College of Charleston alumni are playing integral roles in the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, which begin Friday, February 7, 2014, and end Sunday, February 23, 2014. Sharon Kingman ‘80 is the Olympic Games Knowledge Expert – Technology for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Rallis Pappas ’78 is the president of Information Display Systems (IDS), the company chosen to provide results and timing interfaces to NBC Olympics.
Making Olympics Coverage Better
You know when the snowboarding announcer shows the trajectory of the snowboarders last three jumps? You can thank alumnus Rallis Pappas, whose company developed and implements that technology for NBC Olympics.
[Related: Watch Rallis Pappas talking about his company.]
Pappas, a history major, began his career with the PGA TOUR, where he managed the first mobile electronic and computerized scoring system. Along with another College of Charleston alumnus, Pappas co-founded IDS, a technology service provider for the sports industry. IDS works with nearly every major sporting event and professional league to provide statistics, video displays, graphics, software, and hardware. They have worked with NBC Olympics for 14 years and will assist with coverage of alpine skiing, freestyle skiing, snowboarding, figure skating, short track speed skating, speed skating, bobsled, luge, skeleton, ski jumping and the ski jumping portion of Nordic combined.
[Related: Read more about IDS’ involvement in the Olympics.]
The Technical Side of the Olympics
Sharon Kingman has worked on every Olympic Games since 1994. She was also involved in the bids for Atlanta 1996, China 2008, NYC 2012, Sochi 2014, Chicago 2016, Peyong Chang 2018. In addition to her work on the bid for the Sochi Games, the business administration major spent two years helping establish budgets, technology direction, and sponsorship partnerships.
She says, “Once the Games begin, the whining of the media will diminish and the focus will begin on the athletes and their performances. It is what the games are all about. That said, never irritate anyone who buys paper by the ton and ink by the barrel. And who also knows how to blog…”
On the Playing Field
Two College of Charleston students competed in the 2012 London Games. Senior Andrew Lawrence (London, England) played for the Great Britain men’s basketball team and sailor Juan Maegli (Guatamala City, Guatamala) represented Guatamala in the laser class for his second-straight Olympic Games.
Senior Carly Shevitz is currently training for the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil. She’s a member of the Sperry Topsider U.S. Sailing Team in the women’s 470 class.
[Related: See Carly talking about balancing sailing with a double major in exercise science and Jewish studies.]
2010 figure skating gold medalist Evan Lysacek will again be competing in Sochi, and his sister, College Alumnae Christina Lysacek will be there to watch.
[Related: Christina talks about her 2010 Olympic experience.]
Ask the Expert
Steve Jaume, geology professor and earthquake expert, says Sochi is in the Caucasas Mountains of southern Russia, which is an active earthquake zone. He says, “It is unlikely there will be a significant earthquake during the Olympics, but then again, it was unlikely for a significant earthquake to occur during the World Series in the San Francisco Bay, but look what happened in 1989.” Should an earthquake be felt in Sochi, check back for a stream of seismic data from station KIV in Kislovodsk, Russia, about 150 miles east of Sochi. Jaume can be reached at jaumes@cofc.edu.
Communication Professor Vince Benigni can answer questions about Olympic history.
Dr. Benigni received his Ph.D. in Mass Communication at the University of Georgia (UGA) in 1999. While at UGA, he served a three-year research assistantship with the prestigious George Foster Peabody Awards, considered the world’s premier broadcast award. A summary of his dissertation, a study of external communication strategies in sports heritage venues, was presented at the International Association of Sports Museums and Halls of Fame Conference in Fall 1999. Recently, he has authored articles about the impact of fan-based Internet sports communities in two volumes: Sports Media: Transformation, Integration, Consumption, and the Handbook of Sport and New Media. Benigni can be reached at benigniv@cofc.edu or 843.367.1596.
Classics Professor Allison E. Sterrett-Krause can comment on the archaeology and historical origins of the ancient Olympics.
Allison E. Sterrett-Krause is a Classical archaeologist who has lectured on the archaeology of the ancient Olympics. She received her M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Cincinnati. Her research interests include the art and architecture of Greece and Rome; ancient topography and urban development; ancient technology and craft production; Latin language, literature, and epigraphy; Roman social history; Roman North America; and gender in antiquity. Sterrett-Krause can be reached at 843.868.1323.
Health and Human Performance Professor Susan Rozzi can comment on sports medicine and sports injuries.
Rozzi received her Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology and Sports Medicine from the University of Pittsburgh. She has been a certified athletic trainer for over 20 years. As a member of the department of health and human performance she teaches courses in athletic training and exercise science ranging from Evaluation of Athletic Injuries to General Medical Conditions in Athletics. Rozzi can be reached at rozzis@cofc.edu.
