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Meet Dr. G

Faces of Rio 2016

By Rachel Tobias

August 11^th, 2016

Meet dr. g.

I spotted Dr. G. at the epicenter of a swarm of glittering hands exchanging pins back and forth on my way to Opening Ceremonies. I was initially excited to see a handful of young kids working their negotiation chops with seasoned ‘pinheads’, as they’re called. It soon became clear, however, that Dr. G was the deserved center of attention.

I have much more to share when it comes to the art of pin trading, but for quick context: if you’re in the pin trading game, it’s customary to wear any pins that you might want to trade visibly on your person. Most commonly, people wear them on their credential lanyards. The more serious traders have hats, vests or towels covered in Olympic bling.

Dr. G. was covered head to toe in pins from the 1986 Mexico City Games, and was eager to trade when he saw my overcrowded lanyard.

I exchanged two Mexico ‘86 pins for an NBC pin I had traded at USA House. To be honest, it wasn’t a great trade, but I have a weakness for the pin-passionate, and at the end of the day, trading pins is really just a way to make a new friend.

This was Dr. G’s tenth Olympic Games. He was joined by a very diverse array of family members, all who were complete pin converts and beaming with pride for their beloved family member. Halfway through our conversation, I noticed Dr. G’s USC lanyard and mentioned that I had graduated from USC in 2010. This was an instant game changer. “Oh, you’ve done it now,” his son whispered to me. The most endearing smile came over Dr. G’s face as he grabbed my arm and said, “Just wait until you see this.” He rifled through his backpack for a moment and pulled out a white flag, which he proudly raised: “World’s Best SC Fans”, it read. He couldn’t stop smiling.