Some thoughts about the fact that I’m going to the Olympics

So the fact that in a few days I’m going to Vancouver is still blowing my mind. The idea that a shy, insecure kid from a rural town in Pennsylvania is going to the Olympics is so incredible that I still can’t figure it out. The most I can chalk it up to is a lot of luck and an incredible amount of support and love from the people around me. Thinking about all of this has also made me appreciate how everything in my life is connected by that luck and those people in a crazy, amazing chain of moments and experiences.

Without my parents taking me to pretty much every North Pocono athletic event that was held, I don’t have the high school sports journalism career that I had. Without that, I don’t get the Park Scholarship. Without the Park Scholarship, I don’t go to Ithaca. If I don’t go to Ithaca, I don’t even get a chance to apply for the NBC Olympic program. If I don’t go to Ithaca, I don’t meet one of my best friends who herself went to the Winter Olympics in 2006. Without her stories of the Games, her constant support and advice, I don’t even get close to Vancouver.

If I don’t go to Ithaca, I don’t study abroad in London my sophomore year. I don’t get the chance to intern at the Times, to travel to Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, to see Chelsea and Manchester United, to meet amazing people, see incredible things, and develop a sense of independence and confidence that I never knew I possessed. Without my sports journalism experience, without the Times, I don’t get an internship with USA Volleyball. I don’t get the chance to live at the Olympic Training Center with Olympic athletes, many of whom will be competing in Vancouver. I don’t get the chance to take the leap of faith of moving across the country to live and work with people I’ve never met before and work at a job that was as fulfilling as it was challenging. Without all of these experiences, I don’t become the person that I am today.

So I guess the reason I’m finding it so hard to believe that I’m going to the Olympics, is because I don’t think it should be just me going. I am the product of so many people who have pushed me, guided me, molded me, loved me and deserve just as much as I do to be hopping on a plane to Vancouver. All of my friends from Ithaca and Colorado, my colleagues at USA Volleyball and the Times, my teachers from North Pocono and professors from Ithaca, and especially my parents. Especially my parents. Because if it wasn’t for them, driving me across the country and following me around the world, I probably would still be that shy insecure kid from Pennsylvania.

Honestly, I’m terrified about going to the Olympics. I’m nervous, intimidated, scared. But, I’m ready. I’m ready to take that leap of faith again, just like I did in Ithaca, in London and in Colorado, with the promise that as scary as that leap is, there will be people and experiences on the other end that make it so worthwhile. Because that is what the people in my life have taught me.

So, to everyone that has had an impact on my life to this point, thanks. And even though you can’t be with me in Vancouver, you’ll be in my heart.

Epic

26 Days!

26 days until the opening ceremonies! My excitement is really starting to build as the games get closer. My media credentials came in the mail the other day, and I received more information about where I’ll be staying. I’m staying at a sweet, hotel in city centre called the Sandman. It has two restaurants, a bar, a fitness center and an indoor pool. It’s about a 20-minute walk from the IBC and close to several of the Olympic venues including BC Place (where the Opening and Closing ceremonies will be held) and Canada Hockey Place (where all of the hockey games will take place). I also talked to a friend of mine who worked in the research department (where I’ll be working) at the Beijing Games. From what he told me, a lot of my tasks will be pretty menial, but I’ll be surrounded by some of the sharpest minds in sports media. The research room is where the on-air talent will come to check their facts before their broadcasts, and my job will be to make as much information available as quickly and efficiently as possible. I think the job is right up my alley as a journalism major. I love research and organizing facts, plus it’s a little less stressful than doing anything on-air. Also, I feel like working in the research room will give me a more detailed understanding and appreciation of people and events of the Games. When I see a skier or a speed skater compete, I might know a nugget of information about their personal life or past that most people don’t, which will make me see that athlete in a whole different light and appreciate my experience even more.

Vancouver Bound!!

Sometimes I have a hard time believing that the life that I’m living is really mine. I’ve been to England, Italy, Greece and the Netherlands. I’ve climbed mountains in Athens and Colorado. I’ve run into Michael Phelps and 2008 U.S. Olympic flagbearer Lopez Lomong and cheered on the English National football team at Wembley Stadium. All in the past year. That’s why I have an even harder time believing that it can get any better. But, in just a little bit over a months time, I’m going to the Olympics. On Feb. 2, I’ll fly out of Newark, New Jersey and land in Vancouver where I’ll be stationed for the next month. I’m working as a runner with the research department of NBC at the International Broadcast Centre in downtown Vancouver. This basically means that I’ll be a general intern that does whatever I’m asked to do… make photocopies, run tapes, get coffee, etc. Besides these basic facts, I don’t know much more about my job, and I have no idea what to expect from the experience. I have a lot of friends who have been to Olympic Games, both Torino and Beijing, and I’ve been trying to get as much advice as possible. But I still have no idea what to expect. I have a feeling that I will be busy. I’m envisioning a lot of sleepless nights and caffeine-driven days frantically running around the inside of broadcast studios as history is made and the world watches. Which is really really cool.
In the meantime, I’m doing everything I can to prepare for my four weeks. I’m reading up on the history of the winter Olympics and Vancouver and following the progress of athletes still trying to qualify for the Games. I want to be as knowledgeable as possible when I get off of that plane, in the hopes of making my boss’ job easier and my job more fulfilling. I’ll be posting here sporadically in the weeks leading up to the Games, and hopefully pretty regularly once I get to Vancouver. So check back once in a while to read about my experience at the 21st Winter Olympics!!