An Olympic Surprise

At the Olympics, it's natural to gravitate to the stars, the big names like Lindsey Vonn, Shaun White, Apolo Ohno and Bode Miller. Heck, I've done it already… But there are so many more Olympians at the Games, and many of them are relative unknowns.

I had the good fortune to meet one of those guys, 36-year-old U.S. bobsledder Bill Schuffenhauer.

He quit his job about two years ago to train and compete for another spot in the Olympics, only this time he was trying to do it with a family -- a fiancée and 4-year old son. Without the money from sponsorships that big-name athletes have, he had to pay out of pocket for a lot of his training, travel and medical expenses. When Ruthann's salary couldn’t cover those and the family's day-to-day expenses, they lost their house and one of their cars. While Bill was away in Europe training, the family was forced to move into a small apartment with the financial support of her family. Bill ultimately realized his dream of making the Olympic team, but it soon dawned on him that there was no way he could afford to bring his family in to share the moment.

In stepped one of the sponsors of the U.S. Olympic team, Procter & Gamble, which has a Family House for U.S. athletes and their families here in Vancouver. The 5-story "house" is loaded with P&G brands and has everything from a Pringles room with Wii games and a Pampers playroom for kiddies to a full-service spa with their cosmetic products and a full internet cafe.
P&G decided to surprise Bill by flying in his wife-to-be and his son Corben and putting them up in a hotel. They asked Bill to stop by under the guise of doing a few interviews, then brought him upstairs for the "reveal" after his family got in from the airport. It was a very cool moment. Tears were shed, hugs were shared.
It was a terrific reminder that for every Lindsey Vonn and Shaun White, there's a bunch more Olympians like Bill Schuffenhauer.

A great story and a great guy. Here's a piece I wrote on him afterwards:
http://tiny.cc/Vt8aL