London, England – After a couple of rounds of initial voting and four rounds of stalemates, there was still no decision on a United States flag bearer.
It had come down to Mariel Zagunis and one other athlete. Zagunis didn't say who. Nor did she say who changed his or her mind, because eventually, somebody did make the crucial switch. Talk about your swing vote.
The decision meant that Zagunis, the two-time defending gold medalist in the individual women's sabre, would carry the American flag Friday at the Opening Ceremony at the London Olympics.
Tim Morehouse had decided to pitch his fellow fencer to the panel of U.S. team representatives. Among all the deserving people in consideration, he made a case that she should get the honor.
Zagunis supposed he had done a "really good job," which fits with her comment that Morehouse has done quite a bit to raise the profile of the sport. He had told Zagunis that he'd put her name into the running, but she wasn't privy to all the details.
And then she found out the results.
"To be that representative for all of Team USA means so much to me and is a huge, huge honor," she said.
It's an honor to Zagunis for a number of reasons. She is representing all of the United States delegation, and doing so as a fencer. Zagunis said she's only the third fencer since 1908 to carry the flag.
And in a year when there are more women than men on the United States team, in a year when Title IX celebrated its 40th anniversary, the experience is also meaningful to Zagunis, the woman.
She credited Title IX with opening a lot of doors for her and other women her age.
"It wasn't if I will play a sport, it's what sport will I play? It wasn't will I go to the Olympics, it's how many Olympics will I go to?
"I was born in the right generation to have these opportunities," Zagunis said.
The 27-year-old Oregon native is not short on Olympic experiences or memories, either. She gained a last-minute spot on the 2004 U.S. team and won her first gold medal, something of a surprise to others but not to her.
She was the first U.S. fencer to win gold in 100 years, but needed only four more to notch her second. Zagunis repeated in the sabre at the Beijing Olympics, a "dream come true all over again."
Now she's back for her third games, which was exciting enough in itself. And this year will be the first time she'll be able to walk in both the opening and closing ceremonies.
But to have her fellow athletes give her the honor of carrying the flag?
"The cherry on top of a pile of cherries that were already there."
