For all my writing about hockey, lacrosse, football and baseball, it is easy to forget that I started out as a youngster who wanted to write about the Olympics, in particular figure skating and gymnastics. I am not as into both sports as I once was, but came across two noteworthy comeback/flashback stories of sorts in the past day in those two sports and needed to share.
– The snarky, insightful and wildly inconsistent figure skating and gymnastics blog, Aunt Joyce’s Ice Cream Stand, interviewed 1998 Olympic ladies figure skating gold medalist Tara Lipinski this week and posted it in two parts. (Here’s Part 1 and Part 2.) As a Lipinski fan growing up (I know, a rarity), I was interested in reading it. The interview doesn’t disappoint. In fact, it may be one of the best interviews with an athlete I have read in a long time, regardless of sport.
Lipinski won her medal months shy of turning 16, retired from competition weeks after, tried to make a professional skating career for herself, suffered serious hip injuries, and retired at the sport all together at 19. She had an entire career by the time most of her peers were finishing freshman year of college. She is now 29, back involved in the sport, and is blunt, truthful and talkative. She basically admits she was obsessive as a skater, tells the backstories figure skating fans have longed for for years, and is a perfect example of how much one completely changes between 15 and 29. The comments section of the two part interview still has Lipinski haters, but they are outnumbered by readers convinced to change their long held negative opinions of her after the interview.
– On tonight’s theme of comebacks, the CoverGirl Classic is this weekend. It is a gymnastics meet that determines qualifiers for the U.S. Gymnastics Championships, but also is used for already qualified gymnasts to test skills and build buzz heading into that event. Since next year is an Olympic year, the CoverGirl Classic is being used by several 2008 Olympians who want to mount comebacks for another Olympics. Shawn Johnson, Massachusetts favorite Alicia Sacramone and my all-time fave Chellsie Memmel (who I saw compete live at this same event when she was 11 and knew she was talented) will be among those trying another Olympic run for size.
The meet will be broadcast on Universal Sports, but there are several members of the online media covering the event online who will blow them out of the water. Blythe Lawrence of Gymnastics Examiner must be the world’s fastest typist, because her notes columns and running commentary are seemingly posted within seconds of an event. Lawrence is a great example of using notes style columns to produce online content. She also has good relationships with gymnastics photographers which allow her to feature slideshows of in-meet photography not found elsewhere.
Gymnastike is a model of how to use online video in sports reporting/blogging, and not just in the world of gymnastics. They have endless amounts of clips and interviews, from carefully edited to quick, shaky takes, that their audience eats up. For them, online video has helped them find a nice niche in the gymnastics community.