From the Founder, March 2018
Happy March!
We’re back from the Olympics and the whirlwind experience of Pyeongchang that was exhilarating, exhausting, magical and, of course freezing, all at the same time.
One of the best parts of the Olympic experience is always seeing all of the old friends and colleagues that have been a part of the Olympic community for many, many years. I entered the Olympic world in 2002 when I started my job as Director of Marketing & Communications for NYC2012, New York’s Olympic bid. Over the years, I’ve had so many different connections to the Olympics – working with brands, athletes, on events and more – and each one has reminded me why I love it so much: I’m endlessly inspired by Olympic athletes and their desire to be the very best. In addition to being the best in their sports, they’re typically great people all around – high integrity, committed and dedicated in various aspects of life, great students, passionate about the world and good, nice people. As are the people that surround them. I want to say a special thank you to the various sponsors, NGBs, and the USOC for helping support us and our athletes through this Olympics – we certainly couldn’t do it without you.
Going into these Olympics, we were fortunate to work with four incredible athletes.
We’ve worked with snowboarder Jamie Anderson since she was 15 years old – she truly is family to us – and it has been an incredible joy to watch her grow up and progress over the years. In Pyeongchang, she won a gold medal in slopestyle snowboarding (repeat…she won the gold in Sochi at the inaugural event as well) and a silver medal in the snowboarding big air event (first time big air has been in the Olympics). Jamie overcame a lot of mental and physical hurdles in Pyeongchang to achieve this incredible accomplishment. Her slopestyle event was incredibly windy and unpredictable. Jamie knows that it’s part of what she signed up for as a snowboarder and she rolled with it. My dear Dr. Sadeghi always says “Powerful people don’t make excuses.” Jamie’s valiant effort epitomized that – she went out and did her thing and didn’t complain, didn’t make excuses, just breathed deeply and went with the flow. So proud of this girl.
We started working with ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates last year. From the minute we met them, it was clear that they are two of the nicest, most elegant and most graceful people in every possible way. If you saw their performance in Pyeongchang, you’d know that their fall didn’t prevent them from exemplifying the ultimate sportsmanship and grace. We feel honored to work with them and, they represent everything good about the Olympics.
Our newest client, short-track speedskater Maame Biney, was a breakout star of the Pyeongchang Olympics. Maame had a huge performance at the US Olympic Trials in the lead up to the Games, and she came in with her guns blazing. She’s an incredibly powerful athlete and has a smile and charisma that can light up a stadium. Maame’s values, her story and her very special relationship with her dad Kweku drew us to her immediately and, we can tell this is the beginning of an incredible career for this young woman. We are so excited to be working with her.
Denege and I always love our work in the Olympics and we’re excited for the next couple of months as we ride out the Olympic high.
The other VERY exciting news is that it’s Denege’s 9th anniversary at Stanton & Company! She was my first employee, working out of my back house when we started. She is now a true powerhouse and is indispensable to us and to our clients. Her commitment and passion is unparalleled and we are so grateful that she’s part of the team. Please join me in congratulating Denege!
Wishing you a wonderful month!
xx
Amy