Team USA Media Summit - Day Three

The final day of the Team USA Media Summit started in a unique way, as the media was invited to attend the lighting ceremony at the Empire State Building. This event had a number of Olympians and Paralympian's flip a switch that ceremoniously lit the Empire State Building in red, white and blue in honor of reaching the 100-day countdown to the Paris Olympics. The official ceremony took place in the lobby and then the athletes and the media journeyed up to the observation deck for more photo opportunities. This was a cool way to start the final day of the media summit.

Back at the hotel, the first panel of the day was the Outdoor Water Panel, which featured  Evy Leibfarth (canoe), Blake Haxton (para canoe), Michelle Sechser (rowing), Ben Washburne (para rowing) and Carissa Moore (surfing).

"My first Olympics, I didn’t really have too much experience, I had a hard time dealing with mental side of it," Leibfarth said. "The mindset has evolved to more of the journey than the actual results."

"As amazing as it was in 2021, it was an odd experience, so I am looking forward to have a more typical experience and seeing other athletes compete," Haxton noted. 

"One second from gold medal is tough," Sechser said. "The hope is to make the final and be part of the last final that will ever happen for lightweight women’s doubles (which will be in the Olympics for the final time in Paris). 

"Hoping to soak in the whole experience and meet a lot of people in the para community," Washburne noted.

"I hope I can leave a little kindness and a sprinkler of love wherever I go," Moore stated. "I'm looking forward to competing in Tahiti, women have only been competing there for a few years."

The Style and Sport panel was next, featuring Jessica Long (para swimming), Jagger Eaton (skateboarding), Jeffrey Louis (breaking) and Daniela Moroz (sailing).

"There’s nothing better than getting into opening ceremony outfit, taking pictures and being part of something bigger than yourself," Long said. "I have seen how much sport and fashion have evolved over 20 years. I can’t say how excited we were as athletes when Ralph Lauren came aboard."

"I’m always thinking about what I’m wearing. What you’re wearing is kind of how you feel," Eaton said. "What I walk around in my lifestyle wear is exactly what I skate in."

"Style is a huge part of hip hop and breaking. You have your own individual style," Louis said. "Whatever you put out there, appearance wise, how you speak, is what people see."

"You want to look good to feel good," Moroz said. "I always keep all my jewelry on, something I like to do for me. It's a nice reminder for me to feel like me and have a piece of me on the water."

The Accessibility and Sport panel was next, featuring Kaleo Kanahele Maclay (sitting volleyball), Zion Redington (wheelchair rugby), Nick Taylor (boccia), Ian Seidenfeld (para table tennis), David Wagner (wheelchair tennis) and Julie Dussliere (USOPC Chief of Paralympics and Internally Managed Sports).

"Seen so many changes over the last 20 years in a really positive way, but we still have a long way to go," Dussliere said. "Paralympic athletes are in a fantastic position to share thoughts and ideas. I’ve seen a lot of growth in our sports venues here in the US but transportation is the number one challenge our athletes face."

Each athlete talked about what accessibility meant to them.

"It’s the freedom to be able to go where we want to go and do what we want to do without feeling like a burden," Taylor said.

"While there’s a basic level of being able to do what other people can do with ease, it’s also feeling good about it and not feeling like you’re putting someone else out," Seidenfeld said. 

"Including all disabilities in the broad spectrum of disabilities, "Kanahele Maclay said. "People aren’t always aware of how broad the spectrum of disabilities is."

"Freedom, the ability to come and go without having to check if the place is accessible or the transportation is accessible," Walker said.

"Being in a place where I don’t have to assist anyone, where they can do that themselves," Redington said.

The first panel of the afternoon was the Future of Sport panel, which focused on the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics as well as the likely bid that will go to Salt Lake City for the 2034 Winter Olympics. On the panel were  Janet Evans (LA28), Cat Rainey-Norman (Salt Lake City) and Gene Sykes (USOPC chair).

"We had a beautiful week with IOC, they got to see the living legacy we have in Utah," Rainey-Norman said. "This is an incredible opportunity to build the Olympic and Paralympic movement. Done an amazing job in maintaining our facilities since 2002."

"In LA our legacy is going to be our people, our community. We wanted a pre-legacy," Evans said. "The PlayLA program has been wildly successful with our young people. During the bid process, we talked about the Olympics and Paralympics running through the heart of our city. People are excited about our Games, they understand what the Games will do. It will be an entire community that is impacted for years to come."

"I like to think about this as two Games in a decade and that doesn’t happen very often. It's an opportunity for this generation of Americans to make an impact on the Olympics and Olympic movement," Sykes said. "The Paralympic experience is extraordinary, Paralympic sport is relatable to everyone, it's going to be one of the most exciting things about 2028. Our country is very important to the Olympic and Paralympic movement right now."

The Basketball Panel was divided in half, with the first half focusing on the 3v3 game and the second half focusing on the 5v5 game. The panels included Jimmer Fredette (3v3 basketball), Canyon Barry (3v3 basketball), Kareem Maddox (3v3 basketball), Dylan Travis (3v3 basketball), Breanna Stewart (5v5 basketball), Cheryl Reeve (Team USA head coach), Grant Hill (manager director of USA basketball).

Fredette noted that he was the newcomer to the group but also the oldest member and praised his teammates for getting him up to speed on the 3v3 game, which he noted is much different than the 5v5 game. Maddox pointed out that the 3v3 game is a very physical game but it used to be even more physical. As a small college guy, Travis said he never imagined the Olympics was a possibility, but he stepped down from his job as a teacher and a coach to pursue the Olympic dream when the 3v3 opportunity presented itself. Barry, who grew up in a well-known basketball family, said that there isn't much in the sport that his family hasn't done, but he will be the first to compete in the Olympics.

Hill looked back on the 1992 Dream Team and pointed out how that has impacted the Olympic basketball field since.

"One of the reasons for Dream Team in 1992 was to spread the game globally. Mission accomplished," he said. "It's great for the game but it makes it tough for us as a team."

With the roster finalized, he noted that he has a good group of competitive players who are ready to go to work to win another gold medal.

Stewart, who has already won Olympic gold, is aiming to return to the Olympics and win another one, though the women's team has not been officially announced yet. She spoke of the unique situation of stopping the WNBA season in the middle and going to battle with people who were her opponents just a week earlier.

"Because we know how difficult it is to win at this level, we go in with a level of respect," she said. "We respect each other’s games. At least we’re on the same side, we don’t have to guard each other."

Reeve noted that the onset of the WNBA has given her an even wider pool of talented players to choose from, as girls now don't know a world without it and they know that it is there and something to aspire to, so there's a young, talented pool of players that continues to grow.

The next group featured a number of track and field and swimming athletes, two of the most popular sports at the Olympics. On the panel were Bobby Finke (swimming), Ryan Crouser (track and field), Olivia Chambers (para swimming), Lydia Jacoby (swimming) and Nick Mayhugh (para track and field).

Chambers said she was looking forward to being in the Olympic Village with her teammates and getting the chance to meet people from around the world. Finke is excited to go back and defend his medals and get in the water and beat his competition. Jacoby pointed out that she was a surprise medal winner in Tokyo, but this time she is going in without putting any pressure on herself. Mayhugh noted he was a soccer guy trying to do track and field when he went to Tokyo, now he feels he is truly a track athlete and Crouser said he is looking forward to the return of the Olympic feeling after Tokyo, where there were no fans and the atmosphere was much different.

The final panel was Aiming for Paris, featuring Casey Kaufhold (archery), Matt Stutzman (para archery), Eli Dershwitz (fencing), Ellen Geddes (wheelchair fencing).

Kaufhold, who was 17 when she competed in Tokyo, said it feels like a whole lifetime ago rather than just three years. Dershwitz said that he is excited to be a part of Team USA and excited to be around so many highly-disciplined athletes. Geddes said she was excited to have her friends and family able to travel to see her compete and Stutzman said he is excited that his kids will get the chance to come and see him for the first time in the Olympics.

The next stop was the train station, where it was time to catch the train back to Boston, which of course was delayed, putting the whole trip home in jeopardy, as there was only a small window of time between the train arriving and the bus departing.

Olympians who flipped the switch to light the Empire State Building in red, white and blue, pose for a photo on the top of the building.

Team USA Media Summit - Day Two

The second day of the Team USA Media Summit at the Marriott Marquis in New York City was much the same as the first, with plenty of inspirational stories and looks ahead to the Paris Olympics this summer.

The opening panel of the day was a wrestling panel, which was done partially virtually, as the wrestlers are preparing for the Olympic Trials at Penn State University. Women's coach Terry Steiner appeared in person while wrestlers Sarah Hildebrandt, David Taylor and Alan Vera all appeared via Zoom to answer questions.

Steiner is excited about Team USA's chances at the upcoming Olympics, noting that the team has quotas in all six weight classes, making things a little more relaxed heading into the trials. 

"This is a big week for our women’s team. If you win this week, you're on the US Olympic Team," he said. "It's important for the US to have a full team. We feel we have a team that can compete with anyone and that’s exactly what we want to do. We feel Team USA can rise to the top."

Hildebrandt said that after her bronze medal in Tokyo, managing her energy is key, as her energy is definitely through the roof. She's focused on becoming more intuitive and trusting herself and believing what her body is telling her.

Vera admitted that he wasn't ready for the last Olympic Trials and didn't know what exactly they meant, but this time he feels more confident and has been working hard the last three years to make it work.

For Taylor, the reigning Olympic champion, he says that his goal is to always be the best and to do that, he has to continue to improve. Without the competition, nobody would get better, he also pointed out.

The athlete service panel was next, where it was announced that the USOPC is partnering with Guild to help transition athletes from competition to life after competition. The panel included Gene Derkack (VP for USOP Foundation), Carrie White (USOPC VP Athlete Development and Engagement), Daniella Ramirez (artistic swimming), Rebecca Beistman (chief marketing officer at Guild) and Meghan O’Leary (Olympian, US Olympic and Paralympic Properties).

"We want to support the holistic athlete, on and off the field," Derkack said. "We want to make sure we’re providing all the resources they need during their athletic career and as they transfer."

"We're serving both current and former athletes with Guild’s platform, with over 250 learning opportunities," Beistman said. "We're offering career coaching and career services to help them figure out what their options are after the Games. We’re excited about this partnership and the difference we can make."

White said the platform went live on April 3 and already more than 145 athletes have filled out the profile and more than 30 have already finished an application to a program.

"We think about the whole athlete and make sure their best positioned for whatever comes next for them," White said. "The only thing that all Olympians and Paralympians have in common, they all will retire at some point."

"I'm excited athletes can pursue their dream and pursue an opportunity for when they have to hang up the shoes, they’re going to be set up after," O'Leary said. "What makes (retirement) it especially hard is it’s not a reality until it is."

"I’ve struggled with finding time to put my education first. It shouldn’t be a choice, you should be able to put both on the front burner," Ramirez said. "To put it on your own schedule, it’s going to put us in a better place. It’s a game changer."

The indoor water panel was next, featuring Maggie Steffens (water polo), Megumi Field (artistic swimming), Ben Hallock (water polo), Andrew Capobianco (diving), Ashleigh Johnson (water polo) and Bill May (artistic swimming).

Field noted it was a surreal moment for her when the US qualified for the Olympics in artistic swimming, something the team had not done since 2008. For May, it was even a longer wait, as he has been waiting 35 years to get the chance to compete. Paris is the first time that men will be allowed to compete in the discipline in the Olympics.

"It's an awesome opportunity, it's such a dream that I feel like I'm going to make up," May said.

Hallock said that after Tokyo, he is excited to have his family and friends in attendance in Paris and also said he is looking forward to Los Angeles in 2028, to be able to compete in his home state.

The US women's water polo team is the defending Olympic champions and both Steffens and Johnson are excited to be able to defend that crown.

"I'm excited for the world to see the hard work that we have put in," Johnson said. "Our team mindset and the reason we’ve been successful is we’re not paying attention to how the other team feels. How they’re feeling can’t affect us."

"I still get nervous, still get the butterflies," Steffens said. "When you have a passion for the sport, for the Olympic movement, that dream continues. It doesn’t matter if you’ve done it in the past."

The Don't Call it a Comeback panel was next, talking with athletes who have battled back from injury as they prepare for Paris. The panel included Sam Bosco (para cycling), Brian Bell (wheelchair basketball), Beiwen Zhang (badminton), McKenzie Coan (para swimming) and Jourdan Delacruz (weightlifting).

"It would be dishonest to say that I wasn’t discouraged," said Bosco, who was named to the roster for Tokyo 2020 but suffered a head injury in a train crash and had to vacate her spot. "There were a lot of days where I was discouraged. I relied heavily on my family, had a lot of people to lean on. I am stronger because of the adversity. Helps me be more motivated."

Bell noted that his motivation to return to the Olympics is the chance to make history and win the third gold medal in a row for wheelchair basketball and noted he was fortunate enough to find wheelchair basketball after being injured as a kid.

Zhang suffered an injury during competition in Tokyo and returned to the court four months later. She admits that she doesn't put any pressure on herself and if she did, she couldn't play on the level she needs to. After struggling in Tokyo, Delacruz said that experience has really pushed her and she's excited to see more and more women competing in a male-dominated sport.

Coan is coming back from a Bells Palsy diagnosis but notes she is used to dealing with adversity. However, what finally helped get her on track was when she was able to step back and look at herself as a human being.

The female driven panel was up next, featuring Courtney Ryan (wheelchair basketball), Oksana Masters (para cycling), Sunny Choi (breaking), Gabby Thomas (track and field), Lee Kiefer (fencing) and Kate Douglass (swimming).

Choi left a job in the private sector to chase an Olympic dream that she long ago abandoned in favor of going the responsible route and is excited to be back on the Olympic track as breaking makes its first appearance in the Olympics.

Ryan relayed her story as an All-American in soccer in college after receiving a scholarship to play. She pointed out that her first steps and her last steps ever were both on soccer fields and when she was injured she originally thought being an athlete was going to be taken away from her and said the support of her family was key.

Thomas, a two-time medalist in Tokyo, was excited about the recent announcement that gold medal winners would receive 50,000 dollars from World Athletics.

"This is amazing, we've been talking about paying athletes for their hard work for a while," she said. "Support is so important. Any time you can have any type of support it’s great. This is often done with hope, dreams and effort."

Douglass pointed out how important it was to have a team behind her, as she does in college. And once Team USA teams are chosen, no matter where the athlete comes from, they all come together as teammates and all support each other.

Masters, who is heading toward her seventh Paralympic experience, as she competes in both the Winter and Summer Games, said she never even knew the Paralympics were a thing.

"I had no idea, when I figured out what it was, this is where I belong," she said. "I want to represent something bigger than myself."

Kiefer said she always appreciated that she had people like her to look up to throughout her career and there was never in any doubt in her mind that she could do it because she'd seen other people do it and is excited to be that person for young people.

The Sprint to Paris panel, featuring track and field athletes, was up next, featuring Fiona O'Keeffe, Noelle Malkamaki, Jaydin Blackwell, Tara Davis-Woodhall, Kenny Bednarek and Keira D’Amato.

Malkamaki and Blackwell, both of whom hold Para world record both stated they were thrilled to get the chance to perform on the world stage and they've been competing like they have for so long that it feels natural after everything that has happened.

O'Keeffe, who won the Olympic Trials marathon and set a new Olympic Trials record in her first-ever marathon, came in with a goal of just making the team and knew that it would take a strong effort in order to do that, but she was just focused on competing and getting everything out of herself. D'Amato, who is also a distance runner, said that her focus at the start of the race she's open-minded and then about 75 percent in she focuses in. And after leaving running for a while, is excited to go after the unfinished business.

Davis-Woodhall noted that 2021 was a different vibe and it was her first foray into the professional world against European athletes and told herself it was just another meet, and with no fans in the stands, it actually felt that way.

Bednarek, who also has been coming back from an injury said that training has been going well and with that, he expects this will be a dominant year for him and said that it all comes down to the support team he has behind him.

The technology panel was up next, featuring Mike Levine (Director of Performance Innovation - USOPC), Mary Tucker (shooting), Morgan Pearson (triathlon), Hampton Morris (weightlifting), Dennis Connors (para cycling) and Marco De La Rosa (para shooting). They all discussed some of the ways technology helps them in their sports.

"Advances in sports technology and data analytics have transformed the training environment. We see a lot of opportunities to utilize non-invasive measures to understand athlete movements, body mechanics," Levine said. "We collect and analyze data on injuries, those inform evidence-based injury prevention protocol."

Pearson noted that sleep and recovery are important and after putting in big miles, sleep is the best way to recover while Morris noted that for him, nutrition is the one thing more important than sleep to him, as staying hydrated and fueled is key.

Both Tucker and De La Rosa noted the incredible advance in technology in the shooting sports makes their sports so much easier. The targets are all electronic, as are the triggers and the technology continues to improve the equipment they use for their sport.

Connors noted that the best way to combat injury is prevention, with mobility, stretching and devices all chipping in to help prevent the injuries from occurring. 

The final panel featured a number of athletes in the less-recognized sports, which included Jessica Davis (modern pentathlon), Hans Henken (sailing), Victor Montalvo (breaking), Hannah Roberts (BMX) and Miles Krajewski (para badminton).

Montalvo stated that many people don't even know that breaking is in the Olympics and he's happy to represent his culture and bring the hip-hop vibe to the Olympics, while Henken pointed out that sailing is so dependent on the weather that he and his teammates have been spending time in Marseille (site of Olympic sailing) for more than a year in order to prepare for what they will see come July.

Davis noted her sport often comes down to the fencing aspect, as there are usually strong runners and swimmers, so the fencing is pretty important. While it's the last aspect of the pentathlon that she started, it's also become the one she's the best at.

Krajewski, who is still finishing up his high school life, said that no matter what the obstacles are, there are so many athletes that have already overcome those and you can get through it. Roberts, who was the BMX gold medal favorite all through COVID leading up to Tokyo and finished second, said that this time she is just riding her bike and having fun now and hoping to be the best version of herself every day, on and off the bike.

The female driven panel at the Team USA Media Summit included (l to r), Courtney Ryan, Oksana Masters, Sunny Choi, Kate Douglass, Lee Kiefer and Gabby Thomas. 

Team USA Media Summit - Day One

 The first day of the Team USA Media Summit in New York City featured eight different panels of press conferences, with roundtable discussions available after each session.

The first session was a great discussion with the leadership of the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee to talk about the arrival of Paris in the coming months. The panel included Sarah Hirshland - USOPC CEO, Rocky Harris – chief of sport and athlete services, Nicole Deal – chief of security and athlete services, Dr. Jonathan Finnoff – chief medical officer.

"You can feel the energy and excitement building," Hirshland said. "We're excited to bring the whole country along on this journey." Harris noted he was excited about the athletes being able to perform in front of their friends and families after two Olympics with no families. Deal said she was excited to see the backdrop of Paris for the Olympics and Finnoff was excited about the decade ahead for the United States, with Los Angeles hosting in 2028 and Salt Lake City a likely host for 2034.

"Olympics weren’t the biggest things on our mind last two Olympic," Hirshland said, referencing COVID. "We haven’t had a lot of that lately, it’s about being there and about what can happen back home and take an escape into Olympic sport."

"Only 15 percent of team has been named," Harris said. "This is go time for us. The focus is every athlete reaching their personal best. Every story is important, we want to highlight all the athletes."

"The number one priority is security and wellbeing of Team USA athletes," Deal said, noting she has been working with French security, state department and more. "The three things we're focusing on are collaboration, communication, information sharing."

Finnoff noted it was an intricate medical plan in place (that includes Dr. Tamara Lovelace of Alton) with more than 200 medical professionals on the ground in Paris.

There was also talk about the recent announcement that gold medalists in track and field would earn prize money, with everyone on the panel agreeing that the more resources that can be put in the hands of the athletes, the better.

The next panel was highlighting the new Team USA marketing strategy, One For All. The panel included Jess Park (USOPC chief of brand and fan engagement), Brandon Henderson (chief creative officer, Wieden+Kennedy), Alex Shibutani (ice skate), Grace Norman (paratriathlon), Jordan Larson (volleyball).

"It’s about shining light on athletes," Park said. "In the past we focused in on athletic performances, we will continue to celebrate performance, but with One For All we explore the intersection of where personality meets performance. It's a chance to celebrate the communities around our athletes as they pursue their ambitions. We want to give all our fans opportunity to find their ones. 

"The big unlock was bringing the fans into it," Henderson said. "I love the bigger story of Team USA. The highlights will be there, you can find them, but there’s more to it. We want to make these athletes feel more like people, so you’re rooting for a person, not an untouchable other worldly being."

"I've seen the perspective as athlete, it was an incredible opportunity to be able to photograph my teammates as they focus on this journey," Shibutani said. "It's special to be able to meet these athletes, support them in ways I could and bring a different perspective to it. The Olympic movement has the power to connect people from all different backgrounds."

"I never expected to be on the big screen, to see finished product, I’m kind of fan-girling over myself a little bit," said Norman. "The process was so unique, cool how they captured so many athletes and so many personalities."

It was an unbelievable experience, as an athlete, being able to show our personalities was great," said Larson. "It was fun to be a part of."

The third panel of the day was entitled Fight For Gold and involved athletes in combat sports, which included, uniquely enough, field hockey. The panel included Morelle McCane (boxing), CJ Nickolas (taekwondo), Evan Medell (para taekwondo), Liana Mutia (para judo), Abby Tamer (field hockey), Kelsey Bing (field hockey).

Judo, boxing and taekwondo athletes all spoke of the hard work and the dedication it took to reach their goals, while the field hockey women were excited to be back in the Olympics after missing the field in Tokyo three years ago.

The quote of the panel came from Mutia. "Everybody needs a work-life balance," she said. "Happiness over everything. I'm not addicted to the grind, I'm addicted to the unwind."

The soccer panel was up next, featuring female athletes Rose Lavelle, Crystal Dunn and Emily Sonnett and male athlete John Tolkin.

"The culture has been laid down well before we joined the team, we’re responsible for passing it on to next generation," Dunn said. "We have to lead by example."

Sonnett pointed to the influx of younger talent coming on to the scene as many of the legends of US women's soccer start to step aside. "Young players are very talented, seeing how we can all fit that together," she said.

Lavelle admitted to being a huge March Madness fan and is hopeful that the momentum from the recent women's tournament can carry over to this summer. "We want to keep building the momentum and the excitement," she said.

"It’s a dream come true, honestly," Tolkin said of his bid to get to his first Olympics. "It's been a wild ride so far. Sometimes it’s a lot to process, but I'm grateful to be here."

The gymnastics panel was up next, hosted by the most biased journalist in the history of Olympic sports, Hoda Kotb. The panel included Evita Griskenas, Kayla DiCello, Suni Lee, Yul Moldauer and Brody Malone.

One of their chief discussion was the use of social media and how it impacts them and their life. Four of the five basically said they stay off social media, either completely or around times of competition or hand off the responsibilities to their managers for periods of time. The lone dissenter was Moldauer, who noted he knows he has more supporters than doubters and he doesn't care what the haters think but also admitted you have to have a good balance.

The Paris 2024 panel included a lot of updates for media heading to the Olympics or Paralympics, presented by Lucia Montanarella (IOC) and Craig Spence (IPC).

Montonarella said that Paris has embraced the New Norm and is putting together a wonderful project with the background of a great city.

Spence noted that this could be the most important four years in Paralympic history for the United States, with Los Angeles on the docket in four years. He noted that the 2012 London Games led to a cultural shift in how disability is viewed in England and all the ingredients are there for the same thing to happen in the United States leading up to 2028.

Next up was the Evolution of Paralympic Movement panel, featuring six athletes with aspirations of being in Paris later this summer. It included Beatrice De Lavalette (para equestrian), Calahan Young (goalball), Jamal Hill (para swimming), Steve Serio (wheelchair basketball), Ezra Frech (para track and field), Justin Phongsavanh (para track and field).

Frech and Serio both spoke of the impact the English media had on how disability is viewed in England prior to the London Games and urged the US media to do the same thing in the United States. All the panelists also credited NBC for the work that they have done in promoting the Paralympics and are excited to see what Paris has to offer. They also all offered advice to those who aspire to get to the Paralympics, with working hard being the chief advice.

The Road to Paris panel was next, featuring Jordyn Poulter (volleyball), Alise Willoughby (cycling), Minna Stess (skateboarding), Brooke Raboutou (climbing), Jesse Grupper (climbing), Bobby Body (para powerlifting).

"Through the adversity you go through, you try to find the silver linings and control what you can," Poulter said as she battles back from injury. "I'm grateful for where I am right now going toward the Olympics."

"I can’t believe we come that far," said Willoughby of heading toward her fourth Olympics. "BMX was kind of the gateway to the new action sports that are part of the Olympics now. Choosing to show up every single day, I have a broad understanding and respect and more gratitude of how lucky we are to be able to do this and continue to do this."

"The USOPC mental health people helped me believe in myself," Body said. "When I got to the (Para Pan-American) games, I said wanted to attempt 500 pounds. I said that not only do I believe I can, I know I can."

"I never thought I’d be here talking about going to the Olympics," Stess said. "I can’t imagine my life without skateboarding."

"I’ve been climbing since a really young age, falling is part of the game," Raboutou said. "You learn to control your falls."

"With a climb, you have to figure out best way point A to point B and mechanical engineering is very similar," Grupper said of his job as a mechanical engineer. "I'm drawn to the creativity of problem solving of both."

The final panel focused on mental health with Jess Bartley (Senior Director of Psychological Services USOPC), Perry Baker (rugby), Nicky Nieves (sitting volleyball), Jaleen Roberts (para track and field), Nevin Harrison (canoe), Ilona Maher (rugby).

"I am 1,000 percent where I am today because of the support I had around me, Nieves said. "I was told it’s OK to not have OK days and a lot of children don’t have that."

"After the (Tokyo) Olympics, I had the post-Olympic blues, I had a hard year or two after just feeling lost," Harrison said. "Who am I outside of sport, do I like who I am outside of sport? Sometimes you need to take time off."

"A support system is everything," Baker said. "You battle a lot of adversity and mental issues about who you are. Attitude is everything."

"I had the pre-Paralympic blues, when they were postponed, I fell into a super deep depression," Roberts said. "I had been training for this one thing for years and it was stripped from me. And I was trying to take on challenges of that all alone. It’s OK to struggle, it’s brave and courageous to get help when you need it."

"It's been enlightening trying to break down barriers about what athletes are," Maher said. "Athletes are human. I can tackle hard and run hard and still feel beautiful doing it, you don’t have to sacrifice that."

Bartley noted that it was the athletes' voices that drove the mental health program at the USOPC and they recently integrated sports psychology into the mental health program and they now view it with a holistic approach.

All in all, it was great to hear from so many athletes and officials on such a broad variety of subjects, all focused around the Olympics.

The soccer panel at the Team USA Media Summit on Monday included John Tolkin, Rose Lavelle, Crystal Dunn and Emily Sonnett.

Welcome to New York - Team USA Media Summit

Usually I make the train trip to New York City more than once a year, and it is usually to come to a live Rob Has a Podcast event based around an episode of Survivor. When I boarded the bus in Dover on Sunday morning with a destination of South Station in Boston and then on to New York City, it wasn't Survivor related.

This week marks my first foray into the Team USA Media Summit, hosted by the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee. This is the first time the summit has been in person since the 2018 PyeongChang Games, thanks to COVID, and it also marks the first time that I have decided to take part in the festivities.

It certainly wasn't a cheap venture, though I decided to stay right in the hotel where the summit is taking place, the Marriott Marquis right in Times Square, so that was a pretty big expense, despite the discount we got for being part of the Media Summit. The list of press conferences and round tables for Monday through Wednesday is pretty extensive and I am looking forward to hearing from some of the people who will be key figures in the Paris Olympics and Paralympics this summer.

However, Sunday was just a day to celebrate, as the USOPC invited all media personnel to a kickoff event at the Loeb Boathouse in Central Park. If you want to get the media to go somewhere, offer free food. And that they did, with plenty of options (the steak frites was fantastic) to choose from along with a table loaded with Reese's newest peanut butter cup, the Reese's Medals. I may have taken a few of those for the hotel fridge when I get a little hungry over the next few days.

The setting was absolutely gorgeous and I was able to complete my registration and get my credentials when I arrived. After the kickoff event, I headed back to the hotel because I still have papers to get together and that meant writing a few more track stories from Saturday's Corneliusen Relays. I wrote two in South Station this morning and another on the train, leaving the last three to tackle tonight. Once that was done, I sent the stories for my Monday deadline.

It's going to be a busy couple of days in New York City and I was also able to schedule a trip to see Book of Mormon on Tuesday night, so that should be an additional fun experience.

Either way, we're off and running for Team USA Media Summit 2024. In no time at all it will be time to head to Paris.

 The view from the Central Park Boathouse on Sunday evening during the Team USA Media Summit kickoff event.

Media summit 2024

With the start of the spring season slowed a bit by Mother Nature's snowfalls, things have been relatively quiet on the local sports scene since the return from the trip to Florida to see the Kingswood softball team and Kennett baseball team do a little spring training at the Jackie Robinson Training Complex.

As fields and courts slowly clear and get back to being playable, the spring season promises to be a busy one, though I will spend a few days next week preparing for my big summer adventure, which means missing a few days of local sports action.

On Sunday I will be heading to South Station in Boston to catch the train to New York City for the Team USA Media Summit ahead of the Paris Summer Olympics. Last week the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee announced the schedule for the media summit and provided a list of athletes who would be in attendance, including some big names such as Suni Lee, Breanna Stewart, Bobby Finke and Carissa Moore.

The summit runs from Monday through Wednesday and includes press conferences, round table discussions, an opening reception and a ceremonial lighting of the Empire State Building to mark the 100 days until Paris on Wednesday. The Media Summits ahead of the Tokyo and Beijing Olympics were virtual events and this is the first time the summit has been in-person since prior to the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea. This will be the first time I have attended the Team USA Media Summit and I am excited to see what it's all about. 

The schedule appears that it will keep us pretty busy throughout the day, though I am also trying to get a ticket to see a Broadway show on Tuesday night to add to the experience of being in New York City. 

In other news, as we get closer to Paris, the second invoice for the accommodations came through over the weekend. I had made an adjustment on my room request last month, changing the number of people in my room from the standard two (which is the default) to just the one, which means that my price went down. The first invoice was half of the original price but with the tax lowered and the price of one of the included breakfasts eliminated, my invoice was about 80 euros less than what I paid on the first invoice.

And in other news out of Paris, the new aquatics center was officially opened last week. This is the lone new venue built for the Paris 2024 Olympics and is quite an impressive building, located near the Stade de France, where the closing ceremonies will take place, in the Paris suburb of Seine-St. Denis, which is also where my hotel is located.

Keep an eye on this space at some point late next week for an update on the Team USA Media Summit.

The Aquatics Center in Paris is ready for the world's focus in the next few months. Photo from Paris 2024

What lies ahead

The coming months are starting to look pretty busy and that's not even considering the busy spring schedule for the local high school teams, which will start in early April. There are a bunch of trips on the docket in the next few months leading up to the big one this coming summer.

The first trip on the schedule is one that has become a pretty regular tradition. At the end of March I will be flying to Orlando and traveling on to Vero Beach to cover one of our local teams getting in some spring training action. Most of the trips I've made to Florida with local teams have been with Kingswood baseball and last year, Kennett baseball was also there at the same time, which was perfectly convenient for me. This year, Kingswood softball is making its maiden voyage to the Jackie Robinson Training Complex for a few days. I am flying down the night before the team and leaving the day after they do. I am currently looking into something to do for the day on Friday before the team arrives and I am sure I will find something exciting.

The next trip is just a few weeks later and is a bit shorter of a journey. I registered for media credentials for the Team USA Media Summit ahead of the Paris Olympics and received notice yesterday that my credential request had been approved. This is the first in-person media summit Team USA has done since prior to the PyeongChang Olympics and this will be the first one that I have attended. It is timed to coincide with the 100 days to go countdown for the Paris Olympics. I booked a room at the hotel where the event is based, right in the middle of New York, which was probably the most expensive hotel room I have ever booked, even with our discount. I am taking the train from Boston to New York on that Sunday and returning on the Wednesday evening train. This is one I am definitely looking forward to.

In May, I will be making a return trip to Chicago for a Rob Has a Podcast Survivor event. For those that don't know, I am an avid listener to Rob Has a Podcast, hosted by former Survivor contestant Rob Cesternino. I make it a point to try and make his live shows (last season I went to one in New York and another in New Orleans). This season the location is Chicago and while there, I am going to cross another baseball stadium off the bucket list and see a Cubs game at Wrigley Field. This will be a couple of days in early May.

Speaking of checking stadiums off the list, I will be driving to Toronto in early June to see the Red Sox play the Blue Jays at the stadium formerly known as SkyDome. I have been to the stadium before but have never seen a game, so it will be cool to check another MLB park off the list and see the Red Sox play as well.

Then of course, there's the big trip, the three-week journey to Paris at the end of July. There is still plenty of work to be done on that front, but there is evidently plenty to keep me busy between now and then.

Tokyo's Olympics were pretty quiet, given the COVID and all, but this summer promises to bring a little more excitement. And in the months leading up to that, there's still plenty to do too.

Milestones looking back and forward

The last couple of days have provided some milestones in the road ahead and in the road that I have traveled over the years.

As I mentioned in the last blog post, at this time two years ago, I was in Beijing for the Winter Olympics, my third Winter Olympics experience and my fourth Olympics overall. Without a question, it was one of the most unique experiences of my life, covering another Olympics during the midst of the pandemic.

My Facebook memories informed me that two years ago on this day, I was at one of the most unusual venues I've ever covered an Olympics at, the Shougang Big Air facility in Beijing. This was the only outdoor venue in the city limits of Beijing, with the rest of the outdoor events in the mountain villages outside of the city. What made this venue unique was not just the fact that it was an outdoor venue in the city limits, but rather where it was built. It was built in an industrial area of the city that the government was working to revitalize. Driving to the venue we drove past numerous old factories and arriving at the venue we were greeted by four huge cooling towers, the kind of things usually seen at nuclear power plants. Without a question, this will be one of the most unique venues I ever see, though I'm excited to cover some beach volleyball at the Eiffel Tower and equestrian at Versailles this summer.

My Facebook memories also reminded me that 10 years ago today I made my original foray into the Olympics, landing in Sochi, Russia. Without a question, that was one of the more nerve-wracking adventures of my life. I was so concerned about the ability to find my way through the airport in Moscow to get on my flight to Sochi and what I would do once I landed in the Olympic city. All my concerns were calmed and it turned out to be a great experience in a place that I would never have traveled to without the Olympics making an appearance there. Sochi was a unique location in that the indoor venues were located next to the Black Sea in a pretty temperate environment, complete with palm trees, which took me by surprise to say the least.  The Media Center in Sochi remains one of the coolest places I've had the chance to work in. And I will forever remain grateful to all the people who helped me fundraise for that trip, making it possible for me to start on this incredible journey that has lasted close to a dozen years.

Looking back, yesterday marked two years to go until the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, which I have to admit, is one of the locations I am really excited to see. As I've mentioned before, one of the best things about the first four Olympic experiences was that they were all in places I had never been before. I have been to Paris and to Italy (including Milan), but I have never really had the chance to cover the Winter Olympics in a true winter environment and the Alps will definitely be that.

I also officially booked my flight to Paris for this summer. The plan is to fly out of Boston early on Tuesday, July 23, with a stop in New York City before traversing the Atlantic Ocean and arriving in Paris just before 10 p.m. local time. The return flight will be on Monday, Aug. 12, leaving in the afternoon and with the time change, arriving back in Boston on a direct flight at 6 p.m. Flying to Paris in the summer is not a cheap venture, but it's something else checked off the list in preparation for this summer.

The Shougang Big Air facility in Beijing will forever be one of the most unique venues I have covered an event at.