Did you know? 24 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Your Favorite American Athlete
24 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Your Favorite American Athlete
1. Did you know every year sine the age of 10, six-time Olympic medalist swimmer Ryan Lochte has gotten a “Where’s Waldo” book for Christmas?
2. Did you know skier Bode Miller grew up in a cabin in New Hampshire with no running water or electricity?
3. Did you know figure skater Scott Hamilton is afraid of clowns?
4. Did you know that gold medal bobsledder Steve Holcomb had an eye disorder that distorted his vision? Until recently when he had an operation to fix it, he used to drive the bobsled by feel rather than sight.
5. Did you know Jessica Simpson’s dad (who is a manager) signed pro snowboarder Louie Vito as one of his clients?
6. Did you know two-time Olympic gold medalist snowboarder Shaun White was born with a congenital heart defect and had to have two open-heart operations before the age of one?
7. Did you know that 11-time Olympic medalist swimmer Natalie Coughlin has five chickens. Their names are: Lafayette, Tara, Sookie, Madame Croque, and Chuck. Three of them are Easter Egger Chickens that lay green eggs!
8. Did you know gold medal bobsledder Curt Tomasevicz is a former college football player who has a master’s of science degree in electrical engineering with a minor in astronomy?
9. Did you know back in 2009 before Adam Lambert was a runner-up on American Idol, figure skater Alissa Czisny met him after seeing him perform in the Broadway show, Wicked? He told her he was going to have to leave Wicked because he had just auditioned for season eight of the singing show and had made it past the first round.
10. Did you know the 22-year-old USA Hockey player (and Colorado Avalanche defenseman) Erik Johnson is often mistaken for a teenager? He was recently asked to show ID at the movie theatre to make sure he was 17, old enough to see an R-rated movie.
11. Did you know that bobsledder Jesse Beckom has a thing for Japanese swords? Before 9/11 he would even bring them onboard flights as his carry-on.
12. Did you know that in Shawn Johnson’s hometown of Des Moines, Iowa there is a life-sized bronze sculpture of the artistic gymnast? (Although seeing as how she won gold and silver in Beijing, we’re not sure why it’s bronze!)
13. Did you know that triathlete Hunter Kemper is a the co-creator of the cereal Wheaties FUEL along with NFL player Peyton Manning, NBA player Kevin Garnett, MLB player Albert Pujols, and decathlete Bryan Clay?
14. Did you know that eight-time gold medalist in Beijing, swimmer Michael Phelps gets excited when he hears his name on ESPN’s SportsCenter? According to Michael’s mom, Deborah, “Michael always wanted to bring celebrity to swimming.” We think he got his wish!
15. Did you know that during the Vancouver Olympics, Lindsey Vonn spread topfen cheese (a product similar to cream cheese) on her injured right leg? It’s an old Austrian remedy said to reduce swelling and speed up the recovery time. It must have worked because she took home gold in downhill, the first time an American woman has ever won that event.
16. Did you know that short track speed skater Apolo Ohno does not go on cruises? He admits it’s because being in such close proximity to so much food, he fears he would gain 20 pounds over the course of a few weeks.
17. Did you know that snowboarder Gretchen Bleiler rode into her Costa Rican wedding ceremony atop a horse?
18. Did you know that BMX racer Donny Robinson doesn’t believe that cell phones interfere with aircraft navigational systems but he still turns his off because he’s superstitious?
19. Did you know that the well-traveled distance runner Shalane Flanagan says that her favorite place in the world to run is the American Tobacco Trail in North Carolina?
20. Did you know that by age of 7, triathlete Sarah Haskins could recite the entire movie, Sound of Music?
21. Did you know softball player Jessica Mendoza played on an all boys baseball team before she started playing softball?
22. Did you know figure skater Michelle Kwan majored in political science with a minor in international studies at the University of Denver?
23. Did you know that during the Vancouver Olympics MSNBC did a phone interview with Buffalo Sabres goalie Ryan Miller only to later find out that it wasn’t actually him? Someone called in pretending to be the Team USA player.
24. Did you know that eight years ago wrestler Rulon Gardner was snowmobiling with friends when he got separated from the group and spent 17 hours in the snow alone before finally getting rescued?
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Source: teamusa.org