News & Photos
STHM Sport and Recreation Administration Graduates take on the Beijing Olympics
Written by: Margaret Mastrogiacomo
Mix a great education with the power of motivation and great things can happen. This quest for success is how three Sport and Recreation Administration (STHM) graduates Beth Porreca, Janine DiSalvatore and Mike Favre took part in the 2008 Beijing Olympics as United States Olympic Committee (USOC) organizers for the US Olympic team in Beijing.
These Sport and Recreation Administration (STHM) graduates had the opportunity to each play an important role in the US team’s quest for gold with Beth Porreca working in Venues, Janine DiSalvatore specializing in Aquatics and Mike Favre working as a USOC Strength and Conditioning Coach.
“It was amazing to have the opportunity to work in Aquatics,” said Janine DiSalvatore. “I was able to witness history being made as feats were accomplished by some of the most impressive athletes ever. I saw the greatest Olympian, Michael Phelps, perfect his craft right before my eyes.”
DiSalvatore watched Phelps capture his eight gold medals, breaking world records and setting new heights for athletes around the world.
“The natatorium went crazy when Phelps was announced the greatest Olympian ever,” said DiSalvatore. “It was a proud moment to be a part of the United States Olympic Committee, a proud moment to be a citizen of this country and a proud moment to be a swimmer.”
Working in Venues, Beth Porreca describes her experience as extremely busy.
“My responsibilities were to oversee housing and assist with venue scheduling, so I worked primarily with the various teams to get them checked in to the facility, credentialed, housed and also set up training times in their respective training spaces,” said Porreca. “Once the games started we kept updated on everything going on and tracked the progress of all of the US team’s athletes, which, with a delegation of 600 is not an easy task,” said Porreca. “We followed all of the events while still doing all of our work, so it was pretty hectic, but so much fun.”
In charge of training, Mike Favre’s job began prior to the Olympics.
“Before the Olympic Games, the other two strength and conditioning coaches and I were responsible for the set-up of the high performance training center at Beijing Normal University,” said Favre. “This included the weight room, the track and field area, the basketball & volleyball venue, wrestling, Taekwondo and the Judo mat areas. The set up was basically a smaller version of the Training Center we have in Colorado Springs.”
Once the training began Favre worked closely with the athletes. “My involvement with athletes included scheduling training times, conducting strength and conditioning sessions, assisting with wrestling, Judo and Taekwondo practices, and helping athletes that needed to cut weight,” said Favre.
He also felt that one of the most rewarding parts of his job was watching the athletes put their hard work to the test in the various Olympic events.
“Event attendance was so crucial,” said Favre. “Being able to see the athletes compete against the best in the world is one of the best ways to determine program direction. It was a truly rewarding experience.”
Enjoying their great success, these STHM graduates never forgot how the school helped get them where they are today. “A good portion of my time is spent organizing high performance plans for athletes,” said Favre. “The organizational and leadership skills that I received from the Sport and Recreation Administration program have contributed substantially to my success in this capacity, and has helped me achieve success in this position.”
For Beth Porreca the program taught her to believe in herself and to cope with “Time and Pressure” issues. “My classes in the Sports Administration program provided me with the necessary technical knowledge, and the curriculum and professors provided me with the confidence in myself to use that knowledge,” said Porreca. “I have also stayed in touch with the majority of my classmates and with various alumni, so whenever I run into problems or challenges, Sport and Recreation Administration is a family to which I can turn. They were a support system for all of us as we had the amazing opportunity to take on the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and ultimately, fulfill our dreams.”