Episode 325. Book Club Claire is here to discuss our latest book club selection, If Gold Is Our Destiny: How a Team of Mavericks Came Together for Olympic Glory by Sean P. Murray. This book tells the story of the US men's national volleyball team and its development in its quest for gold at the LA 1984 Olympics. Haven't read it? Grab your copy through our Bookshop.org storefront (affiliate link)! Follow Claire on Insta and X!  The Beijing 2022 figure skating team medal situation will continue to drag on for a while: Skate Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee are appealing the reallocated results. In Paris 2024 news, we learn how the Olympics will affect grain shipments, and how Manny Pacquiao won't be able to contend for a medal. Plus, Poland will have a hospitality house!  Slidingnovela update: Milan-Cortina has started construction on the new sliding venue, with just over 700 days until they host the Winter Olympics. What could possibly go wrong? In news from TKFLASTAN, we hear from: Pole vaulter Katie Moon Bobsledder Bree Walker Anti-corruption expert Andy Spalding - check out his AFP interview Para equestrian Sydney Collier - pre-order her book here (affiliate link) Listener Nick For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com.   Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive! ***  Keep the Flame Alive: The Podcast for Fans of the Olympics and Paralympics with hosts Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown. New episodes released every week and daily during the Olympics and Paralympics. Also look for our monthly Games History Moment episodes in your feed.   Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod   Hang out with us online: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/flamealivepod Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod Newsletter: Sign up at http://flamealivepod.com VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348          

At the first Winter Olympics, medals were awarded to mountain climbers for scaling the greatest peaks in the world. It wasn't even an actual competition that took place during the Games, but these men got Olympic medals nonetheless.  Alison explains how and why the Olympics awarded medals in Alpinism, including the fact that the team who won this award was truly a mixed-country team, the likes of which we don’t really see very often in Olympic history. For sources and a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com. Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive!   Photo credit: Project Gutenberg *** Keep the Flame Alive: Games History Moment with hosts Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown is released monthly. In 2024, these episodes explore the first Winter Olympic Games at Chamonix, France in 1924. Look for our regular episodes every week, with daily editions during the Olympics and Paralympics. Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod   Hang out with us online: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod X: http://www.twitter.com/flamealivepod Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod Newsletter: Sign up at http://flamealivepod.com VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348                

Episode 324. We always love it when a TKFLASTANI comes back on the show! Canadian artistic swimmer Jacqueline Simoneau is back to talk with us about her decision to put medical school on hold for a year and try for one more Olympics. Her road to Paris 2024 goes through Doha and the 2024 World Aquatics World Championships--will her duet be enough to get to her third Olympics? It's been a big news week for upcoming Games: Paris 2024 announced its medals (which are epic and may also make you want to have a cupcake) and the opening of one of the few arenas built for these Games. Milan-Cortina 2026 announced its mascots--are they winners? And what's the deal with their posse The Flo? [Careful here, we get into some weird Tony Orlando and Dawn references] Brisbane 2032 put the kibosh on a multi-billion dollar construction project--what is happening in Brisbane?!? We also have news from TKFLASTAN, including word from: Marathoner Abdi Abdirahman Speed skater Erin Jackson Para shooter McKenna Geer Shooter Kim Rhode Bobsledder Bree Walker Cross-country skier Kikkan Randall For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com. Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive!   *** Keep the Flame Alive: The Podcast for Fans of the Olympics and Paralympics with hosts Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown. New episodes released every week and daily during the Olympics and Paralympics. Also look for our monthly Games History Moment episodes in your feed. In 2024, we're featuring Chamonix 1924, as it's the 100th anniversary of the very first Winter Olympic Games.   Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod   Hang out with us online: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/flamealivepod Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod Newsletter: Sign up at http://flamealivepod.com VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348          

It's two years until the next Winter Olympics at Milan-Cortina in 2026, so we are in a winter sports mood! Milan-Cortina's slidingnovela (where the sliding events will take place) has us curious about bobsled, so Australian bobsledder (bobsleigher?) Breeana Walker joins us to talk monobob. Bree competed at Beijing 2022 in both the two-woman and the monobob, placing 16th and 5th respectively. We've wanted to talk about monobob for a while, and Bree sheds some light on the sport for us, including body weight differences between the two events, why you need different sets of runners, and why they call it the lonely sport. Plus, we get into the costs of sleds and runners--you'll be shocked at how much they can cost. Follow Bree on social @bobsledbree, and check out her YouTube channel and website. Because it's two years until the next Winter Games, there is a bunch of news from Milan-Cortina, not all of it rosy.  The good news: The NHL is back in the Olympics! They've come to an agreement to have pro players compete at 2026 and 2030, and we are here for it! The not-so-good news: The sliding track is one construction project we've been focused on, but there are more construction issues happening that could affect other sports and where some athletes sleep. In Paris 2024 news, French police are investigating the way Paris 2024 CEO Tony Estanguet is paid and whether that is skirting French law in the wrong way. Final spectator numbers for the Opening Ceremony have been announced--and they're quite a bit lower than originally planned. Pride House is looking for volunteers, both in-person and remotely. Find more information here. Tickets for Team NL house are on sale--and it's a pretty good deal! Find them here. Following up from our Youth Olympic Games coverage, the IOC will announce the next Winter YOG host next year. In news from TKFLASTAN, we hear from: Artistic swimmer Jacqueline Simoneau Curler John Shuster Shooter Kim Rhode The Big O (or Owe) Author Andrew Maraniss--register for his March 5 book launch at Parnassus Books in Nashville here. For a transcript of episode 323, please visit http://flamealivepod.com. Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive! Photo courtesy of Bree Walker.   ***  Keep the Flame Alive: The Podcast for Fans of the Olympics and Paralympics with hosts Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown. New episodes released every week and daily during the Olympics and Paralympics. Also look for our monthly Games History Moment episodes in your feed.   Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod   Hang out with us online: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/flamealivepod Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod Newsletter: Sign up at http://flamealivepod.com VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348        

The Winter Youth Olympic Games 2024 has come to a close and the digital flame has been turned off. We run through the second week of competition, including feed beefs (or a lack thereof) and results from: Alpine Skiing Biathlon Cross-Country Skiing Curling Figure Skating Freestyle Skiing Ice Hockey - including why USA and Canada did not field women's teams in these Games Nordic Combined Short Track Speed Skating - the mixed relay was a lot of fun! Snowboard Speed Skating Closing Ceremony It's been a big news week for the Olympics! First off, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) released its ruling on the Kamila Valieva doping situation from the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, which only took 721 days. Valieva will face a four-year ban effective on the date of the doping, December 25, 2021. That ruling changes the results of the team figure skating competition from Beijing 2022, and the International Skating Union decided that USA would get moved up to gold, Japan up to silver....and Russia would drop down to bronze. We explain how the ISU's decision is possible--and who's not happy because of it.  Paris 2024 announced that it will have random ticket drops until the Games begin in order to sell out its remaining 1+ million ticket inventory.  The end of January brought decision-day for whether the Milan-Cortina 2026 Organizing Committee would commit to building a new sliding track (not IOC-recommended), or if they would put the sliding competitions at a track outside of Italy (IOC-recommended). Guess what they chose? Our slidingnovela lives on!! In our visit to TKFLASTAN, we have news from: Curler John Shuster Speed skater Erin Jackson Race walker Evan Dunfee Nordic combined athlete Annika Malacinski Artistic swimmer Jacqueline Simoneau Listener David Also, we unravel a mystery connected with our opening theme--be sure to check that out! [Hint: It involves this race, which is historic for Americans] For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com. Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive! Image courtesy of Gangwon 2024. *** Keep the Flame Alive: The Podcast for Fans of the Olympics and Paralympics with hosts Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown. New episodes released every week and daily during the Olympics and Paralympics. Also look for our monthly Games History Moment episodes in your feed.   Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod   Hang out with us online: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/flamealivepod Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod Newsletter: Sign up at http://flamealivepod.com VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348    

The Olympics always has test events to make sure the venues are in working order and everything is ready to go for the Games. We've got one too--and that's the Winter Youth Olympic Games (YOG) that are taking place in Gangwon, South Korea (and using many venues from PyeongChang 2018!). Alison has wholeheartedly jumped back into double screening, and her maternal vibe is really coming out for these kids. Jill? Well, she has thoughts about the YOG and is still working through them. On this episode, we cover Days 1-4, including: What officiating/volunteer job would we want Feed beefs -- of which there are many, even though we understand that the YOG are a smaller event A fantastic Opening Ceremony Another great Korean mascot Alpine Skiing Biathlon Bobsled Curling Freestyle Skiing Ice Hockey Luge Short Track Speed Skating Speed Skating Skeleton Ski Jumping Snowboard Plus, Milan-Cortina 2026 delivers another episode in our slidingnovela. Will Italy attempt to build a new sliding track that will be ready to go for the 2026 Olympics and have a legacy plan that's better than what happened to the track built for Torino 2006 (that is no longer operational)? And World Games: Chengdu 2025 has an opportunity for budding graphic designers. Enter their logo, mascot, and slogan contest! The deadline is February 28, 2024, and you can find more details here. For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com. Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive! *** Keep the Flame Alive: The Podcast for Fans of the Olympics and Paralympics with hosts Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown. New episodes released every week and daily during the Olympics and Paralympics. Also look for our monthly Games History Moment episodes in your feed.   Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod   Hang out with us online: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/flamealivepod Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod Newsletter: Sign up at http://flamealivepod.com VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348      

How did the Winter Olympics begin? We've got the story for you in our new Games History Moment (GHM) show, which for 2024 will focus on the first Winter Olympics that took place in Chamonix, France, in 1924. The origin story has drama, competition, backtracking, and throwing people under the bus--which goes to show that the International Olympic Committee has had telenovela-esque situations since its early days. Alison explores how winter sports were an element in some of the very early Summer Olympics and how World War I impacted the introduction of even more winter sports. The Nordic Games--and its instant success--was also a key factor in how the Winter Olympics came to be, as was a marketing scheme put together by the organizers of the Paris 1924 Summer Olympics.   Sources for this episode: Olympedia (and the OlyMADMen) Olympics.org Diagoras: International Academic Journal on Olympic Studies - Alison cites this article as a good read.   For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com. Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive! Photo: Project Gutenberg *** Keep the Flame Alive: Games History Moment with hosts Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown - released monthly. Look for our regular episodes every week, with daily editions during the Olympics and Paralympics. Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod   Hang out with us online: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod X: http://www.twitter.com/flamealivepod Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod Newsletter: Sign up at http://flamealivepod.com VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348            

Sports marketing and sponsorship expert Terrence Burns is back to discuss how sports marketers don’t get the Olympic brand. Terrence is the Owner, Chairman & CEO of T. Burns Sports Group, LLC, which does sports marketing, sponsorship sales/negotiation/strategy, bidding advisory services, and brand & communications development.  Terrence has a wealth of knowledge about the world of the Olympics -- check out his blog for some good behind-the-scenes stories of Olympic bids past. He's also a good follow on X and LinkedIn. In Paris 2024 news (timely, given our show topic), the International Olympic Committee--and Team USA--have a new sponsor in the form of InBev. This mark's the IOC's first beer sponsor....and as you may recall, Paris 2024 will not be selling alcohol in any stadium. Never fear though, because Corona Cero is here! The French kit has arrived! Check it out here and see if you agree with our take on it. The post-Games plans to sell some of the Athletes' Village apartments are not going well--we have the latest on how low the prices are going. The Youth Olympic Games in Gangwon is starting up this week, and one of its innovations is a digital flame. Jill's thoughts on it turn out to be fightin' words in Alison's world. And in news from TKFLASTAN, we hear from: Pole vaulter Katie Moon Nordic combined racer Annika Malacinski Bobsledder Josh Williamson Breakdancer Sunny Choi Author Andrew Maraniss Speed skater Erin Jackson For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com. Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive!   ***  Keep the Flame Alive: The Podcast for Fans of the Olympics and Paralympics with hosts Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown   Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod   Hang out with us online: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/flamealivepod Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod Newsletter: Sign up at http://flamealivepod.com VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348    

Olympic road cyclist Coryn Labecki joins us to answer one of our burning questions: How does a road cycling peloton work? Coryn's got answers--and why being short is a useful quality in a race. Plus, remember that wild race at Tokyo 2020 where Dutch favorite Annemiek van Vleuten thought she had won the gold--until she realized she hadn't? Coryn was in that second breakaway group and saw it all go down. She shares the full story with us! Check out Coryn's website, and follow her on Facebook, YouTube, Insta, X, and Strava! Paris 2024 has announced yet another first for the Olympics: Team relays within the torch relay that will showcase Olympic and para sport, as well as the support systems around the Paralympic movement. The IOC is also hoping for more gender equity at Paris, asking National Olympic Committees to have two flagbearers (male and female), as well as more women in coaching roles. How possible is that? If you haven't listened to our episode with Dr. Michele K. Donnelly, that'll help explain why this is a tough ask.  What's the status of venue construction? A little behind? Or right on time? We've also got a little news from TKFLASTANIs Connor Fields, Annika Malacinski, and Sean Colahan. For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com. Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive!   ***  Keep the Flame Alive: The Podcast for Fans of the Olympics and Paralympics with hosts Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown   Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod   Hang out with us online: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/flamealivepod Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod Newsletter: Sign up at http://flamealivepod.com VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348    

Happy Olympic and Paralympic Year! It's been a while since we've been able to say that phrase, but Paris 2024 is coming, and we couldn't be more excited! This week we've got all the important news about the Summer Games: Hotel taxes, food, the Russian participation situation, and Snoop Dogg. More importantly: The lottery to get tickets to the TeamNL House is now open. Register here by January 17. If you get selected in the lottery, you'll have 48 hours to purchase your ticket (h/t House Party). An IOC/Kinomapp partnership lets you exercise on the Paris 2024 courses at home. We share quite possibly (but never say never) the last installment of the surfingnovela. The International Olympic Committee published a long article following up on some climate change research it commissioned, which has some concerning news about the future of the Winter Games. And in our visit to TKFLASTAN, we have news from: Senator Marnie McBean Race walker Evan Dunfee Gymnast Jake Dalton Author Aime Alley Card For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com. Thank you so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive!   ***  Keep the Flame Alive: The Podcast for Fans of the Olympics and Paralympics with hosts Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown   Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod   Hang out with us online: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/flamealivepod Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod Newsletter: Sign up at http://flamealivepod.com VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348