Sam Peszek on Olympic Trials, NCAA Season, & NBC Commentating

She was on here a few years ago and we had a great discussion around fear and beam and all that kind of stuff . But I wanted to have her back on .

In lieu of the weeks leading up to Olympic trials here in the States we had John Roethlisberger on with the episode going out the last week and kind of discussed very similar types of ideas around , you know , the upcoming men's trials and what does he think about it , what did he go through as an Olympian and then also commentating and his kind of roles he

plays . And Sam is obviously someone just like John who has gone through very similar types of tracks .

She's commentating , she's doing so much now she's going to be actually going to Paris and commentating on the primetime Olympic coverage for the women's side and so I wanted to have her back on and just kind of pick her brain on everything from Olympic trials , the team selection , who she thinks is kind of in the mix different things we're excited for leading up

to the Olympics as a whole on an international level , and then also kind of just chat a little bit about her experiences , commentating and also kind of the college scene with such an exciting few years going on . So much that we cover in here , I think , is really what people want to see .

They want to understand , you know , the Olympics , the NCAA situation behind the scenes , what's going on , and Sam has an incredible vast knowledge of experience herself . But then also she's been through so much on the kind of commentating and the work side as a career professional now . So perfect timing .

In lieu of that , when this episode comes out we'll be leading up to trials . So I hope everyone enjoys this episode . I hope they definitely reach out and kind of use Sam's expertise when she's in Paris and try to pick her brain about learning all the things . So hope you all enjoy this wonderful interview with Sam . Sam , how are you ? What's going ?

I think we just were talking about this offline , but it seems like everyone in the gymnastics world is , just , you know , doing the most , and I don't know if this is like an effect of , like post COVID still of everyone , just you know , first Olympics back since COVID , but everyone's doing too much right now , including myself that's crazy , I didn't even think

about that .

So yeah , I feel like everyone in may and june doing everything all the time , which is exciting but stressful .

So I think , when normally we have three or four months to spread things out , everything's kind of condensed which is just adds for a little chaos .

Well , I'm presenting at Congress for the first time ever .

And then also you know someone that's been at the highest level , but a big name , and then also you know someone that's really passionate about the craft , and so I really honestly never thought that it was even in my radar , um , and that I would be looked at . And so the fact that you know , I I got the call and the opportunity .

I just remember I was hiking in LA and the hike that I was on my service was really bad . So I have a video of it because my friend was laughing at me Cause I was . I was like I have to take this call , it's NBC . And I was like hanging off the cliff , being like can you hear me now ?

And then she she basically was just like so we're wanting to offer you this opportunity , like are you interested ? And the way she said it was just so nonchalant that I was like what , what are you offering me . And then she's like , is that okay ?

And I thought she was the way , her tone was like she was firing me , but it actually was offering me the job . So I feel like I had to repeat it three times and I was just stunned , like I was in shock .

I mean John was telling me how much work there is behind the scenes to research and do the practices and do that stuff and , like I don't know , I feel like for every five minutes or 10 minutes you see on air , you don't see the 50 to 20 extra hours behind the scenes that are all that research .

And you know it is nerve wracking commentating the Olympic games because you're not going to be everyone's cup of tea , right , and , um , I think for me it's important to like , remember at least this is what I tell myself is like as long as I have good intention and I've prepared and done my best to tell the stories and , you know , bring the gymnast stories

to life in the way they want them to , then I'll feel like I've , you know , done my job and so , um , I'm hoping to kind of , you know , keep that message going in my own head through through the thick and thin of the olympics .

Um , but , yeah , I mean I , my goal , you know , since I graduated , was to be a broadcaster , trained as a broadcaster that happens to know a lot about gymnastics , versus like a gymnastics expert that's trying to get into broadcasting , and so I think having that philosophy and that mindset is actually , you know , helped me .

I also did sideline for football , so I have had experience doing other things , but I think you know , all of those experiences have led me to to this , which I you know . I could not be more grateful .

It's a tough line as someone who you know was an Olympian and did gymnastics and knows all the lingo and all the terminology and knows the nitty gritty , there's a line to spread there between keeping it simple enough to deliver a high value product for someone who doesn't know gymnastics which I think you guys do an amazing job in ncaa but also and the other

side is , when things do happen that are more complicated or nuanced , you can explain to somebody the more dorky stuff or the nerdy stuff . And I told john this . I saw him at flip fest .

I was like I was very grateful that you were in the driver's seat when simone kind of went through a really rough patch , because I don't think anybody had the double skill there to say like , oh , this is what's happening . Comma , here's actually an empathetic , good take from someone who literally was in the Olympics and understands what that situation is like .

So I mean , there's nothing wrong with having a non-gymnastics commentator , of course , sometimes . But sometimes when you have someone who knows what they're going through , I was very grateful that he was the one discussing that on air a bit , you know .

And so that's where you know , our goal is to like , make it interesting and give enough information for all those people .

But , like , how can we draw a new audience to get them to understand and most people listening to this are probably gymnastics people , I'm guessing and so I think a lot of times , the gymnastics world , we have our own lingo , and so what .

I've realized is that sometimes you don't know what other people don't know , and so I had my roommate and some friends in Austin watch a gymnastics meet with them and I wrote down like things they said and questions they had .

Because I don't know what people don't know and people listening like you don't know , like I didn't know , people didn't know what you know a hollow shape was , or you know , know this is , or the importance of a run you know , you just don't know .

It's another to translate that like to be the Rosetta stone for the non gymnastics person . But , um , so that's said .

Um , I don't ever remember an Olympic trials in the past having so many question marks , and by that I mean , you know , we kind of knew everybody's skills and capabilities and readiness way before trials .

But when you look at the roster of athletes that are most likely going to make the team , we have not seen their full potential yet , which I think is actually going to make for one of the most successful Olympic Games because you're going to be peaking later . Successful Olympic games because you're going to be peaking later .

But I think it's harder for the selection committee , I would imagine , to choose the team because you know we haven't seen Jade's full difficulty on floor . Is Shailese going to be healthy enough to make it through ? And you also have to assume she hasn't had as many numbers because she's , you know , trying to rest her shoulder to the best of her ability .

So what is she going to be able to do ? Who else is there ?

deal . And then I think if Sky hits the next two meets similar to how she did , I think she's going to be a shoo-in you know that vault , I think , really helps her a lot and it looks like she's getting more comfortable in the all around .

I also think , like the added difficulty of this vault , it appears to take off pressure from the other events for her . I could just tell in her demeanor and so that was really cool . I'm a big sky fan . I think she's just really level-headed and a sweet kid and they're all great in different ways .

But , like you know , I think she hasn't kind of hit her potential yet and I actually think we're seeing that her come into her own , which is cool . And then , you know , jordan Childs is still .

I mean , when she is on she is a fierce competitor and that's the kind of swag that permeates through a team and so things behind the scenes that people don't see that cheerleader , that motivator . So we'll see what she can do there . And then Kayla DiCello , in my opinion , is also in the mix .

She's so solid when she's on and so I think am I missing anyone in terms of the ?

very few people compete , they all count . It's not like you're just like oh , we can count a fall here , like oh , we can have somebody else get this one right , like you don't have that .

And I think to your point um , there is a long time between trials and the actual Olympics , and the Olympics is a grind itself to travel and to fly and have podiums and do whatever .

So I think there's a very big different um strategic chemistry that has to be thought about when you're making somebody for an Olympic team versus like a college team or just even on just like a regular elite season .

That's not an Olympic year and I think there's a lot way , there's way more behind the scenes that goes into picking a team than people appreciate , all the way from their mental to their health to their actual physical skills or scores Like it's a lot more of a Rubik's cube . That I think people appreciate .

It'll be interesting to see how they take that into consideration , especially because , um , one of the you know unspoken things about an olympic team or world championship team is prior experience competing internationally , because it's just not the same .

The equipment's different , the time change is different , you're training for weeks , and so it'll just be really interesting to see how they weigh all of those buckets of experience , consistency , scoring potential and execution internationally , because we all know that international judges , I think , are a little tougher in that category than maybe the national level judges .

So I think , taking into consideration that international flair and what's going to score well on international soil is important as well .

But I also love seeing the state of gymnastics as a whole when we get to the Olympics right and selfishly , the biggest one being is that you know you have people like Becky Downey who just qualified right again to the team . You have Ellie who's on her fourth Olympics right . Simone is on her second , you know , moving through possibly more .

Like I love the fact that we see 24 , 26 , 28 year olds 30 year olds like that is so amazing . Like I mean , 10 years ago , the narrative around what you had to do when you were 12 to make an Olympic team is pretty wild . So I selfishly , am really excited to see just like grown women competing at the highest level is so exciting for me .

But you know , let's take she's a little bit older than she was at the last Olympics , she has health problems , she's trying to keep her body healthy and monitoring those numbers , like her training plan shouldn't be the same as , like , a Hesley Rivera . So I think how it used to be before .

It's like the fact that you know whoever started this trend , but the trend that's continuing of like hey , let's train smart and sure , you want to be prepared , you need the numbers . You know . No one's arguing that . But , arguing that . But should you be doing the same amount that maybe a 12 to 16-year-old would ? And the answer is no .

Your bodies don't make it . And so I think you look at let's just take our Olympic team and the amount of injuries that we had . That's because we weren't allowed to have individualized training plans . We all broke . So whoever's leading that charge , I think that it's smart .

And again , it's not that I don't want them to work hard , it's not that they don't need to get the numbers , but it's like , as you get older , you need to increase your visualization , and Simone has been very outsmoken about the things that she's doing outside as an athlete versus just in the gym training , training , training , numbers , numbers , numbers on your

body .

They were talking about Trinity and Leanne and kind of their situation and it's just so interesting because , like to your point exactly , it's like you hear about , like you know , trinity who's , you know , in college , she's graduating , she's still training , the fact that she's still at the same training plan as kids that are , you know , literally like 16 years old ,

17 years old is , it's good to see the individualized coaches who spend the most time with them being able to kind of have a really good hand in what we're doing . And I'm sure when they go to camp there's , you know , assignments to follow , still and all that kind of stuff . But yeah , I mean , they're , they're different people .

They're different people mentally and physically , emotionally , different injuries , different training plans . So of course we can all do physical prep and stuff . That's the same for basics . But you know , what Trinity does as a graduated senior versus a 16 year old who's in her first cycle is completely different and they're just different people , you know .

But I mean I had such a great relationship with my coach that ever since I was little and once I was starting pretty seriously on the elite track , it was such a conversation of like , hey , how's your body feeling today ?

Like , is today the day we do the most numbers , or is today the day that , like , you're not in the right headspace or you're sore or whatever , and we're dialing it back and doing more drills ?

And so , you know , I think back and I actually was one of the healthiest I think you can look at , like me and Sean probably and I think maybe Nastia is in the mix of like we were the healthiest until you know . And then , of course , my Olympic experience .

I was just injured a lot , but I didn't really have major injuries and I think that's because my coach was so in in control of our training plan and he always , you know , forced me , even if I didn't , if I wanted to keep going . He held me back . Um , I wanted to do more numbers to keep me healthy . So I'm always appreciative of that relationship .

Like my palms still sweat when I hear the national anthem , like I still get nervous just being at a meet because I competed and so not at the Olympic level , obviously . But is it , is it like a deja vu moment for you ? Like what ?

Or is it not even the same , Cause you're commentating now and it's not on your mind what's going through your head when you go ?

People ask me all the time and this happens a lot in college meets where , especially when I was doing sideline , where coaches and I'm grateful for this rapport and I like loved this coach was would come up to me and be like oh , did you see so-and-so score ? What'd you think of it ?

You know and like want my opinion , but I can't , even when I'm commentating , I cannot like analyze a score and then think back to the routine yeah , so we're already on a different routine . When the score comes in , like I , there's no thoughts in my head that are like huh , was that ?

unless it's like yeah so after people are like oh , what do you think about this score , I'm like I know I was there watching the meet , but it I would have to go back and watch the routine and really think

about it . I think , unless I , unless I'm like , oh , that's definitely a 10 or that's definitely not a 10 , you know , like I can't say a range , but no-transcript this one person and ask two sentences about how they feel , because someone's probably in your ear Like we need to .

And like I wish I could , I wish I could explain it more , but like I think it happens even a bit more with the ESPN producers because we've done so many meets that we're comfortable and it's starting to happen more with NBC , with with people in the truck , so everyone can hear us in the truck , and so I a lot of times , depending on timing , can say what

skills , what things I want to replay . And so not only my commentating a routine , but if something's really good or there's a mistake that I want to , like you know , watch it again , I have to hit the button , and so I'm having a constant conversation , separate from the broadcast , with our producer .

the entire meet and he'll be in my ear of like oh great , uh , great thought . Or if I'm talking about something and I haven't said something we brainstormed about , he'll remind me of like , don't forget , you know , beam is four inch , or you know things that they want me to hit that I haven't hit yet .

He'll be in my ear and so you have to weave it in to what you're saying . So it's it's , it's . It's tougher than it looks .

So , um , well , that's cool , do you know not to go back to the Olympic stuff for the planning , but do you know like what the like your three and a half weeks , I think , is there is that like just all prep and commentating of like cross meets is just like everything possible . I feel like it's gonna be a madness .

I mean , I've heard stories that because the time change in tokyo and everything that happened with simone that they were doing like voiceovers and stuff to like 4 am yeah , um , and so I don't .

they're like I don't think it's going to be like that because there's not enough time to turn around the show , but they're trying to get , they're trying to train me so that after a routine I kind of hit a beat so that they can cut it , anyway .

So that's always in my mind too , because if it's not buttoned up , then we have to voice over , like the transition .

I'm 5'1" , so like there's just a lot of there's a lot of thoughts around .

packing for the olympics . I do too . I have irrational travel anxiety , I don't know why . Like I'm sure you and I are the opposite . Like I have to get to the airport like an hour and a half or two hours early to not get stressed , even though I don't do anything . I just sit there and do work .

I'm not doing anything , but like I can't sleep the night before . Like getting international travel is the worst too . I go to london to see Nick sometimes and it's like did I have to get there like three days early ? I feel like yeah , no I .

I think for many reasons that we're going through the few ship , the fanship , the commentating being so good .

But for me personally , I think I , like I'm a neutral , detached cheerleader for all college programs , cause I consult with so many programs and the athletes I work with I can't wear any shirt or vote that I want someone to win . So I want everyone to be healthy and just enjoy themselves .

Right , but this year , last year was Michigan State and then this year it was like Cal , it was Stanford qualifying , it was Arkansas is just still on the rip and I feel like that is more exciting for me is because there's everyone's so exciting to watch in season matchups . Regionals are so exciting to watch .

And you know teams like Missouri that's now getting sold out arenas and , um , just maybe schools that weren't in the mix before that are now a threat to any of the big teams . Like you can't just boast anymore , and so I think that trend is going to continue , which is cool .

And I feel similar , like , of course , I went to UCLA , but you know , jordan Weber is at Arkansas , who is one of my good friends and former roommates , and you knowley priest , who was I always joke that we she was like my teammates I didn't have teammates growing up and I used to train with her a little bit .

So , like ashley priest , um , and justin springer in alabama he was on my olympic team and so just the ties that I have to different schools and then , you know , I hire a lot of these athletes for beam queen , so I get to know them on like that emotional , uh , human , human level that like I'm just I'm rooting for them , um , and so it's just kind of cool

to be like a proud big sister a lot of times being there , um , and yeah , I mean it's , it's . I never know who I'm like actually rooting for , but I usually try to root for like some chaos and parody . Just um , parody helps the sport and chaos helps the broadcast .

I agree is that I feel as though it's becoming a lot less like given that this team is going to win or this person's going to do really well . There's a lot more unsung heroes within teams that come out of the woodwork and , like you know , hit under this huge clutch performance and that's it's so exciting to see them win .

But I like seeing programs get into a good groove year after year , cause I think that when you have a good year I think Arkansas is a good example you then recruit more kids because they're excited about your program and you're a wonderful coaching staff .

So it's this really cool positive snowball effect where you see someone like Cal , for example , year after year . Cal has some of the cleanest , most incredible gymnastics I've ever watched , right , and they keep just climbing out the crying away , grinding away .

took over it wasn't like they just wanted to win right away , they wanted to , like , you know , I don't know this for a fact , but from what it looks like that slow build of like , hey , let's , let's change the culture , all right , let's , you know , do technically sound gymnastics , okay , now , let's do this .

You know , almost looks like that's how they've done it . And I think those are the programs , you know , you see , like Oklahoma , a similar way , those are the programs that will be dominant for years , because then you have this culture built of , you know , four years of athletes like that that just kind of fill in those spots when people graduate .

So , yeah , I mean it's , it's , it's really exciting . And again , like I , I love being so close to the action and getting to do coaches interviews before is cool . And then for me , like , again , I just I just love telling cool stories , and so the fact that this is like gets to be my job is is just awesome for me .

It's another thing to have a program which changes a culture and successfully has your , your name in the ring year after year after year after year , whether that's on a regional level or a national level , and I think that's harder to do . But to your point I . But to your point .

I think Michigan State is a good example of that , as they've gone through a lot of really uphill change and each year they're now a team that I feel like I hear myself talking about all the time . It's not just like , oh , michigan State had a good year and you never hear again .

It's like Mike , in that program they're really doing a great job to change the entire thing , which is hard .

So he was saying that you know , most colleges can have access to nutrition and mental health and you know physical therapy and stuff like that , which is great , and it helps the program be able to help the athletes better , because obviously for most kids , I would say , college is kind of the end of their career and you want them to leave with a really good

experience , that they either stay involved in the sport or someday , if they have kids , put them back in the sport . And he said that that's something that the NCAA as a whole I think is being more supportive and he's really excited about . So I don't know . So I don't know . I feel like I don't know .

I did D3 men's gymnastics , which is probably not a good comparator . It was just like you show up and work really hard and hope you win , but , um , I can say that that's very exciting too , because I know the athletes go through so much and you know that's right . It's a grind man . College gymnastics is so hard .

And so I kind of went in just thinking it would be easy and sure for the gymnastics in comparison to what the skills I was doing was easier , but the skills I was doing was easier .

But the overall lifestyle of you know balance and figuring out how to fuel yourself and balance your schedule and you know all those life skills that I think a lot of gymnasts actually already do in high school . But when you get to college , it's , it's . You know , you're busy all the time and there's just a lot of things to juggle .

So , yeah , it's great that they're able to have those resources .

But like I feel like we're getting better , but there's definitely still some times where you run the math on someone's score and you're like I think that's mathematically impossible how they got that score . But there's other times when I see a team or someone who like sticks a vault cold and they get like a nine eight . I'm like that doesn't make sense either .

So I don't know , I feel like we still have some room to go in the scoring , but I'm curious your thoughts on that , whether you feel like it's just a uphill battle when you're trying to sensationalize , you know , a sport viewership situation .

But , like , the landscape of elite gymnastics is change changes every four years with the code of points , and then that also affects college gymnastics , and so one gymnasts are just coming to college a lot more prepared than in years past , and so I believe that the code of points needs to reflect that . Can they do the elite skills and stay healthy all year ?

No , that's not what I'm suggesting , but I think that there's probably . Let's just take the top 20 teams in the country . They're now getting closer and closer together , which is cool for that parody , but it's going to lend more . It's going to be more frustrating for them and for fans when there's not enough separation .

And so I feel like that once you get to post season , let's let's say it's top 20 or whoever qualifies to regionals , now there's an added um , let's just call them bonus points , and so , for example , if all five of your athletes on floor do an E pass starting out , then you get an additional one , 10th or something .

Yeah , so you're getting rewarded for doing the more difficult skills . Now would it be smart not to do any of that difficulty throughout the year and just throw it at the end ? No , and so that's going to force teams to . You know , slow , roll in the difficulty and then when you get to those big meets , I'm sorry it's gymnastics the most difficult skills .

The kids that do the the most difficult skills in the cleanest way with a stuck landing should win , and I don't always think on every event that the scoring reflects that . Can every team in the country be competitive with that ?

No , which is why I think you have to separate it to the postseason to have some sort of either deduction for not everyone doing an E dismount on bars or something , or some sort of bonus for everyone doing that difficulty .

But at the same time , you know when you have 0.025 and things like that . The judges don't have slow-mo , they don't have extra replays , they don't have lines and graphs , they see a vault like that and they have to make a decision on what happened .

But also they have to move the meat along Like it's not , like they can sit there for five , 10 minutes and debate every single routine . So I think that it's good and bad . What's up ?

Like there's like that little nuanced piece where someone's like I can't believe they got a nine eight . It's like well , they missed like a whole skill , so just let that go .

No matter what your score is good , bad , up and down , someone's someone's booing at you from the stands . One team is booing you from the stands . So , yeah , there's a little more that goes into it . So I have a lot of empathy for the judges that are sitting on the other side of's .

All right , um , I think the other piece of you I don't know how you do so much , but you have beam queen you alluded to earlier . Can you , uh , can you give a little shill or some sharing about what beam queen is ? Are you doing beam queen ? This team , along with Paris .

Um , and I , you know , by the time I got to the end of my elite career in college , I felt like beam was my secret weapon . I was excited to go to beam , and so when I retired , I was trying to think back . I'm like what's a way that I could give back to the sport that's given me so much ?

And that was really what I felt like my secret sauce was , as a gymnast is feeling comfortable on beam specifically and going from hating it to loving it . And so I really reflected on like how did I do that ? And built a curriculum around it . And that's really where the idea for beam queen came about .

And I remember , before I did our first event , everyone was like I think this is a bad idea . Why would someone pay money to send their kid doing a camp with just one of the four events ? And I was like you're right , I don't you're right , but I just feel like there's . I feel like there's a need for it .

And when I would coach other camps you know I went to Flip Fest , I went to Woodward , I went to I did every camp and grateful for that experience for sure .

But I always felt like I wasn't having a big enough impact because I would only get a short time on beam and then they would go to another event , and so I was like disappointed that I wasn't able to help them more , and so one of the key components to being a successful beam worker , in my opinion , is being confident and similar .

You and I both know that's synonymous for being successful in life , and so for me , I think balance beam is the perfect teacher of those life lessons , and so we try to make it like a female empowerment conference . You know , a little little girls . You know gymnastics bootcamp .

We're obviously working on skills , but we do a whole rotation on confidence training , which I think is a bit unique . But after our very first event , we had gyms from 23 different states and three different countries reaching out wanting us to come to their gym , which I was like whoa , okay , I have no idea .

So it's grown way beyond what I have ever thought could be possible and imagined . But we have events , we have a um , an online platform called the club , which we have an app .

So if anyone wants to check out it's a free app to download to check out our content and we have videos of olympians , all americans college coaches giving little tips so if you're and you're nervous for a skill at practice , or you're on your way to a meet and you need a pep talk from an Olympian , you got it Right , um , and we do live digital events , and

we also have a very full apparel collection um , on our site as well , so we yeah , I would say this this sounds like a lot more than just a beam camp Like that's .

I mean , as someone I feel like I'm pretty busy , but to do commentating and then also have your other life and then have beam queen and then have the other things you do , that's that's pretty impressive .

And it's a blessing and a curse to have had both of these careers you know , sprout at the same time , um and so yeah , I think that's a constant daily battle on how to balance everything and then also how to keep my head above water and , like , enjoy life and go to friends' birthday parties and go on vacation and all of that .

We're also I'll send you , like a gift , of the gift package of all the survival needs that you need to get through a busy summer , one of which being a timer to get to the airport and then a very large suitcase and you should be fine okay , great , great I need more cases . Dude , I wish I just had a private jet .

I could just fly my stuff around and I'd be way easier . But I'm not balling out here that would be nice um , I think that covers it . I think we got most of it . All the things , um , is there anything else that we didn't hit on that you want to chat about ? Or I think we we got most of it .

It's fun to kind of connect with other gymnastics fans , especially in a year like this .

about . I'm sure there's a lot of people who are watching the Olympics now and watching gymnastics after a big college season and they're probably getting their feet into the Olympic elite world . They're probably equally as stressed out now , because it's not the same 10-0 scoring and it's not the same skills and why there are only three people going and not five .

What's happening here ? So they probably need you more than ever .