Peachy the Magazine January / February 2014 | Page 87

INSPIRATION

to report on international sporting and
Olympic events.
The following is our extraordinary
conversation.
PEACHY MAGAZINE: Tell me about your

background, your Olympic aspirations
as a child and the road to where you
are today.
I had the vision, the
dream, to swim in the Olympics from
a very young age. But I had always
wanted to be on TV. I wanted to be an
actor. I was very shy as a young girl, so
my mother enrolled me in acting classes
to help me come out of my shell. Once
I did, I never went back. A friend and I
used to make up our own sitcoms taping them on a tape recorder, which is
hilarious to think about.
SUMMER SANDERS:

How did you make the transition
from student and Olympic athlete to
TV commentator?
PM:

I wanted to be on TV but I wasn’t
handed a microphone just because I
won a gold medal. From the start,
right out of Stanford, I worked hard,
traveled constantly and took every
opportunity that I was given. Out of
college, I moved to Los Angeles and
then moved to Colorado for a bit. It
was a place to put my things as I traveled from coast to coast. I then had the
amazing opportunity to work on Inside
Stuff. I love basketball and the NBA,
so it was a terrific opportunity, but
moving to New York City was a major
culture shock for this Cali girl. It was a
big shift but it also was a great professional opportunity. I soon learned how
small New York is. Each borough is
SS:

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