Olympic wrestlers talk about Team USA’s D.C. visit and meeting the President at the White House
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by Gary Abbott, USA Wrestling
U.S. Olympic wrestlers pose at the White House together. Top row: Andy Bisek, Adeline Gray, Kyle Snyder, Team Leader Andy Barth, Tervel Dlagnev, Robby Smith. Bottom row: Elena Pirozhkova, Helen Maroulis, Haley Augello. Photo courtesy of Rich Bender.
One of the honors of being a member of the U.S. Olympic Team is participating in the visit to the White House after the Games. This is a major tradition in sports, where champion teams from the professional and college ranks get this honor. Since the U.S. Olympic Team is America’s team, all of the athletes who competed in the Rio Olympics and Paralympics were invited.
Today, members of the U.S. Olympic Wrestling Team were there with their peers from other sports to meet President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and Vice President Joe Biden.
The wrestling athletes who were able to attend this time were all four members of the women’s freestyle team (Haley Augello, Helen Maroulis, Elena Pirozhkova and Adeline Gray), plus men’s freestyle wrestlers Kyle Snyder and Tervel Dlagnev and Greco-Roman wrestlers Andy Bisek and Robby Smith.
For first-time Olympian Robby Smith from the Greco-Roman team, it was a highlight of his Olympic experience.
“It is a true honor to be here. One of the biggest things was to have the Commander in Chief of America say that he was proud of you and that you represented your nation well. There is nothing better than that,” he said.
Smith enjoyed being around not only his wrestling friends, but also members of the Olympic Team from other sports.
“You’d look one way and see the women’s gymnasts, then there’s the women’s water polo team, the men gymnasts, the sailors and the rowing team, then hanging out with the judo athletes. I was so excited. It was like being a little kid at Disneyland.”
Women’s freestyle Olympian Adeline Gray was impressed by the beautiful works of art and the many historic things she was able to see, but also appreciated being around other U.S. Olympians in such an impressive setting.
“It was really cool to go to the White House and to see how historic it was and visit the different rooms there. Meeting the president and the First Lady was fun. But it was also great to see all of your teammates. There were a lot of hugs and how are you doings. I like the idea of bringing everyone together in one spot like this and to see how everyone is doing,” she said.
For men’s freestyle star Tervel Dlagnev, it was his second visit to the White House with the Olympic Team. He also attended the White House visit in 2012 after wrestling in the London Games.
“It was more fun this time. The last time, we were outside and we sat behind the President on bleachers. This time, we were inside. It was more condensed and we got to hang around more with the other athletes. And this time, the President talked directly to us. It was cool,” said Dlagnev.
The tour of the White House was also different, and gave Dlagnev a better chance to appreciate just how special it is to be a special guest there.
“Last time it was more regimented. We had a guide take us through the rooms. This time, they had some people there who knew about the rooms and would talk to you about it. But it was more of a free walk. We had more freedom to explore,” he said.
Just like Adeline, Dlagnev found that sharing this with Olympians from other sports added to the joy of being there.
"It was great to hang out. The athletes were more relaxed, not so focused on their competition. I talked with more athletes from more sports here than at the Olympic Village and the entire Games combined. When you meet the President, you get butterflies. In the White House, you see all of the history and the beautiful paintings. It makes you realize all of the things that happened there over the years,” said Dlagnev.
Smith is respected in the wrestling community for his prodigious beard, known as “The Beard.” His unique appearance was not at all overlooked by President Obama.
“I am a huge history buff and I always wanted to see Washington, D.C. I got to shake the President’s hand. He complimented me on my beard, and said I had an awesome beard. Someday I can tell my kids that I met the President of the United States. It was always a part of my Olympic dream to go to the White House. I met the most powerful man on the planet. It’s pretty cool,” said Smith.
The Olympic wrestling team members were also guests at the Team USA awards event on Wednesday night at Georgetown University. They were able to walk the red carpet, hobnob with other Olympic athletes and leaders, and be part of the crowd for the nationally televised awards show which honored the best performances at the Rio Games. All of the Olympians were given their Olympic rings that evening.
Olympic champion wrestlers Kyle Snyder and Helen Maroulis were among the finalists for the Best of the Games award, which were won by swimmers Michael Phelps (men) and Katie Ledecky (women). Just being selected as a finalist was a major honor for Snyder and Maroulis.
“It was a really good time,” said Snyder, who like Maroulis grew up in the Capitol Region. “We got our Olympic rings; Rich Bender gave them to us and we got to take pictures. At the Awards Ceremony, as a finalist, I got to sit in the gold seats. I got to sit with Katie Ledecky, who is also from Maryland. It was my first time to meet her, so that we fun for me. I also got to visit with Connor Fields, the BMX rider. And I always love to hang out with the wrestlers,” said Snyder.
Also in Washington, D.C. this week participating in the Olympic festivities were the Team Leaders for each team, Andy Barth from men’s freestyle, Kyra Barry with women’s freestyle and Kiki Kelley with Greco-Roman.
Helen Maroulis was also invited by the USOC Social Media team to take a tour of her hometown area of Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, taking photos and videos in front of many of the iconic landmarks of the nation’s capitol, including the Lincoln Memorial, the U.S. Congress, the White House and the Smithsonian Institute. Maroulis and her gold medal were featured in numerous social media posts to help promote the Olympic Team visit to D.C.
For those interested in checking out the images from the Olympic Team in Washington, D.C. the Team USA social media sites were very active, including
Team USA Twitter:
https://twitter.com/TeamUSA
Team USA Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/teamusa/
One of the honors of being a member of the U.S. Olympic Team is participating in the visit to the White House after the Games. This is a major tradition in sports, where champion teams from the professional and college ranks get this honor. Since the U.S. Olympic Team is America’s team, all of the athletes who competed in the Rio Olympics and Paralympics were invited.
Today, members of the U.S. Olympic Wrestling Team were there with their peers from other sports to meet President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and Vice President Joe Biden.
The wrestling athletes who were able to attend this time were all four members of the women’s freestyle team (Haley Augello, Helen Maroulis, Elena Pirozhkova and Adeline Gray), plus men’s freestyle wrestlers Kyle Snyder and Tervel Dlagnev and Greco-Roman wrestlers Andy Bisek and Robby Smith.
For first-time Olympian Robby Smith from the Greco-Roman team, it was a highlight of his Olympic experience.
“It is a true honor to be here. One of the biggest things was to have the Commander in Chief of America say that he was proud of you and that you represented your nation well. There is nothing better than that,” he said.
Smith enjoyed being around not only his wrestling friends, but also members of the Olympic Team from other sports.
“You’d look one way and see the women’s gymnasts, then there’s the women’s water polo team, the men gymnasts, the sailors and the rowing team, then hanging out with the judo athletes. I was so excited. It was like being a little kid at Disneyland.”
Women’s freestyle Olympian Adeline Gray was impressed by the beautiful works of art and the many historic things she was able to see, but also appreciated being around other U.S. Olympians in such an impressive setting.
“It was really cool to go to the White House and to see how historic it was and visit the different rooms there. Meeting the president and the First Lady was fun. But it was also great to see all of your teammates. There were a lot of hugs and how are you doings. I like the idea of bringing everyone together in one spot like this and to see how everyone is doing,” she said.
For men’s freestyle star Tervel Dlagnev, it was his second visit to the White House with the Olympic Team. He also attended the White House visit in 2012 after wrestling in the London Games.
“It was more fun this time. The last time, we were outside and we sat behind the President on bleachers. This time, we were inside. It was more condensed and we got to hang around more with the other athletes. And this time, the President talked directly to us. It was cool,” said Dlagnev.
The tour of the White House was also different, and gave Dlagnev a better chance to appreciate just how special it is to be a special guest there.
“Last time it was more regimented. We had a guide take us through the rooms. This time, they had some people there who knew about the rooms and would talk to you about it. But it was more of a free walk. We had more freedom to explore,” he said.
Just like Adeline, Dlagnev found that sharing this with Olympians from other sports added to the joy of being there.
"It was great to hang out. The athletes were more relaxed, not so focused on their competition. I talked with more athletes from more sports here than at the Olympic Village and the entire Games combined. When you meet the President, you get butterflies. In the White House, you see all of the history and the beautiful paintings. It makes you realize all of the things that happened there over the years,” said Dlagnev.
Smith is respected in the wrestling community for his prodigious beard, known as “The Beard.” His unique appearance was not at all overlooked by President Obama.
“I am a huge history buff and I always wanted to see Washington, D.C. I got to shake the President’s hand. He complimented me on my beard, and said I had an awesome beard. Someday I can tell my kids that I met the President of the United States. It was always a part of my Olympic dream to go to the White House. I met the most powerful man on the planet. It’s pretty cool,” said Smith.
The Olympic wrestling team members were also guests at the Team USA awards event on Wednesday night at Georgetown University. They were able to walk the red carpet, hobnob with other Olympic athletes and leaders, and be part of the crowd for the nationally televised awards show which honored the best performances at the Rio Games. All of the Olympians were given their Olympic rings that evening.
Olympic champion wrestlers Kyle Snyder and Helen Maroulis were among the finalists for the Best of the Games award, which were won by swimmers Michael Phelps (men) and Katie Ledecky (women). Just being selected as a finalist was a major honor for Snyder and Maroulis.
“It was a really good time,” said Snyder, who like Maroulis grew up in the Capitol Region. “We got our Olympic rings; Rich Bender gave them to us and we got to take pictures. At the Awards Ceremony, as a finalist, I got to sit in the gold seats. I got to sit with Katie Ledecky, who is also from Maryland. It was my first time to meet her, so that we fun for me. I also got to visit with Connor Fields, the BMX rider. And I always love to hang out with the wrestlers,” said Snyder.
Also in Washington, D.C. this week participating in the Olympic festivities were the Team Leaders for each team, Andy Barth from men’s freestyle, Kyra Barry with women’s freestyle and Kiki Kelley with Greco-Roman.
Helen Maroulis was also invited by the USOC Social Media team to take a tour of her hometown area of Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, taking photos and videos in front of many of the iconic landmarks of the nation’s capitol, including the Lincoln Memorial, the U.S. Congress, the White House and the Smithsonian Institute. Maroulis and her gold medal were featured in numerous social media posts to help promote the Olympic Team visit to D.C.
For those interested in checking out the images from the Olympic Team in Washington, D.C. the Team USA social media sites were very active, including
Team USA Twitter:
https://twitter.com/TeamUSA
Team USA Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/teamusa/
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