Heavy Medal: Local Athletes Gear Up for the 2016 Olympics

Originally posted on Denver Life.

By: Brittany Anas

Colorado Olympians are set to take the global stage this summer in Rio

They’ve put in the time, the miles, the sacrifice. They’ve proven themselves to be among the best in their fields. And, now, as these athletes-all with ties to the Centennial State- prepare to head to Rio de Janeiro, representing America on the world’s most-lauded sports event, they give us a glimpse at what it takes to be an Olympian. Let the games begin!

MORGHAN KING: Weightlifter’s Olympic journey started at CrossFit

SPORT: WEIGHTLIFTING
TRIVIA: Part of the first modern Olympic Games in Athens back in 1896 (women joined the games in 2000), eight events are held for men and seven for women in this test of strength.
OTHER AMERICANS TO WATCH: Jenny Arthur, Kendrick Farris, Sarah Robles

Morghan King’s road to Rio originates at a CrossFit gym in Seattle, where the athlete first got hooked on weightlifting about four years ago.

Around that time, she could have chosen a more traditional path: The graphic design graduate had just started looking for jobs in her industry. Instead, the former college soccer player, who enjoyed competing in half-marathons and triathlons, committed full-time to competitive weightlifting, a move that brought her to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

Fast forward to May 2016, at the Olympic trials in Salt Lake City, where she experienced a career highlight. At 5-feet-tall and 105 pounds, King earned her Team USA spot after lifting an 80 kilograms (176 pounds) snatch and a clean and jerk of 100 kilograms (220 pounds, and more than double her bodyweight). She achieved her personal best total of 180 kilograms (397 pounds) and considers it a “break-out” moment in her career. (For those unfamiliar with weightlifting, a snatch is a continuous motion, lifting the barbell from the ground to overhead. A clean and jerk is two movements- the weight is raised above the head after the initial shoulder-level lift).

“Once my final lift at 100 kilograms hit the floor, and as I was walking off the stage, it hit me that everything I had mentally and physically prepared for was coming true,” King says. “It was the most surreal feeling.”

As she prepares for her first Olympics, King steps into the training center each day with the goal of being better than she was the day before.

“I really focus on myself and my goals and I don’t worry about what other people are doing because that is out of my control,” she says. “I know that if I put the work in, the results will come.”

King has been training at the Colorado Springs center since May 2014, and says Colorado feels like a “second home.” (Joining her here is her boyfriend and coach, Dean Kruse, and their two rescue dogs, Fergus, a Golden Retriever mix, and Chewy, a German Shepherd mix.)

“I’ve always had this want to live in Colorado, so getting the opportunity to train here has been awesome,” she says. “Being from Washington, Colorado fit perfectly. I love the weather and all the outdoor activities.”

Stratton Open Space in Colorado Springs is one of her favorite places to spend a rest day.

“It’s close and has a reservoir- the dogs love to play in the water,” she says. “The view is incredible as well when you get there.”

Inside the strength and conditioning center at the Olympic Training Center
Training has gone high-tech

Sure, gym staples still reside at the Olympic Training Center: tires that range from 200 to 600 pounds and more than 19,000 pounds of barbells and dumbbells. But, inside the 37,000-squarefoot training space, a special technology automatically tints windows to manage solar heat and glares. Steel dumbbell handles are made out of copper, which naturally kills infection-causing bacteria in an extra effort to keep athletes healthy. And among the latest and greatest technology? Boxers can wear devices on their wrists to help calculate the speed and power of punches thrown and cyclists can strap on goggles that show them critical data points such as speed.

Also, athletes can train in climate-controlled chambers that adjust oxygen, humidity and temperature to mimic conditions in Rio de Janeiro. (The Brazilian city is about 50 feet in elevation and the average high temperature is 78 degrees in August).

JOHN NUNN: Colorado-born race walker to compete in his third Olympics

SPORT: RACE WALKING
TRIVIA: In race walking, the competitor must keep contact with the ground at all times, with the leading leg straight as the foot makes contact with the ground. All judging is by eye-no technology is used in decisions.
OTHER AMERICANS TO WATCH: Trials for the 20-kilometer race walking team take place June 30. Keep an eye on Nick Christie and Erin Taylor-Talcott.

Race walker John Nunn knows his sport, with its circular hip swivels and rapid arm swings, looks awkward and is sometimes laughed at. And, actually, he’s glad it brings spectators joy.

In fact, when Nunn, 38, first was offered a college scholarship in the sport, he says he thought to himself: “This has to be a joke.”

But once he started competing in race walking at the University of Wisconsin, Parkside, Nunn quickly realized it was much more rigorous than cross-country, which he had grown up competing in.

As he trains for Rio, Nunn logs about 100 miles every week, with Sunday reserved as a rest day. He sleeps in an altitude tent (he had to adjust its settings because he was getting nightmares when he turned it too high). And the muscles over his shin bones? Bodybuilders would envy them.

So what makes race walking so rigorous?

The sport combines the endurance required by long-distance runners and the attention to technique that a shot putter or hurdler possesses. Competitors must maintain contact with the ground at all times-an immense strain on the hips. The leading leg must be straightened as the foot makes contact with the ground and remain straightened until the leg passes under the body. Judges watch the technique and can call fouls, which, if enough infractions are cited, can lead to disqualification.

Born in Durango, Nunn lived in Colorado until age 14, residing in Burlington and Arvada, as well. As a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army’s World Class Athlete Program, Nunn, now of San Diego, returns twice a year to train in his home state. Colorado, he says, has helped give him an athletic edge.

“I credit my large lung capacity to having been born in Colorado and having grown up there,” he says.

In February, Nunn qualified for his third Olympics while battling the flu, finishing a 50-kilometer race walk in 4 hours, 3 minutes, 21 seconds. Nunn placed 43rd in the 50-kilometer race walk at the 2012 London Olympics and 26th at the 2004 Athens Olympics in the 20-kilometer race walk.

When he’s not training, Nunn is running a gourmet cookie business, Ella’s Cookie Co., with his daughter Ella, 12, who, since age 2, has enjoyed helping her father out in the kitchen. She gets the final say on what cookies make the cut. “The Ella,” a signature cookie in the father-daughter collection, is filled with toffee bits and chocolate chunks.

DAVID HIGGINS: Marksman is representing, then serving, the United States

SPORT: PRONE RIFLE
TRIVIA: The 50-meter prone rifle competition consists of 60 shots using a .22 long rifle from the prone position. The Olympics only include a men’s competition for this event.
OTHER AMERICANS TO WATCH: Michael McPhail

First, marksman David Higgins will represent the United States in the men’s prone rifle event at the 2016 Olympics in Rio. Then, Higgins will serve the U.S. in the military as an infantry officer.

Higgins graduated in June from the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, where he was the first active cadet in the academy’s history to qualify for the Olympics. At his graduation ceremony, with President Barack Obama present, the academy awarded Higgins its athletic achievement award.

The son of a U.S. Marine colonel, Higgins will be cross-commissioning into the Marines, and is set to begin his service shortly after competing in Rio.

“I want to help protect America and the great place that it is,” says Higgins, who grew up around different bases and is opting to serve in the Marines because he’s drawn to ground-side operations.

Higgins first became interested in shooting around the age of 5 or 6, shooting BB guns while visiting his grandfather’s farm in Arkansas. By age 13, he was rifle shooting competitively.

Higgins recalls his parents driving him hundreds of miles to weekend competitions. In between events, he’d sometimes practice by shooting his air rifle 10 meters from the living room, through the kitchen, down the hallway and into a pellet trap.

He decided to attend the Air Force Academy because of its proximity to the Olympic Training Center and to be coached by Launi Meili, an Olympic gold medalist, and Michael Anti, an Olympic silver medalist. Plus, he says, Colorado’s altitude is ideal for training.

“I think what people don’t realize is the high elevation in Colorado is great for shooters, too, because we shoot in between heartbeats,” he says. (A higher elevation slows the heartbeat, which is optimal for competitive shooters.)

Higgins says Quandary Peak, one of Colorado’s 14ers, is a great place to clear his head and he says he enjoys escaping to the wide-open spaces near Fairplay.

To qualify for Rio, Higgins staged a tremendous comeback at the three-day prone rifle trials held in April at Fort Benning in Georgia. Only the winner could earn a spot in Rio, and, following the first day of competition, he was in third place. By the second day, he moved to second place and was behind Matt Emmons, a three-time Olympic medalist and fellow Colorado Springs resident. On the final day, he shot a career-best of 629.5 to earn his spot in Rio, finishing with a total score of 1,869.9, which was 9.4 points ahead of Emmons, who had already qualified for the Olympics in the rifle three positions event.

Back in his hotel room, and the night before the final competition, Higgins had given himself a pep talk: “I told myself, ‘Go out there and have a good time and enjoy doing what you love.'”

NATHAN SCHRIMSHER: It’s all about family for this pentathlete

SPORT: MODERN PENTATHLON
TRIVIA: The ancient pentathlon included running, jumping, spear-throwing, discus and wrestling; the modern format (since 1912) consists of pistol shooting, fencing, swimming, horse riding and running. Until 1980, it was held over five days-today the event takes place in one day.
OTHER AMERICANS TO WATCH: Isabella Isaksen, Margaux Isaksen

Growing up on a ranch in New Mexico, Nathan Schrimsher helped raise pronghorn antelope and enjoyed racing them in the desert. At age 12, his mother suggested he and his brother join a swim team- you know, do something to get out of the house, she nudged.

The boys’ swim coach just so happened to be Jan Olesinski, a Polish modern pentathlete who competed in the 1980 Summer Olympics and who recognized the boys’ athleticism.

Schrimsher and his younger brother, Lucas, have been pentathlon training partners at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs and are in the Army’s World Class Athlete Program at Fort Carson. Their training resembles that of late-19th century cavalry soldiers.

“To represent the United States as a soldier and an athlete is a huge honor,” Schrimsher says.

The five-event sport involves fencing, sprint swimming and horse jumping. Horses are assigned by random draw. Competition concludes with a grueling combo: running 3,200 meters, while stopping to shoot a pistol at targets, the marksmanship truly challenged by the athletes’ endurance.

Pierre de Coubertin, considered the father of the modern Olympic Games, once said the pentathlon competition produces an ideal and complete athlete, and Schrimsher acknowledges it’s a “crazy mix” of events. His strongest event is swimming-but it’s also his least favorite.

In July 2015 at the Pan American Games in Toronto, the 24-year-old qualified for Rio, with the fastest time in the 200-meter freestyle swim (2:00.59). Lucas Schrimsher, 22, fell just short of earning a bid to Rio during his trials in the spring.

Schrimsher moved to Colorado in May, and, soon after, his brother also relocated here to train with him. Ask Schrimsher to name his favorite athlete and he’ll tell you it’s his brother. And role model? His father, a devout Christian who unexpectedly passed away a year and a half ago from a heart-related issue.

“He loved watching us compete and I want to honor him,” Schrimsher says. As he prepares for Rio, he says he’s taking his training one day at a time. (Though, with five sports to train for, those days are long-some days he moves from fencing to swimming to running to shooting practices.) But his faith serves as his source of inspiration.

“I give everything to the Lord and am thankful for every opportunity he has given me,” he says.

ADELINE GRAY: Athlete looks to bring the U.S. its first women’s gold in wrestling

SPORT: FREESTYLE WRESTLING
TRIVIA: Recognized as the world’s oldest competitive sport, wrestling debuted in the ancient Olympics in 708 BC. The freestyle version was introduced to the games in 1904.
OTHER AMERICANS TO WATCH: (women’s) Haley Augello, Helen Maroulis, Elena Pirozhkova; (men’s) Jordan Burroughs, J’den Cox, Daniel Dennis, Tervel Dlagnev, Frank Molinaro, Kyle Snyder

Before a big match, wrestler Adeline Gray has a few pre-competition rituals. “Stay positive,” she tells herself. She also calls her mom, who reminds her no matter the outcome, she still loves her.

As Gray, 25, prepares for her biggest competition yet-her Olympic debut-the athlete who hails from Denver has a fun new mantra she’s sharing with her fans. It’s the modern-day equivalent of a fight song: the almighty hashtag. And, for Gray, her signature hashtag that’s circulating social media practically wrote itself: #GraytoGold.

The three-time world champion in freestyle wrestling is hoping to be the first woman wrestler in U.S. history to win a gold medal. She’s on a two-year winning streak and is a five-time world medalist.

“I’m so elated to represent my country,” she says.

Gray has strong family roots in Denver. Her father is a police officer with the Denver Police Department. Her namesake, her aunt, Adeline Smith, runs Old West Paint, a longtime business in town. She was introduced to the world of wrestling by joining the Bear Creek Junior Wrestling program. Her uncle, Paul Delmonico, was the club’s coach. She was 6 when she started wrestling, and, as a hyper kid, also dabbled in running and soccer.

For the past seven years, she’s been training at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. (When she needs to recharge, she visits her family in the Denver-metro area, gets a workout in at Red Rocks or goes shopping at Colorado Mills mall.)

Gray traveled with Team USA to London in 2012 as an alternate after the Olympic trials were a narrow miss. She moved up in weight classes, winning the world championship last year while competing at 67 kilograms. She’s now competing at 75 kilograms. She punched her ticket to Rio in April after defeating Victoria Francis in two matches, winning 11-0 and 10-0.

Shortly before qualifying for the Olympics, Gray, a graduate of Bear Creek High School, earned a business degree from DeVry University. “To finish school the same year I’m going to the Olympics- it’s been quite the roller-coaster,” she says.

Burgers, Pizza, Rainbow Sprinkles: How to Order a ‘Cheat Meal’ like an Olympian
We asked weightlifter Morghan King and swimmer Missy Franklin where they go to splurge and what they order when they get that rare break from their meal plans. (Spoiler alert! Even the athletes’ cheat meals are veggie-centric).

King is a fan of two locally owned restaurants in Colorado Springs: The Skirted Heifer, 204 N. Tejon St., and Bambino’s, 36 E. Bijou St. Her go-to burger order: a beef patty with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, onions, beer mustard and roasted garlic with a side of sweet potato fries. If it’s a true cheat meal, she’ll also order a chocolate custard with an “insane” amount of rainbow sprinkles.

And how does an Olympic-bound weightlifter do pizza? Loaded with vegetables, of course.

“I put almost every vegetable in the restaurant on it, with fresh mozzarella, basil, chicken and Canadian bacon,” King says. “It ends up basically being a flatbread with a mountain of toppings.”

Franklin confesses a craving for pizza slices and garlic knots from Big Bill’s New York Pizza, 8243 S. Holly St. in Centennial. The pizza place is close to her neighborhood and is near the pool where she grew up competing. She opts for a plain cheese or veggie-topped pizza.

“It’s one of the first places I eat when I get home,” she says. “I’ll be thinking ‘OK, two more days until I get to eat at Big Bill’s.”

MISSY FRANKLIN: ‘My word is relentless’

SPORT: SWIMMING
TRIVIA: Swimming has been featured in all Olympic Games since 1896, when the freestyle and breaststroke debuted. The backstroke was added in 1904.
OTHER AMERICANS TO WATCH: Trials end July 3, with fan favorites Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte and Katie Ledecky vying for spots on Team USA.

Chapter one of Missy Franklin’s Olympic story, written in green marker and addressed to her parents, starts: “Gators rule!” The enthusiastic salute was to the Heritage Green Gators, the Centennial swim club she joined at age 5.

The story about her first day on the neighborhood swim team goes on: “First, I did freestyle,” she says. “Then I did backstroke. That was a great day.”

Franklin, now 21, is arguably the world’s fastest female swimmer, holding the world record in the 200-meter backstroke and American records in both the 100-meter and 200-meter backstroke. During the 2012 Olympics in London, she earned five medals-four of which were gold.

Franklin’s source of inspiration, she tells fans, is re-connecting with the moment she fell in love with swimming. For her, that’s the nostalgia attached to summer swim meets, playing cards with her teammates between competitions and exchanging green candies, hair sprays and gifts-a nod to the Gators. She also remembers coaches rushing over to the green-and-white pup tents to scuttle kids to the starting blocks in time for their races.

“To really succeed at something, you have to love it,” Franklin says. “To get that final push and wake up to go to your job or go to practice, you have to have a passion for it. For swimmers, I tell them to reconnect with that little boy or little girl who fell in love with the water.”

Franklin has remained a Colorado-proud athlete, working with her coach, Todd Schmitz, since she was 7 years old. (Her first day at swim practice also happened to be his his first day as the coach.) Franklin went on to compete on the swim team at Regis Jesuit High School in Aurora, and, after graduating in 2013, she decided to trade the opportunity of lucrative endorsements as a professional swimmer to spend two years swimming for the University of California, Berkeley.

A year ago, Franklin, an only child, moved back to her family home in Centennial to prepare for the 2016 Olympics, poised to become the most decorated female swimmer in history.

But, when Franklin first qualified for Olympic swim trials at age 12, her parents were fielding unsolicited advice from people telling them they needed to move to a state like California, Texas or Florida that’s better known for elite swimming.

“I told my parents ‘I’m happy with Colorado and my friends and my coach,'” she recalls. “Things are working here in Colorado. And they put that trust in me and we decided as a family that Colorado is where we wanted to be.”

And Colorado loves her back. Franklin’s charisma and graciousness has earned an outpouring of admiration from local fans- many of whom first became acquainted with her when she competed in the London 2012 Olympics, which happened during the summer break between her junior and senior years at Regis Jesuit-and around the same time she got her braces off and her first driver’s license. Further endearing Franklin to the public? A viral video featuring her and fellow U.S. swim teammates lip syncing to “Call Me Maybe.”

The biggest difference between preparing for the 2012 Olympics and training for Rio, Franklin says, is that she’s more in tune with herself this time around.

“I know my body so much more than a I did four years ago,” she says. “I know what’s going well, what I need to change. You really have to learn to put faith in yourself and knowing your body.”

Franklin has a book coming out in December, that, consistent with her kindergarten musings, is family-oriented and will resonate with Colorado readers who have been following her career. “Relentless Spirit: The Unconventional Raising of a Champion,” is a memoir about swimming, but also about her tight-knit family and the lessons she’s learned from her parents, Dick and D.A. Franklin.

Prominently present in the title is Franklin’s favorite word: “relentless.” Her Speedo goggles are emblazoned with it and Franklin uses a pen to write the word on her wrist or foot to give her inspiration in the pool.

“My word is relentless,” she says. “There’s so much strength and dignity behind that word. Whatever happens every day, I’m going to be relentless. I’m going to keep pushing myself until I can’t push anymore.”

Q&A: MEET SHERRY VON RIESEN, ‘MOM’ TO MANY OLYMPIC ATHLETES

Officially, Sherry Von Riesen’s title is Coordinator of Athlete Services. But, to the 175 or so residents at the Olympic Training Center, she’s better known as “Mom.”

One of the most beloved fixtures at the training center, for almost two decades Von Riesen has made cookies for athletes, given them pep talks, accompanied them to the hospital for surgeries and so much more. Olympic-bound wrestler Adeline Gray credits Von Riesen for helping her through a tough period following a 2010 knee surgery. She’s also known to have exchanged friendly teases with eight-time speed skating medalist Apolo Ohno during his time at the training center. We caught up with Von Riesen before the Olympic Games.

WHAT ADVICE DO YOU OFTEN SHARE WITH ATHLETES? Be kind to yourself and take time to laugh and be around good friends.

WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED FROM ATHLETES? Never stand still, stay young, think young and believe in dreams.

FAVORITE SPORT? That’s like asking if I have a favorite child. Sports teach such great life skills. I love them all.

BEST CURE FOR A BAD DAY? Hugs.

MISSY FRANKLIN TOLD US HER “WORD” IS RELENTLESS. WHAT’S YOUR DEFINING WORD? Believing. Athletes show me every day the meaning and importance of believing, especially the unseen. Sometimes it’s not the excitement of the unknown, it is the joy of the unseen and watching dreams become reality.

Summer Olympics Rundown

The 2016 Olympic Games take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil August 5-August 21.
The Paralympic Games take place September 7-18, also in Rio.

HOW TO WATCH
NBC will begin coverage with the opening ceremony on August 5, and will air events during prime-time through August 21. Other NBC Universal networks will offer coverage, as well. Visit nbcolympics.comfor full details and channel listings, as well as live streaming of all events.

BY THE NUMBERS
The games will make use of about:

• 32,000 Tennis Balls
• 400 Footballs
• 8,400 Shuttlecocks
• 250 Golf Carts
• 54 Boats

10,500 athletes representing 206 countries are slated to compete in 306 events

NEW SPORT
Rugby Sevens, a 15-minute long version of rugby. The U.S. men’s and women’s teams are both competing in the event.

LONG-AWAITED RETURN
Golf comes back to the games after a 112-year absence.

ALL-TIME MEDALS

• 2,404 United States
• 1,123 Soviet Union
• 777.5 Great Britian

WHAT ABOUT THE ZIKA VIRUS? Organizers are downplaying the health risk for athletes and tourists, although U.S. cyclist Tejay van Garderen, whose wife is pregnant, has withdrawn from the games over concerns, as have golfers Rory McIlroy and March Leishman. NBC anchor Savanah Guthrie, who announced she was pregnant last month, also said she is staying home for the games.

Sources: rio2016.org, nbcolympics.com

What’s Cooking?
Here’s how Olympic athletes eat

Remember when Michael Phelps divulged during the 2008 Olympics that he devoured up to 12,000 calories a day? Sure, that falls on the high-end of the food intake scale, but, depending on the sport, athletes consume anywhere from 2,000 calories (for sports like gymnastics) to 8,000 calories per day (for sports such as cycling and swimming).

Breakfast dishes might include kale, potato and onion frittatas, quinoa pancakes and pumpkin porridge. Lunches and dinners are meals such as spaghetti squash casserole; Southwestern stuffed peppers with ground turkey, black beans and corn; salmon with salsa verde; and pineapple and beef stir fry.

Dessert isn’t off the table, either. Two-ingredient cookies made with quick oats and mashed bananas, plus add-ins like crushed walnuts or dark chocolate chips, help satiate a sweet tooth.

Since training volume and intensity can vary daily, the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs has set up an “Athlete’s Plate” for elite competitors.

On an easy day, for example, about half the plate is filled with veggies and fruits; one quarter is for whole grains like pasta, rice, potatoes, legumes and breads; and the last quarter should be reserved for lean proteins, such as poultry, tofu, lamb, beef or fish.

On a hard training day, half the plate is grains, with lean proteins and veggies taking up the other half.

A dozen chefs and five sports dietitians will represent Team USA in Rio, according to Terri Moreman, the center’s associate director of food and nutrition services. Among the sponsored foods that will be staples in athlete’s diets while in Rio? Zico Coconut Water, Hershey’s Krave Jerky, Kellogg’s cereals and protein bars, as well as Chobani yogurt.

For the original post, visit Denver Life.

Permalink | Posted in: Adeline Gray, News |