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PODCAST

Keep the Flame Alive

Jill Jaracz & Alison Brown

Obsessed with the Olympics and Paralympics? Just curious about how Olympic and Paralympic sports work? You"ve found your people! Join your hosts, Olympic aunties Alison Brown and Jill Jaracz, for smart, fun, and down-to-earth interviews with athletes, coaches, and the unsung heroes behind the Games. Get the stories you don"t find anywhere else. Tune in weekly all year-round, and daily during the Olympics and Paralympics. We"re your cure for your Olympics Fever! Call us: (208) FLAME-IT.

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All Episodes

01:05:47

Cricket in the Olympics with Andrew Nixon (Episode 311)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/11/03

Cricket is one of the sports that made it onto the program for LA 2028. It's one of the world's most popular sports....except in the US. We've decided to give ourselves a five-year learning curve to understand how the sport works, and to kick off that learning, Andrew Nixon, writer at Cricket Europe, joins us to explain the sport and its colorful, colonial history. Check out Andrew's piece on cricket's Olympic inclusion, and follow him on Twitter / X and Blue Sky: @andrewnixon.bsky.social. In our

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58:25

Olympian Kristi Wagner on Pairs Rowing (Ep 310)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/10/27

This week we're delighted to have Olympic rower and podcaster Kristi Wagner on the show. Kristi competes in double sculls, finishing 5th at the Tokyo Olympics with Gevvie Stone. She now rows with Sophia Vitas and they won the world championships this year. We talked with Kristi about rowing, changing partners, and her new role as host of the podcast The Other 3 Years. Follow Kristi on Insta and be sure to subscribe to her podcast--it's an excellent listen, and you'll learn so much about what elite

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01:24:52

Gender Equity at the Olympics with Dr. Michele K....

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/10/20

The Paris 2024 Olympics will be notable for many reasons, but the International Olympic Committee wants to make sure you know that for the first time in Olympic history, the Games will have gender parity. But what does that really mean? We talk with Dr. Michele K. Donnelly, assistant professor of sport management at Brock University in Ontario, Canada to get to the heart of the matter. Find out more about Dr. Donnelly's research here. In our Seoul 1988 history moment, Jill looks at the modern

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01:21:31

USA Fencing CEO Phil Andrews (Episode 308)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/10/13

We welcome back Phil Andrews to the podcast this week to talk about his new(ish) role as CEO of USA Fencing, how governing this sport is different from his last role at USA Weightlifting, how he’s dealt with the Alen Hazdic situation, how to get more women and para athletes involved with the sport, and what he’s looking forward to in Paris. Follow Phil on Insta and LinkedIn! In our history moment, Alison looks at the fencing competition at Seoul 1988. In our visit to TKFLASTAN to see what’s up

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51:43

Beach Volleyball Partnerships with Betsi Flint...

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/10/06

We’re headed to the beach this week to talk with pro beach volleyball player and Olympic hopeful Betsi Flint. We talk with Betsi about the dynamics of partnerships in the sport--she currently partners with Julia Scoles--and some of the little details to look for when you’re watching. Betsi is also married and has a daughter, so we get into the dynamics of balancing training and competing with parenthood. Follow Betsi on Instagram and learn more about her at her website. She’s also playing in the

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01:36:25

The Olympics Mindset with Erin Aldrich-Shean (Episode...

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/09/29

Note: This episode does contain discussion of abuse. While having great athletic skills is key to being an Olympian, mindset also plays a major part in being able to compete with the best of the best. In this episode, we talk with Olympian Erin Aldrich-Shean about the journey she's taken from elite athlete to becoming a coach and consultant to help others attain an Olympic mindset. We talked with Erin about her athletic career--part of which involves an abusive relationship with a coach--her time at

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52:19

The Dirtiest Race in History with Book Club Claire...

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/09/21

Cue our History Moment music and our Book Club music because Book Club Claire is on hand for a discussion about Richard Moore's The Dirtiest Race in History: Ben Johnson, Carl Lewis and the 1988 Olympic 100m Final (affiliate link). The title pretty much says it all--this was a doping scandal for the ages, and the book uncovers the history of the competitors in this race and all of the complexities about steroids and doping at the time. If you've read the book, we'd love to hear your thoughts about

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53:34

The State of Gymnastics with Blythe Lawrence (Ep 304)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/09/14

We're excited to share with you the second part of our interview with freelance sports journalist and commentator Blythe Lawrence (if you missed part 1, go back to episode 300). Last time we focused on rhythmic gymnastics, and now we're checking out what's up in the world of artistic gymnastics. Follow Blythe on X/Twitter and Insta. She's also been commentating the Invictus Games with fellow TKFLASTANI Olly Hogben! Jill's recent visit to the York Barbell Company's Weightlifting Hall of Fame

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01:11:15

Long Run to Glory with Author Stephen Lane (Ep 303)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/09/07

Author Stephen Lane talks with us about his new book Long Run to Glory: The Story of the Greatest Marathon in Olympic History and the Women Who Made it Happen. It’s about the development of women’s marathon as a sport, how it became included in the Olympics, and the very first Olympic marathon at LA 1984. Stephen's book is a great read, so be sure to check it out. We have it listed on our Bookshop.org storefront (affiliate link) In our Seoul 1988 history moment, Alison goes into "what happened

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01:03:19

Film Buff Fran on "A Promise Kept: The Oksana Baiul...

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/08/31

We're going back to 1994 this week with our latest Movie Club pick: A Promise Kept: The Oksana Baiul Story. This SOBIG made-for-TV biopic had the blessing of Lillehammer 1994 gold medalist of Oksana Baiul and tells the story of her life through her surprise victory amidst the Nancy Kerrigan/Tonya Harding scandal (though if you didn't know that scandal happened, you wouldn't learn anything about it from this movie). Plus, video journalist Sean Colahan stops by post-Paris vacation to tell us about

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01:05:21

When Women's Sitting Volleyball Was New with Lo...

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/08/25

We love hearing what the Games used to be like for pioneers of sport, so we're excited to have on Paralympian Lo Nigrosh, who was on the first U.S. women's sitting volleyball team. They competed at Athens 2004 and to many people's surprise, brought home the bronze. Lo tells us what the early days of the team were like and about her time in Athens. Today Lo is a lactation consultant, childbirth educator and birth doula at Quabbin Birth Services, and she's host of the podcast The Milk Making Minutes

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45:40

Rhythmic Gymnastics with Blythe Lawrence (Ep 300)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/08/18

On this episode, we look at the world of rhythmic gymnastics with freelance sports journalist and commentator Blythe Lawrence (whose voice you might recognize from many a gymnastics feed). Blythe explains how the sport works and what we can look forward to at Paris 2024. Be sure to follow Blythe on Twitter and Insta! In our Seoul history moment, Alison looks at the men's 100m butterfly race, which has a surprising winner. In our visit to TKFLASTAN, we have news from: Swimmer Felicity Passon Speed

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01:01:50

Sunny Choi on Breakdancing (Episode 299)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/08/11

Paris 2024 added a number of hip, urban sports to the program for their Games, including breakdancing. However, if you're an average Games fan and maybe have caught a little bit of breakin' here and there, you may not understand how it works. Not to worry -- American B-girl Sunny Choi is here to explain it all, including what happened to The Worm. Follow Sunny on Instagram and on TikTok! Intern Annalee has got some follow-up from last week's Seoul history moment, including some contributions from

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54:54

Wheelchair Fencing with Paralympian Ellen Geddes (Ep...

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/08/04

This week we are moving to the fencing piste to learn how wheelchair fencing works. Contributor Ben talks with Paralympian Ellen Geddes about the ins and outs of the sport and how she got into it. Follow Ellen on Insta! For our Seoul 1988 history moment, our intern Annalee Deabel tells of yet another controversy in the boxing ring, this time about South Korean boxer Byeon Jeong-il, whose headbutts rankled the referee, leading to pure chaos--and then sadness--in the ring. In news from TKFLASTAN, we

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01:01:00

One Year to Paris 2024 with Ken Hanscom (Ep 297)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/07/27

We are officially at the one year to go mark before the Paris 2024 Olympics starts! That means it's time for a visit from our TKFLASTANI travel expert Ken Hanscom, who's got all of the details on what tickets might still be available, the hotel situation, flights, getting around Paris, and the hospitality houses. Follow Ken on Twitter (X) and Insta, and if you're on Facebook, join the Paris 2024 Olympics Planning & Preparation group for more advice! In our Seoul 1988 history moment, Alison gets into

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57:44

Paul Kamphuis on Hockey Turf (Episode 296)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/07/20

Are you ready for surface talk?! This week we're joined by Paul Kamphuis, general manager at Polytan Asia Pacific, to talk about hockey turf. Paul tells us how the surface is made, why it's watered, and he's got a job Jill would like to do come Games time. Coincidentally this week was also Hockey Turf Day, so we hoped you celebrated appropriately. If you haven't, watch "The Surface," a really interesting documentary about the evolution of hockey turf. The "Smurf Turf," as it was nicknamed, debuted

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42:46

Watch Party: Opening Ceremonies Seoul 1988 (Episode 295)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/07/14

With just about one year to go until Paris 2024, we've got to start getting our daily show muscles into shape! We're training with you this week as we get deep into our yearlong look at the Seoul 1988 Olympics and Paralympics by watching the Olympics Opening Ceremonies. For screencaps of some of the gems from the Parade of Nations, as well as a transcript, please visit flamealivepod.com. In our visit to TKFLASTAN, we have news from: Pole vaulter Katie Moon Hammer thrower DeAnna Price Beach

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30:14

Lightning Rounds with Olly Hogben, Louise Sugden, and...

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/07/07

We had Independence Day here in the U.S. this week, so we've put together a series of lightning rounds for your enjoyment. If there's time at the end of our interviews, we ask our guests five questions--and they're pretty similar--in a lightning round format. Because it's us though, it's never so lightning fast. That's what makes them interesting though! That said, we're joined by anti-corruption expert Andy Spalding, para powerlifter Louise Sugden, and commentator Olly Hogben. Here's how to

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45:59

So Many Olympic Updates! (Episode 293)

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/06/29

So much has been happening in the world of the Olympics that this week we're catching up on all of the news. We start with the continued saga of boxing and the International Boxing Association (IBA) vs. the International Olympic Committee (IOC). We then take a look at the IOC's eSports Week, which was held in Singapore on June 22-25. Will eSports be a bigger part of the IOC's plan to reach youth? We also have an update in the Kamila Valieva situation, including a ballsy exhibit at the US Olympic

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53:02

Author Warren Perrin on Munich 1972 Victim David...

Keep the Flame Alive ·

2023/06/23

This week we're going back to the Munich 1972 Olympics and the massacre that happened there. Author Warren Perrin knew David Berger, the Israeli weightlifter, and he recently wrote a book called The Weight of History, the Power of Apology: Remembering Lifter David Berger 50 Years after the Munich Olympics to memorialize his friend and reflect on what it means to receive an apology for a devastating act. Warren is co-founder of the Acadian Heritage & Culture Foundation which celebrates the French

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