NBC Interview with WS Team

[oso97]

Bob Costas is about to interview the three girls on NBC primetime

[Soberin]

Bob Costas is about to interview the three girls on NBC primetime

Just saw it. Notice the obvious lack of comraderie between the women. Not once did they look at each other, no hugs or evidence of real spirit for the team on Thurs. Nothing wrong with that--it just hurts to lose, and Sada and Becca were obviously not happy.

[Neinteen]

They played pirates of the carribbean... LOL

[Soberin]

They played pirates of the carribbean... LOL

Not that it really matters--but 12,000 posts?

[KD5MDK]

See custom title. You should have been around when she first showed up. It was... disturbing.

[Neinteen]

Not that it really matters--but 12,000 posts?

is there a problem my numerically inferior fellow fnetter?

See custom title. You should have been around when she first showed up. It was... disturbing.

220+ posts a day, they called them the roaring 220s.

[Soberin]

No problem at all. I'm actually in awe that you have the time for that many posts.

[whtouche]

Just saw it. Notice the obvious lack of comraderie between the women. Not once did they look at each other, no hugs or evidence of real spirit for the team on Thurs. Nothing wrong with that--it just hurts to lose, and Sada and Becca were obviously not happy.

Well ok, but they were sitting on a couch side by side doing an interview on network TV with a very high profile newsman. What sort of hugs and caresses would you have liked to see?

What about all the other interviews and things they did in the venue where they were seen hugging and congratulating each other? I'm not saying everything is rosy in WS land, but first of all the fact that they don't like to lose is not news, and second of all I think a lack of affection in a difficult (and potentially inappropriate venue to show such affection) isn't a good tea leaf to read to determine the existence of strife.

And if you have 12K posts on fencing.net you need to go outside and use some of that energy to climb a tree.

[Neinteen]

And if you have 12K posts on fencing.net you need to go outside and use some of that energy to climb a tree.

I'm afraid of heights.

and judging by some people's posts on WS coaching, setting probably wasn't the only reason for their apparent coldness.

[Soberin]

Well ok, but they were sitting on a couch side by side doing an interview on network TV with a very high profile newsman. What sort of hugs and caresses would you have liked to see?

What about all the other interviews and things they did in the venue where they were seen hugging and congratulating each other? I'm not saying everything is rosy in WS land, but first of all the fact that they don't like to lose is not news, and second of all I think a lack of affection in a difficult (and potentially inappropriate venue to show such affection) isn't a good tea leaf to read to determine the existence of strife.

And if you have 12K posts on fencing.net you need to go outside and use some of that energy to climb a tree.

I would have liked to see more praise for each other. I would like to have had Zagunis give credit to Becca for being a Senior World Champion. I would like to have had someone on the couch say that on any given day any one of them could beat the other. I would like to have heard Ward and Jacobson praise Zagunis for winning two golds in a row. What they did after the bout in the venue was great, but was perhaps not seen by many US viewers, compared to the audience during the interview at the end of the prime time broadcast.

[Peach]

This is a complicated sport. The medalists all know one another extremely well, and I have heard them speak highly of one another, and I have seen their coaches talking cordially, congratulating one another, and assisting one another's athletes in a pinch. They compete as a team against other teams, and yet they also compete against one another over and over and over again. Perhaps the analogy of a family is the closest--as one of a family of three, I can tell you that siblings may love one another but there's so much history among you that you don't necessarily feel like showing all kinds of lovey-doveyness

As for smiley faces, look at Go girls!!!!!

[Soberin]

This is a complicated sport. The medalists all know one another extremely well, and I have heard them speak highly of one another, and I have seen their coaches talking cordially, congratulating one another, and assisting one another's athletes in a pinch. They compete as a team against other teams, and yet they also compete against one another over and over and over again. Perhaps the analogy of a family is the closest--as one of a family of three, I can tell you that siblings may love one another but there's so much history among you that you don't necessarily feel like showing all kinds of lovey-doveyness

As for smiley faces, look at Go girls!!!!!

All correct, as I know all three women. My point was only regarding their joint appearance on the major network interview.

[Mo]

All correct, as I know all three women. My point was only regarding their joint appearance on the major network interview.

I think they had been sitting there for quite some time and they all were tired and hungry.
All the shooting happened the day after the fencing. Usually there is time to calm down and settle out.
They need some calm.

The Momster

[Capt. Slo-mo]

The Costas interview was the first big one of the new day. There was a lot of sitting around in the green room...then a madcap scramble down the hall during a break to get miked and on. I thought they mostly had a bit of the "OMG this is big time TV" deer-in-the-headlights look, rather than any lingering animosity.

They got much more comfortable as the day and the thousands of interviews wore on.

They may be live on the Today show right about now, as a matter of fact!

[oso97]

They may be live on the Today show right about now, as a matter of fact!

That would be affirmative!

[TBean]

I would have liked to see more praise for each other. I would like to have had Zagunis give credit to Becca for being a Senior World Champion. I would like to have had someone on the couch say that on any given day any one of them could beat the other. I would like to have heard Ward and Jacobson praise Zagunis for winning two golds in a row. What they did after the bout in the venue was great, but was perhaps not seen by many US viewers, compared to the audience during the interview at the end of the prime time broadcast.

It is very easy to sit back and say coulda, shoulda, woulda - but how well would you do if thrown into the same set of circumstances at the age-range of what 18 to early 20-something? Would those answers or thought processes come so naturally to you when you are sitting on a couch, being interviewed by Bob Costas after a emotionally and physically tiring day?

All and all, they did very well and I saw them several times over the course of the day. They handled themselves with grace and dignity in circumstances that were pretty new to them.

Give them a break, and the credit they deserve for a tremendous effort both on the piste and off.

[jfarmer]

It is very easy to sit back and say coulda, shoulda, woulda - but how well would you do if thrown into the same set of circumstances at the age-range of what 18 to early 20-something? Would those answers or thought processes come so naturally to you when you are sitting on a couch, being interviewed by Bob Costas after a emotionally and physically tiring day?

All and all, they did very well and I saw them several times over the course of the day. They handled themselves with grace and dignity in circumstances that were pretty new to them.

Give them a break, and the credit they deserve for a tremendous effort both on the piste and off.

I agree. Yet, the thought that keeps running through my head is this: We (collective USFA, HI-Po comm, Nat. Coaches, etc.) expected one or more medals in this event and we knew well before hand the likely team members. Why wasn't there 1. any work done to prepare the team for the possibly of lots of attention? and 2. why wasn't NBC staff fed more PR material (in the form of questions, points of interest, etc.) about the three young women? I saw three exceptional young women who are intelligent and articulate, but like most of us, could use some training to deal with interviewers and getting your story out. And I saw an interviewer that didn't seem to know much about them or the event.

[oso97]

I agree. Yet, the thought that keeps running through my head is this: We (collective USFA, HI-Po comm, Nat. Coaches, etc.) expected one or more medals in this event and we knew well before hand the likely team members. Why wasn't there 1. any work done to prepare the team for the possibly of lots of attention? and 2. why wasn't NBC staff fed more PR material (in the form of questions, points of interest, etc.) about the three young women? I saw three exceptional young women who are intelligent and articulate, but like most of us, could use some training to deal with interviewers and getting your story out. And I saw an interviewer that didn't seem to know much about them or the event.

Perhaps because, you know, they were busy preparing for the Olympics? The actual sport itself? The kind of advance media preparation you're talking about takes a TON of resources, and even if we had a fully balanced budget in the USFA, we just don't have the kind of human resources to pull it off. Every member of the Cadre has been working themselves to the bone just to keep the Olympians in fighting trim - so they don't have to worry about things like transportation, practice space, equipment, WATER, and all the million and one details that literally take an army so that the athletes and coaches can just worry about the fencing. Yes, the kind of work you're talking about is a good thing, but lets think generational here - we have to build the tools, to build the tools to start doing that kind of thing.

The current successes are laying the groundwork for an even greater future.

[Redblade]

I would have liked to see more praise for each other. I would like to have had Zagunis give credit to Becca for being a Senior World Champion. I would like to have had someone on the couch say that on any given day any one of them could beat the other. I would like to have heard Ward and Jacobson praise Zagunis for winning two golds in a row. ...

Fortunately, we have four years to correct this shortfall. We should probably provide our Olympic fencers with a list of behaviors we expect after their performances. I don't think it's unreasonable to set a benchmark of 50 percent more smiles and 33 percent more hugs and/or kisses for the 2012 games. That should keep everyone happy.

[telkanuru]

So, the 2012 olympic interviews will look something like this?