96 kg gold medal in freestyle. Eight days of wrestling was over (and 24 days in Greece for me was winding up). The Olympics are in the history books. Next stop… Beijing.    ---    Consider winning the gold medal at the Olympic Games. This is the ultimate, the reason 10,000 athletes from across the globe travel to a city for two weeks and compete against the best of their peers. Winning the Olympic gold is a very, special thing, and only a few people get to experience it.    Cael Sanderson became the latest U.S. wrestler to win an Olympic gold medal. Yet, Cael still does not fully understand what that means to him and his life. At a press conference after his victory, he was asked to compare this with other wrestling achievements, and he could not answer it. Only a few hours after reaching this pinnacle, he did not yet have time to let it all sink in. But, Cael will certainly have a chance to get to answer all the questions about winning the Olympics. He will be asked about it for the rest of his life. From this time on, he will join a special community of sports heroes, known and respected forever as Olympic Champions. Welcome to the club, Cael…    ---    Hearing the U.S. national anthem at the Olympic Games has special meaning for so many people. This is especially true for somebody who witnesses it for the first time in person.    I remember my first Olympic gold medal experiences. They were in Seoul, South Korea, and the winners were John Smith and Kenny Monday. I remember how Dave Schultz, who lost to Kenny in the Olympic Trials and helped coach him in the Seoul Games, put Kenny on his shoulders after he won his gold medal. I also remember John Smith's wild celebration run around the mats after winning his gold medal. And I remember that very emotional and inspiring gold medal ceremony, when they played the national anthem and the U.S. flag was raised in the arena. That will always be a cherished memory.    When Cael Sanderson won his gold medal, we went through the gold-medal ceremony once again. After it was over, I visited with a colleague who had just seen her first U.S. wrestler presented with an Olympic gold medal. There were tears in her eyes and she was just knocked out emotionally. And once again, we were all reminded about why the Olympics are so meaningful and important to so many people. And hearing the national anthem and seeing the stars and stripes raised high continues to be something very, very special.    -----    There is little doubt that the best wrestler in the world right now, as we walk and talk and breathe, is Egypt's Karim Gaber at 96 kg/211.5 pounds. Gaber has been to the United States many times, because he has family there and he likes to train and compete in our nation. Our fans have seen him at events like Sunkist, the NYAC Tournament and the Dave Schultz. He always puts on a great show, with some spectacular throws.    But to toss around World champions and medalists like he did during the Athens Olympic Games is not to be believed. Those of us who were here will never forget his explosive throws and complete dominance of his opponents. His confidence level and his aggressive nature made his matches among the most exciting ever seen at an Olympic wrestling competition.    Gaber took the right opportunity to show the World his best stuff - the world's biggest stage at the Olympic Games. He is certainly a hero in his home land of Egypt. But even more, he is a hero within wrestling for showing just how exciting our sport can be when somebody opens up his offense and throws people.   ------    The trend in the men's Greco-Roman tournament of star athletes going down to defeat continued in men's freestyle. Trying to predict an Olympic Games is hardly worth the effort, even though many of us try to do just that. Who would have put Jamill Kelly in a gold medal match? How many people would have thought two-time World champion Eldar Kurtanidze of Georgia or 2000 Olympic champion Mourad Umachanov of Russia would get beaten in their pools? Did anybody predict a Sajid Sajidov vs. Yoel Romero match - in the bronze-medal round? That is why we rolled out the mat… and let it all happen.    ----     I was talking with a friend who is an Iranian journalist, and we were discussing the many veteran star wrestlers who were falling short of their goals. We noted all of the "older" wrestlers who were getting beaten, from Nazarian to Yerlikaya to Dabir to Kurtanidze to Dogan, and on and on and on. He indicated that this really is a sport for younger men, especially at the Olympic Games. Experience goes a long way in wrestling, but at some point, age catches up with a wrestler. It is the nature of the beast.     -----    The Greek organizers and the entire government caught a raw deal from the media about these Games. All of the press reports about security concerns, a lack of completion of competition venues and transportation nightmares were just dead wrong. Greece was ready for these Games. The venues were completed, the security top notch and the transportation worked very well. The streets were not overloaded. Buses ran on schedule. All of the Olympic venues were beautiful, first class arenas for top-notch action. It took awhile for the media to get off the negative themes, such as security and doping, and back on the task at hand, covering these amazing athletes and their personal stories. The really sad part of this tale is that many people who might have come and enjoyed a tremendous Olympic experience stayed at home because of all the negative media. There was room for these people, and had they been here, they would have had a tremendous time. For those who decided to come in spite of the dire press predictions, they made a great decision. I guess it is another example of "don't always believe what you hear in the press."     ---    Once again, the men's freestyle competition was completed on the last day of the Games. This is a bit unfair for these athletes. The final day all focus is on the Closing Ceremonies and the men's marathon. All of the other competition takes second fiddle. A large contingent of the world media has already left. The Today Show shut down its set on Friday, so any of our stars from the weekend will need to get booked back in the United States. Other media outlets are now shorthanded, and may not have enough reporters to send out to see the end of the wrestling. It is also a bit rough for the wrestlers, who do not get a chance to fully enjoy the Olympic experience due to training and competing right until the end. Many sports end earlier, allowing the athletes to spend a few days enjoying the tourist activities and spending time in the Athlete Village without competition on their minds. This is OK for our athletes and coaches, who are tremendously focused on winning medals, but it is a bit sad that the schedule was set up in a way to limit their exposure as well as their ability to enjoy Greece and the Olympic atmosphere.    ---    Will you continue wrestling? This is a question all of our medalists field after they achieve Olympic success. For some, the answer is a quick yes. Stephen Abas is already talk