The International Space Station Expedition 65 crew recorded themselves on a day off after a long week of work having some weightless fun. From Earth orbit, 400 km (1,300 mi) above our planet, the crew present the very first Space Olympics.
ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet shared this video on social media with the caption:
“The first ever Space Olympics! A Saturday afternoon on the International Space Station. Four disciplines. Rules that evolved as we played. Seven athletes. Four nations. Two teams. Crew cohesion and morale boosted like never before. The first Space Olympics saw Team Crew Dragon and Team Soyuz compete in lack-of-floor-routine, no-handball, synchronized space swimming, and weightless sharpshooting.”
Over 200 experiments are planned during Thomas’ time in space, with 40 European ones and 12 new experiments led by the French space agency CNES. Throughout Mission Alpha Thomas is highlighting the parallels between being an astronaut and an athlete: both need to perform at key moments, and train hard to be at their best. Thomas has often said that sport taught him the values of team spirit and respecting teammates, and no astronaut is an island – if one profession is an example of teamwork it is being an astronaut. It takes a team to ensure they are at their best.
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