When Adam Krikorian wakes up Saturday, it will be just another day — the first on a well-earned vacation to visit family in Northern California.
“The more adversity is thrown you way, it can either break you or it can make you stronger,” Krikorian said. “And thus far it’s certainly made us stronger. I don’t think this is going to be any different.” Krikorian spent the night walking the village, then called a team meeting for 7 o’clock that morning. By then the players had heard the news and had made the decision for their coach.The trip from Brazil to California took 12 hours and Krikorian cried most of the way. Blake, had been more than a brother. Seven years olderhe was mentor and best friend, Krikorian’s idol and role model.
An hour before the team was to enter the pool for its first game, Peter Haberl, the team’s sports psychologist, whispered in his ear disturbing news. The mother of defender Melissa Seidemann had suffered a stroke and was in a Rio hospital. After the gold medal game, coach and player, exhausted both physically and emotionally, broke down. They hadn’t let the team down and now the team returned the favor.
Musselman was on a plane by then; when she landed, her cellphone was full of text messages and voicemails from friends checking on her safety. It was nearly 5 in the morning when Seidemann and Hill picked them and drove them to the Airbnb they had rented.Later that day, Seidemann did what teammates do, skipping her flight to Orange County so she could drive her teammate home to Huntington Beach instead.
A year earlier she had been traveling through Belgium to the Olympic qualifying tournament in the Netherlands but had shown up late and missed her train. If she had been on time, she said would have arrived at the Maalbeek metro station in Brussels just as a terrorist ignited a suicide bomb, killing 20 and injuring more than 100.In July 2019, Williams left a Seoul nightclub with some teammates 45 minutes before a balcony collapsed, killing two people and injuring 17 others.
On the way to the hospital she called her family on FaceTime and lied, saying she was OK. The truth was she didn’t know because she refused to look down at her bloody leg.
Great article. Best of luck to them!
Where’s the link to the Gale Holland article from today? “Choosing the last exit” —an incredibly important story on homelessness and suicide
The U.S. was ranked No. 1 in the world and Krikorian’s date with destiny seemed secure. Pandemics don’t respect rankings, though, so when COVID-19 forced the postponement of the Tokyo Games, it was a crushing blow to athletes the world over.
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