--- title: First-time Olympians Reflect on the Games | TIME description: U.S. athletes talk about what it was like to compete in their first Olympics, hint at new love interests, and say they're already looking forward to 2014 canonical: https://time.com/video/tYe3h34P/ og:title: First-time Olympians Reflect on the Games og:description: U.S. athletes talk about what it was like to compete in their first Olympics, hint at new love interests, and say they're already looking forward to 2014 og:url: https://time.com/video/tYe3h34P/ og:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/tYe3h34P/poster.jpg?width=720 og:type: video.other twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: First-time Olympians Reflect on the Games twitter:description: U.S. athletes talk about what it was like to compete in their first Olympics, hint at new love interests, and say they're already looking forward to 2014 twitter:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/tYe3h34P/poster.jpg?width=720 --- # First-time Olympians Reflect on the Games > Sponsored content. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: First-time Olympians Reflect on the Games [Watch (HLS stream): First-time Olympians Reflect on the Games](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/tYe3h34P.m3u8) (6:55)  _Published 2010-03-01. U.S. athletes talk about what it was like to compete in their first Olympics, hint at new love interests, and say they're already looking forward to 2014_ --- Jul 27, 2023 1:20 PM UTC --- ## More From This Series [All Videos](https://time.com/video/) [Steph Curry’s First \(and Probably Last\) Olympic Games](/video/ujJnXqwX/) ### Steph Curry’s First (and Probably Last) Olympic Games [How Old Do You Have to Be to Compete in the Olympics?](/video/PCIiajPo/) ### How Old Do You Have to Be to Compete in the Olympics? [TIME Reporter Definitely Not an Olympian](/video/RkeK1xV1/) ### TIME Reporter Definitely Not an Olympian --- ## Transcript >> My name is Alyson Dudek and I'm a short track speed skater. When we landed here and we were started to walk around. I mean, right away right when we got off the plane, you see all the posters and everything in the airport and then we go. We got our credentials right away. People were like, " Oh my god, Team USA ." It was so cool. Then it was-- That's when it really hit me. I was like, " Oh my gosh, I made it here. I did it. You know, now I'm ready to kick some butt ." >> We walked around and everyone is so excited about the Olympics and we walked around they're like, " Oh my gosh, are you athletes? Can we have autographs? I'm like, " Yeah, sure ." I feel-- I feel like a celebrity around here. It's really cool. It's gonna be different in 2014, but being here motivates me ever more to make that-- that next Olympic team. I'm hungrier now for like 2014 to do even-- to do even better. >> My name is Chris Mazdzer. I'm 21 years old and I'm here representing the U. S. in men's luge. Typically, I'm not a nervous person. I didn't feel nervous. It's just that I was like hot and sweating and my stomach was turning and I'm-- I just like, " Why am I getting nervous ?" We got on the bus. It's a half an hour ride and my stomach was turning and I was like, you know, I was getting like kind of like, you know, why heading us. I was like, " What is going on ?" Like this has never happened before. And then when we got to the truck and it was just like clarity like-- just like I had this epiphany. I can actually feel there's like adrenaline pump into my arms. I'm like, " All right, I wanna do this like I'm excited. Let's get it going. I am an Olympian now. It took a while like, you know, everyone like, " You made in the Olympic team. You're an Olympian ." I'm like, " No, I'm not. There's a lot of things that can happen before the Olympics are over, all right ?" I don't like-- And then actually a reporter after the first run, he's like, " You know what? You just took your first run there and you're an Olympian ." And I looked up him and I'm like, " I don't think so. I'm a quarter way. I'm a quarter Olympian 'cause I have three more runs to go. And he looks at me like, " Oh, you're an Olympian ." And I'm like, " No, I still have three more runs, so as of right now I'm-- I'm saying that I'm calling myself a quarter Olympian. >> But today? >> But today, now, I'm a full Olympian. >> And-- >> And I'm psyched. >> I'm Nancy Swider- Peltz Jr. I'm a long track speed skater and I'm 23 years old. There's actually a lot of fans. They've been texting me. I'm like, " Oh my gosh, the hockey guys or bomb squad guys like they're so hot. They help me up. But I'm like, " What am I doing? I can't do that ." I don't even know them in the first place, but yeah there's a lot of I guess people who talk-- especially at dinner on lucky girls like they're always talking about who's hot and what's not. It's really funny. 3000 meters, I actually took that. I was punched because going into it, my real goal is top 10 and, you know, it would be sweet to take top 6 or what not. But throughout World's Cup Softball, I was taking top 16, 15 on average and, you know, to take 9th, to be up there with those great girls, you know, it was-- it was thrilling. I was just punched. I did well and it's just-- it's so satisfying to do that well and, you know, all that pain that you went through at that time when I'm like, " Why I am doing this ?" It's so worth it. I just was happy like when they call my name I was waving. Apparently, a lot of people said that I just look like I was enjoying the race and they knew it was gonna be good race because of that and, you know, lo and behold it was the choices of my life. >> Hi, I'm Travis Jayner and I'm a short track speed skater for the United States. When we first arrived in Vancouver, it was exciting. We even can feel the excitement just in the airport. Just at the baggage claim, I felt like, you know, that the city was ready for us and even with the weather, the weather is like, yeah. I mean, you hear about how Vancouver in the North West dissolved rainy and, you know, in the winter and this has been-- it's like the summer. It's amazing. You know, I wonder-- You know, if I should see Phelps, you know, Michael Phelps here 'cause like he wins in one the swimming events it's so nice. When I stepped onto the ice for 1000 meters, you know, my biggest goal was to be able to race like I always race like it's a practice, race like it was Olympic trials or it's like it was a World Cup or World Championships. You know, these races that I've already done, that I'm already comfortable with even though the crowd for me is the biggest crowd that I've ever skated in front of. I think it's like, you know, 15, 000 to 20, 000 people. The Olympics really has been, you know ,-- it's been the dream that I always thought it would be and it's been a lot of fun and I wouldn't-- I wouldn't trade it for anything else in the world.- Rebekah Bradford. I'm a long track speed skater and I'm 26 years old. To me, Team USA it's like-- I hear about other people stories how they got here and what they had to overcome like, " I just love little-- on this little-- huge ring, of people, of talent and it's been fun to be a student of other sports ." Yes, there are some Olympic crushes out there. But I'm not gonna say here my Olympic crushes. When I stepped on to the ice, it was pretty fun 'cause your pockets have U. S. stance and they were just go, " Ho! USA! USA !" And I looked at them like, " Wooh, Wooh, Wooh ." Maybe it took me a little out of focus, but I was able to get back. It is that I competed honorably for my country. I got 29th placed, but definitely I can't be too [ unk ] you know. You know, I'll forever have that and even today I was walking around and there's [ unk ] team more in my race and I'm like, " Hey, you're freakin' Olympian ." I'm like, " Hold your head up high and-- that. >> I'm Brian Hansen. This is my first Olympics and I'm 19 years old. Yeah, I've been getting a lot of text. I mean, my friends kept texting me asking me for updates, but I told them it's really hard for me to update my friends while I'm here. I've been really busy, but Facebook is the other way like, you know, I get elsewhere. It's a friend request now and, you know, all my friends say congratulations and how you doin'. It's not really hard for me to get back at them, but I mean I'm nerd. I definitely never got so many Facebook-- Facebook messages. I did stuff only [ unk ] I've always hope for this and I just remember when I was, you know, only a year ago thinking to myself. It seems like it's such a long shot to make the Olympic team, you know. I can't believe I'm gonna be the same as like all these older people I used to look up to, you know. I could call myself my Olympian just like they call themselves an Olympian. I don't have to do it again. I mean, our team-- our team is pretty young so we're coming not strong, but it's kind of inspiring to see what the Olympics are like and then to try to go for it again in 2014. Like I always think to myself, " Man, nobody knows what speeds getting is, you know, and I'm doing something that like people aren't quite sure what I'm doing or why I'm doing it and finally, you know, I'm here and I think they're starting to realize, you know, what have been speeds getting for and what have have been working so hard so long for ." ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"First-time Olympians Reflect on the Games","description":"U.S. athletes talk about what it was like to compete in their first Olympics, hint at new love interests, and say they're already looking forward to 2014","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/tYe3h34P/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2010-03-01T08:21:09.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/tYe3h34P.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/video/tYe3h34P/","duration":"PT6M55S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/video/tYe3h34P/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}} ```