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Inside the Olympics

By Nicole Sweeney Etter | Photo courtesy of the Las Vegas Sun

Speedskating veteran Andy Gabel, Bus Ad ’90, knows his way around the Winter Olympics. He competed in 1988, 1992, 1994 and 1998, winning a silver medal in the  5,000-meter relay that last year in Lillehammer, Norway. He came back as director of sport for short track speedskating and figure skating in Salt Lake City in 2002. And now, in Vancouver, he’s working as a color commentator for NBC/Universal.

“It’s impressive to see how this side of it works,” he said in a phone interview from Vancouver. “We’ve had two nights of competition, and before both nights, I found myself getting nervous and excited. Every time I see the athletes out there I think, ‘I’d love to be out there.’ I miss it, being that in shape, the thoughts and emotions of competing at that level.”

Although Gabel is no longer on the ice, he still sits on the U.S. Speedskating Board of Directors and chairs the technical committee for short track speed skating for the International Skating Union. Based in Las Vegas, he is president of Gabel Distributors, a medical supplies company, and president of MLX Skates, which is developing a new hockey skate.

Here are excerpts from the interview.

Q. How have the Olympics changed since your days as an athlete?

 A. “It’s seems like the scope gets bigger and bigger. My last was ’98, and the Internet was nothing like it is now, with all the social media and Twitter. People are tweeting from the opening ceremonies. Fans feel like they’re part of it and they understand what’s happening in real time. … The awareness is magnified 10 fold.”

Q. What are your thoughts on Apolo Anton Ohno and Shani Davis — what makes them the guys to beat?

A. “Talent, and then work ethic. They work hard, and they pay attention to details a little better than the others. Finally, I think it’s the mental strength they both possess. Pressure does a lot of things to a lot of people, and some people handle it well and some people don’t, and clearly they do.”

Q. Are you staying in Olympic housing, or is that just for the athletes?

A. “The village is very, very difficult to get into, which is good — otherwise it turns into a hotel. I’m staying at NBC headquarters.”

Q. What was the Olympic Village like when you were an athlete?

A. “It’s great. The best part is it’s really a place where athletes can just relax. There’s food from all sorts of different nationalities, which is nice because then you don’t have someone from Korea forced to eat American food — you want to be able to eat in your comfort zone. There are social activities and dance halls. It’s really just like a Club Med with a competition going on.”

Q. What’s the most challenging part about being a commentator? What do you love about it?

A. “The challenging part is to try to explain the sport in a way that’s easy for everybody to understand and not talking about it like I would to a fellow speedskater. It’s also not easy to talk when someone’s talking in your ear. The fun part is you’ve got a great seat, and you get to watch it right there, and the research (from NBC/Universal) is amazing. For me to have the chance to talk about a sport I love is really a great experience.”

Q. We hear you’re working on developing a new hockey skate.

A. “Yes! That’s been a blast. I’m working with Dave Cruikshank, a four-time Olympian as well who is married to Bonnie Blair. We’re taking speedskating technology and applying it to hockey skates. The skates fit very, very well. We’ve got four guys in the NHL wearing them right now.”

Q. When you look back on this year’s games, what memory will stand out?

A. “I think it’s yet to come. That first night of short track was crazy, with the Koreans going crazy over Ohno. … but I think I’ll remember the whole magnitude of it. The streets are packed. Just seeing all the parties and all the people. … You don’t really get to see that as an athlete because you’re just holed up in the (Olympic) Village.”

Q. Do you still skate recreationally?

A. “Unfortunately, no. I haven’t been on the ice in three or four years. I’m not 100 percent sure where my skates are.”

Want to read more about Gabel? Check out this recent profile and video by the Las Vegas Sun.