I woke up with a sigh of relief. My last day in Houston!!!
Between Olympics and Paralympic Team Processing, I have been in Houston for 22
days this summer. Why Houston? All the athletes headed to down to Rio for the
Olympics and Paralympics had to stop in Houston for a day where they went
through “Team Processing,” which consisted of going through a presentation
called the “Team USA Ambassador Program (TUAP),” which was my role, and then
they got all their super cool Team USA Gear. The TUAP presentation highlighted
the following topics: overview of Rio, how the “Games are Different” from any
other competition, understanding not to be affected by any “ripples of
disturbances” that might arise during the Games, rules that they have to abide
by while in Rio (my presentation… and probably the least exciting part of the
presentation for them), social media, media, legacy, flag etiquette, and then
talks throughout the presentation from the “Ambassador” (a past Gold medal
Paralympian) to inspire the athletes when headed down to Rio.
We had to give this program every single morning at 8am for
10 straight days. Oh, and I had done it for 12 straight days the month before
for the Olympic athletes. That is where the 22 days comes from. To say the
least, it got monotonous. It was great by the end that I could just go on
auto-pilot since I knew the presentation like the back of my hand, and I knew
all the rules with ease so that I could answer questions quickly. But, still…
Not the most exciting thing. We were also cooped up in a windowless conference
room all day, with blazing freezing AC (no fresh air). I helped out the Nike
station for a ton of the days, and I did get some pretty cool extra gear from
them ;) A highlight of working there, and for the USOC.
This last day of our presentation, a few athletes spoke up
about personal stories (most athletes are pretty shy during these
presentations, so it was good to hear a few of these on the last day). One
athlete on the Para Cycling team talked about being hit by a drunk driver in a
truck at the age of 9 and getting paralyzed. It took him another 7 years before
he heard about the Paralympic movement and started cycling (on a hand cycle).
It became an outlet for him that has helped him undeniably cope with his
horrific accident and terrible condition from it. He says that he is fortunate
to be alive, and doing what he loves. Then, there was a story by a powerlifter
who explained how he grew up in Iraq with polio. He had found powerlifting as
his sport to excel at, yet when he didn’t win, he would be jailed and beaten.
One time, he was jailed for 18 months, and beaten over and over. He was finally
able to escape Iraq and become a refugee in the U.S. in 2001. He gained his US
Citizenship and enrolled in the US Army. He is a solider who believes in
America and who represents his new country that took him in with open arms,
with pride. He started tearing up when he was speaking about how much this
country means to him and with all the opportunities it provides him with. We
all started tearing up as well.
It was wonderful to hear these stories on the day we were
leaving. It was a wonderful reminder of what all the Paralympians have gone
through in their life to get where they are, and how proud they are to
represent Team USA. Every single athlete going down there has a story of
hardship that they have gone through in their life. Whether they are paralyzed,
or without a leg (or legs), or without an arm (or arms), or without both legs
and arms, or blind, or have a deformity, or some other disability with little
mobility, they have all found their spot in their love for sport in the Paralympic
movement. I know there isn’t much interest in the US about the Paralympic
movement, but let me tell you: what these athletes accomplish is beyond
incredible. Watching what they can do in wheelchairs, or without sight, or
slight physical functioning is so inspiring. I am honored to be a part of the
“team behind the Team” helping to support Team USA at the Olympics.
I headed to the airport extremely early because I had to get
on a call—for the election of the Opening Ceremony flag bearer. The worst thing
would be trying to check in and go through security in the middle of a phone
call. Each candidate for the flag bearer had unique and incredible stories of
overcoming hardships and excelling to the top of their sport. Unfortunately, I
couldn’t hear many of the stories from the poor reception on the phone, but I
will get the updates soon. These are inspirational stories than any able-body
person should hear and feel grateful for everything that we have, to go through
life in ease.
After that call, I was on a group text with some of my
friends from back in college, and there was one guy on that group text. He sent
a picture of a glass of wine from what looked like an airport. I had known that
he was to the going to the UCLA football game out in Texas and so I asked if he
happened to be in the Houston airport. He was! Such a small world sometimes. I
went over to his terminal to meet him for a drink. What a fun person to run
into for a little bit, and a reminder of friends outside of this bubble that I
have been living in.
Then, I headed back towards my gate thinking I’d maybe grab
a quick dinner on the way. I walked by a restaurant and I saw the CEO of the
USOC eating by himself. He does know me, and so he waved me over and I sat with
him and had a glass of wine with him. Okay, I have to admit that I may have had
a few glasses of wine at this point prior to that, and was a little tipsy and
maybe it wasn’t the best decision to talk to him. Ultimately, I told him about
all my aspirations of growth/upward mobility at the USOC, what my absolute
dream job would be, etc. I probably blabbed too much. But, he was very receptive
actually. He also opening up to me about some personal things in his life, and
I really couldn’t believe it. Look, I doubt anything would come from this, and
I am a little embarrassed (and hope I didn’t come across as too open and
blabby, and tipsy), but it was good to have an open talk with someone like the
CEO, just person to person. Interesting experience, and maybe it could lead to
something to positive. However, it was just positive in itself. It made me feel
closer to the Olympic/Paralympic movement and share my love for it with him.
Yes, I get frustrated by work sometimes, and I get so sick of my commute, but
at the end of the day, I do have a pretty cool gig going on. I walked on the
plane with a commitment to doing whatever I could to support Team USA with
pride.
This was a TEAM USA Poster-- it is comprised of little squares representing real post cards from all over the USA with people writing good luck notes to the Olympians and Paralympians
Houston... I'm okay with saying goodbye
This is a picture of the last day of our TUAP presentation
USA flags that the Paralympians signs that will be saved in archives, and given away for various things
Me with a signed surfboard. This is being given to the President and First Lady when the Paralympians go on their White House Visit. Did I sneak in my initials on there somewhere??? Hmmmm.... shhhhh...
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