2022, a year in review

One picture is worth a thousand words/ Contributed photos

It is that time of year again. You finally got
used to writing 2022 instead of 2021 but the year is already over. While it is fun to speculate about the future, it is also important to reflect on the past, and this year, there was a lot to reflect on.

Starting the year strong, the COVID-19 virus experienced a severe surge in January, but as vaccines became more prevalent COVID cases began to plummet. Midway through the year, mask mandates were lowered, and by September president Biden had declared the pandemic was “over”.

In February, the 2022 Winter Olympics were held in Beijing under the slogan “Together for a shared future.” It was the most watched Olympic games ever, with over two billion viewers. Norway also made history with the most medals taken at a Winter Olympics, with 37.

Only days after the Olympics had started, Russia began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Putin said it was to protect the Russian-speaking Donbas region, falsely claiming that the area faced humiliation and genocide. As of now, there have been over forty-one thousand deaths and more than fifty-two thousand have been injured.

In more sports news, the 2022 World Cup was held in Qatar amid controversies about Qatar’s treatment of migrant workers and its homosexual citizens. The US national team advanced to the Cup’s Round of 16 only to be defeated by the Netherlands. The FIFA World Cup Trophy was ultimately won by Argentina, giving their legendary player, Lionel Messi, his first World Cup championship.

In pop culture, the Glass Animals song “Heatwaves” reigned as the number one song on the Billboard Hot 100, in the top for fifty-nine weeks. The biggest movie of the year was “Top Gun: Maverick” grossing $1.49 billion, even being re-released on December second. In the world of video-games, “Elden Ring” released to widespread critical acclaim selling over 18 million copies worldwide.

Closer to home, the OIHS 2022 prom went off without a hitch. The then junior class hosted it at the Oddfellows Hall. The theme was “Old Hollywood,” and Jai Watchtel and Uma McMurray were crowned King and Queen. At graduation, tens of thousand dollars were given away in scholarships.

The 2022 school year also marks the first year since COVID lock downs fully in person and without mask requirements.

The 2022 Homecoming was a success as well. Hosted by the junior class and themed after Disney movies, the dance itself hosted a record number of people. The sophomore class was crowned the overall winning class while Maitri Grace was the individual champion. Justin Krisch-Derr and Shaye Spinner were coroneted as the Homecoming monarchs. Sports this year were all very successful with every team making it to state.

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