August 2008

Hometown Olympic Hopefuls

The Washington, D.C., area is fortunate to have many hometown Olympic team members and Olympic hopefuls to cheer for. Here's what to watch for after the Opening Ceremony at the 2008 Beijing Olympics:

Corrie Lothrop

When she was 2 years old, Corrie Lothrop’s parents enrolled her in gymnastics, simply as something to occupy her while they ran their gym in Middleton, Mass. Washington Parent met with Corrie’s mother Joan Lothrop who says the choice was to either put her in gymnastics or have her jump on the trampoline all day. Corrie quickly progressed through the levels and her parents realized that it was not just a hobby. At 16, she is now competing for a place on the women’s gymnastics team for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

When the Lothrops realized that their daughter had talent, they knew that they could only train her so far. Corrie and her mother searched for a gym that could take her to the next level. They chose Hill’s Gymnastics in Gaithersburg, where one of Corrie’s gymnastic idols Courtney Kupets trained for the 2004 Olympics.

Corrie trains at Hill’s Monday through Friday, 6:30 to 9:30 a.m., goes to school from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., then heads back to the gym from 3:00 to 6:30 p.m. Despite a rigorous schedule and frequent traveling for competitions, Corrie is able to maintain a normal teenage life in Gaithersburg, where she lives with her mother. She is an “A” student at Magruder High School in Rockville; she loves to do arts and crafts, shop and watch the Food Network. Corrie also recently obtained her driver’s license, but being an Olympic hopeful doesn’t stop Corrie’s mother from requiring her daughter to text her whenever she arrives safely at her destination.

Justin Spring
Burke, VA

Gymnastics: A graduate of Lake Braddock High, Spring, now 24 years old, competed at Capital Gymnastics in Burke. He is one of only six gymnasts on the U.S. Olympic men's team. Gymnastics has always been a part of Spring’s life; his parents were gymnasts in college as was his older sister. Smith carried on the family tradition by competing for the University of Illinois, where he majored in communications (and was a four-time All American and Big Ten Gymnast of the year). He is now the assistant coach for the Illinois men’s team. After a number of injuries, which knocked him out of the running for the 2007 World Championships, Spring is back in his game and hopes to bring excitement to the sport.

Bob Malaythong
Rockville, MD

Badminton: A Laos native who moved to Maryland at the age of 8, Malaythong entered his first Olympic game rather unexpectedly. He and his partner, Howard Bach, teamed up after Bach’s original partner, Tony Gunawan, was unable to secure U.S. citizenship in time for the games. Though Malaythong and Bach had a rocky beginning getting their styles to mesh, they have been able to qualify for a number of titles, the best being in the round of 16 at the 2007 Denmark Super Series. This leaves great expectations for what this team possibly could do in Beijing.

Gary Russell Jr.
Capitol Heights, MD

Boxing: Boxing is in Russell’s blood. All five of the Russell boys are trained by their father Gary Sr. Boxing is not the only thing they share; the boys are all named after their father but are called by their middle names. Russell Jr., being the oldest, is known as Gary Jr. or “little Gary.” But don’t let the name fool you; this 20-year-old, bantamweight fighter is tough to beat down. He won the bronze medal in the 2005 World Championships and defeated Roberto Marroquin for the 2006 U.S. National PAL title with two broken hands. Russell almost missed his chance to be on the Olympics team in Beijing by entering the competition as the challenger to Marroquin, but he defeated Marroquin at the final trial.

Kate Ziegler
Great Falls, VA

Swimming: As a current world record holder in the 1500 meter freestyle and a four-time world champion, Ziegler is slated to win big at the Beijing games in the 400m and 800m freestyle events (the 1500m is not an Olympic event). Now 20 years old, Ziegler joined her neighborhood swim team at age 6 because she liked the swimsuits. She has been swimming with coach Ray Benecki since she was 12 and even made the decision to attend college close to home, at George Mason University, so she could continue training with Benecki. Outside of the pool, she shows her love for water by being a Clean Water Ambassador for the Global Water Foundation.

Michael Phelps
Baltimore, MD

Swimming: Hailing from the Towson area, Phelps was the hero of the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens where he won six gold and two bronze medals, becoming the first male to win eight medals at an Olympics since 1980. Phelps got his start in swimming at a young age and when he turned pro at 16, he was the youngest male world record holder in history. After completing college at the University of Michigan, Phelps now enters his third Olympic Games.