Hosting an Iconic Gold Medalist at your London Games event will not only thrill guests, sponsors, and potential clients but further elevate your event to a level worthy of happening only once every four years.
Bringing a world- renowned athlete into your event allows you and your guests to receive a first-hand account of the that days competition. The athlete can describe the emotions of the day-- the pressure and the nerves, the thrill and the excitement, and the glory and the heartbreak of competing for your country. Whether its mingling with sponsors, posing for pictures and autographs with guests, singing auction items, or presenting a motivational speech to inspire and start their London Games experience, the experience is priceless.
Plan today to make your 2012 event one you'll never forget by bringing in a part of London Games history.
| Janet Evans |
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Janet Evans has captivated the swimming world since she began her elite career at the age of 17 in the 1988 Seoul Games. Today, Evans is 40, a mother of two, and attemping an unprecedented comeback to qualify for the upcoming London Summer Games. At her first Games, Evans set world records and took gold in the 400m, 800m, and 1,500m freestyle events. Her records in the 400m and 1,500m freestyle events at the 1988 Games remained unbroken for 18 and 19 years. After breaking her own world record in 1989, her 800m record remained untouched until the 2008 Beijing Games.
Janet Evans' career seemed to end on a bittersweet note at the 1996 Atlanta Games. While she did not win a medal at these Games, she did have the honor of passing the Olympic Torch on to Muhammad Ali who lit the cauldron to commence the Games. At the conclusion of the 1996 Games, Evans announced her retirement. Her swimming accomplishments included Female World Swimmer of the Year by Swimming World Magazine for 1987, 1989, and 1990, seven world records, five Games medals (four gold) and 45 U.S. national titles.
On January 15, 2012, Janet Evans made swimming headlines yet again. The once-retired mother of two raced her way toward a qualifying spot at the U.S. Games Time Trials this coming June. Evans will have her work cut out for her as she battles for a spot on her 4th Games Team.
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| Mark Spitz |
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Mark Spitz's signature mustache, seven gold medals in a single Summer Games and his attitude made him one of the most famed swimmers ever. At the age of 18, Spitz competed in his first Games, the 1968 Mexico City Games. Having already achieved ten world records, Spitz was heralded as a top favorite to contend for multiple medals. Spitz was his biggest promoter, proclaiming that he would win an astonishing six gold medals. Spitz fell shy of his goal, concluding the games with two gold medals in both the freestyle relays and a silver medal in the 100m butterfly.
While many of the world's best athletes would have considered his performance a tremendous success, he saw it as a disappointment. Spitz enrolled at Indiana University to train under National Coach Doc Councilman. In 1972, Spitz graduated and set off for the 1972 Munich Games determined to prove his greatness. Spitz captured seven gold medals all in world-record time, silencing his detractors and earning his spot among the all-time gold medal greats.
As for Spitz's famous mustache, it has a story all its own. The day before the swimming portion of the 1972 Games was scheduled to begin, Spitz was in the pool when the Russian coach began questioning him about his mustache. Rather than admit to the coach that he was going to shave the mustache off that evening, Spitz made up a story and declared that the mustache made the water deflect of his mouth and ultimately more aerodynamic. The following year, the entire Russian National men's team was sporting mustaches.
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| William Bruce Jenner |
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Bruce Jenner was an unlikely candidate for Olympic greatness. While he excelled in sports growing up, it was football, not track and field, where he got his start. Jenner played on scholarship at Graceland College in Iowa but a knee injury prematurely ended his playing days on the gridiron. Unwilling to accept defeat, Jenner switched to track and field.
In 1972, Jenner competed in his first Games Trials, placing third in the decathlon and, later that year, tenth in the same event at the Munich Games. After his first Games, Jenner devoted himself to training. His efforts paid off and Jenner brought a decathlon gold back from the 1976 Summer Games in Montreal.
Jenner returned from the 1976 Games as a national hero. He retired from competition and took up multiple endorsement deals, appearing on a Wheaties box and on several TV shows. Most recently, Jenner, who is married to Kris Kardashian, appeared on the family's hit TV show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians.
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