Candace Parker #3 of the Los Angeles Sparks reacts during the WNBA game against the Phoenix Mercury (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Candace Parker, who plays for the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks, remembers her last Olympic games as a blur. She had just graduated college, winning the national championship, came into the WNBA and won both the Rookie of the Year award and the MVP and was whisked off to the 2008 games in Beijing. Back in 2008 a lot happened and Parker admits that she didn’t grasp what was happening. “…everything was going so fast,” Parker said. “The second time around, I’m going to stop and smell the roses. This might be my last time.” The Chicago Tribune has the story:

The injuries have stacked up for Candace Parker, a human pincushion the last few years.

Why, then, would she risk her health by signing up for an extra four weeks of basketball in Turkey and England, not long before herWNBA season ends and her annual stint in a Russian league begins?

Because one of her destinations is London.

Parker doesn’t see knee injuries and shoulder dislocations as much as she sees five-ring symbols and another tour with Team USA after its dominant run four years ago in Beijing.

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