From the Diamond to the Olympics with Ben Wanger | Episode 49

*This Transcript is Autogenerated*

Ben Wanger  0:05  
but it really is just amazing to see what work gets put in behind the scenes in order to put on an event of the magnitude of the Olympics and Paralympics. So that's one thing that was shocking for me. And it's really shocking to anyone who I talked to you about what I'm doing for work. They're like, Oh, you're four years away. You're already planning. I'm like, Yeah, but they've been planning for the last 10 years. So welcome

Kristi Wagner  0:26  
to the other three years, a show for anyone who has an olympic size dream, they want to turn into a reality. Hi, and welcome to this week's episode of the other three years. This week, I'm sharing an interview with Olympic baseball player, Ben Winger. So Ben played for Team Israel in Tokyo. And we met because he played baseball at Yale, not our time at Yale did not overlap, we actually met at the Olympics. But that was how we connected. So Ben and I talked about his path through sports from his time growing up as kind of an all around athlete and then specializing in baseball, in college. And spoiler alert, he went on to play baseball at three different colleges, partly because of COVID. Hogan into it, and then taking baseball all the way to the Olympics, what that experience was like for him, and especially playing for Team Israel. So we also talked about his transition away from baseball, and how he has spent the past few years working for the LA 2028 planning team. So it's a super fun conversation, and I'm excited to share with all of you. But before we get into that, here's an update on what is currently going on in my training. So we are still in Sarasota, still in Olympic selection camp. This is the last week of the official Olympic selection camp. So, you know, you just kind of got to do your best every day and make the most of every day, as you really do all the time. You know, it is a culmination of a lot of things. And you know, all the groups are kind of going through their final rounds of selection right now. So it is definitely a bit of a tense time. But I've really been impressed with everyone like, off the water, I mean, animal water, everyone's really respectful of one another. But off the water, I think people have been really supportive of each other and just really trying to keep things as light and, you know, supportive and all those things as they can. But you know, not that much going on outside of rowing right now, for me, I've been spending a little more time working because we have our upcoming spring races in Saratoga, that are starting to get a little bit closer to some more things that we have to be working on with that. So that's been a nice distraction out of practice time. And my boyfriend Ian was here last week because he was here coaching on like his team spring break. So it was just really very convenient. But also just really nice to be able to hang out in between practices and stuff for a few days. And you know, neither of us had to make a special trip to do that, because we just happen to both be in the same place, which was lovely. Yeah. Besides that, you know, we've been really into chocolate chip cookies recently. Just trying to find some good I think Instagram honestly has like led me to wanting chocolate chip cookies, but had some good ones. Trader Joe's actually makes an excellent chocolate chip cookie has sea salt on it. It's very good. They also have a crumble cookies here, which their cookies are insanely large. I think like half a cookie is an appropriate serving, but they're pretty good. See if you have any cookie racks. I will take them chocolate chip cookies, I don't have an oven, so I can't make my own but I can purchase them. So if you know of any good cookies in Sarasota area, let me know. And yeah, cookies. That's kind of it. Hopefully we'll have some more to report next week. But just rolling around Nathan Benderson Park and living living still in the Homewood suites in our in our best life. Now it is time for my conversation with Olympic baseball player, Ben Winger. And I hope that you all really enjoy it. Thank you so much for taking the time super excited to learn more. I feel like for context, Ben and I met very briefly in Japan at the Olympics, which is kind of interesting, because I feel like I didn't meet a lot of people there because of COVID

Ben Wanger  4:36  
Yeah, I don't think I had a couple of friends from high school but a couple of friends from college but yeah, I really didn't meet too many people COVID was going on. We are all in our respective bubbles. But yeah, it was great to meet and fellow Yalie. Yeah,

Kristi Wagner  4:50  
there were a bunch of you guys on the Israeli baseball team, right? Like there were like, three or four. There

Ben Wanger  4:57  
were two of us all I'm in Tokyo, and then a couple more who were or the qualifying process. And then a couple other rowers, right? From my year.

Kristi Wagner  5:07  
Yeah, there were like nine men.

Ben Wanger  5:10  
So you were holding down the fort for the women. There.

Kristi Wagner  5:14  
There was another woman who hadn't she now like goes to Yale. But she hadn't started yet. But she was there competing for Greece. So but there should be there's two other women on the US national team that have made the team last year. So hopefully, all of us make it again this year, but higher higher delegation. Yeah. So I thought we could just start with like, how you got into sports, how you got into baseball, how you picked baseball, maybe over some other things? Sure,

Ben Wanger  5:46  
yeah. So I've been playing baseball, or had been playing baseball my whole life now that I'm retired, and that's my whole life. I come from a sports family. My dad played baseball at Harvard, actually, my mom played field hockey and lacrosse at Brown. And so kind of grew up in that sports atmosphere. My sister played basketball all the way up through college, she also went to Yale, she's the true genius of the family. She was a walk on, and then ended up going to law school is now now a lawyer. And then my brother played football in, in college too. And so I would say I grew up, basically competing against my brother, we would go into our backyard, and our dad would throw us some fly balls. And we would kind of it was kind of a mix between football and baseball, where we pretended to be outfielders. But we were also kind of guarding each other kind of like a wide receiver football situation. But we were using a baseball. So that was kind of how I grew up is competing against my brother, who was two years older than me and and would beat me and everything. And I think it really, it drove me to be competitive and want to win. And I never did, which made me upset, but I could win against people who are my age. So that's kind of how how I learned to grow up in the sports world. I played soccer, basketball and baseball all the way through high school kind of switch between soccer and football halfway through, but was definitely playing three sports. And I think that's unique, kind of to the northeast, I think you see a lot of specialization now. But yeah, I kind of stayed differentiated all the way through high school, when I got to college, stuck to baseball, and then kind of dropped the other two. But yeah, that's my background in sports.

Kristi Wagner  7:23  
So did you like baseball more? Or did you just feel like you were better at baseball,

Ben Wanger  7:30  
I was always the best at baseball. And I kind of just assumed it was a my sport. Because I was playing in the summers, I was just progressing really well throughout the levels. I didn't really think too hard about which one I liked the most. I think I just like sports in general at the time, my claim to fame for high school basketball is that I averaged more fouls than minutes. My junior year of my junior year of basketball. So I don't know if I was that great at it. But you know, I was a defensive specialist for you. I said, yeah, just was the really loved sports growing up, loved the competition and kind of just thrived on that competitive energy.

Kristi Wagner  8:09  
That's cool. And then what brought you to Yale? Because you're because your sister went there? Or is your sister older than you are good.

Ben Wanger  8:19  
She's older. Yes. So she's five years older than me. That is not what brought me to yell act actively. I was actively against going to for the longest time, I always said that I was going to go to the best school that I could get into for baseball, kind of using baseball as that driving force to get into a great school. And it's funny, just considering, I don't know, I've used NESCAC. So kind of those more academic oriented schools. And my whole recruiting process happened in the span of like three weeks, I went to the Yale baseball summer baseball camp, and I think they had one more spot in our recruiting year. And I had a really good camp and they called me up a few days later, they're like, Hey, come out to do an official visit. I went out and visited. And then I was talking between Yale and Columbia. Actually, I got there and they said, Yeah, we're gonna let you know in the next couple of days if we want you and then between I think it was a span of two and a half weeks between the actual camp and committing to go to Yeah, that's the last and final recruit of my year. So happened fast before that was thinking about nest CACs had some interest from the Ivy's. But generally, you'll ended up being my only formal division one offer. That's

Kristi Wagner  9:24  
crazy, because I feel like normally, like in a sport like baseball, it's usually a bunch of longer recruiting process.

Ben Wanger  9:32  
Yeah, and it's getting earlier I think a lot of division one recruits end up committing now like summer before their sophomore year and most are committed summer before their junior year. Me that was summer before my senior year. So it was very late. And yeah, I was the last one of my year and we got it done. But it was an interesting time for sure. You've kind of forget the recruiting process a lot of the time that it's a lot of highs and lows and it does affect that your next four years. So my recruiting process for my other couple of years. in grad school, when I was kind of more established were went a bit differently. But I didn't have a ton of interest coming out of high school. So very grateful to John super in the Yale coaching staff to take a chance on me and ended up working out.

Kristi Wagner  10:13  
Yeah. So then how many you spent three years at Yale and then went to USC, I was Googling you, USC. And then did I graduate, you're at Miami, right? So

Ben Wanger  10:24  
it was it was the never ending. It was the never ending college baseball career. So I actually did four years at Yale, I graduated in 2019. But I got hurt in the third game of our senior year. So I tore my hamstring, actually, which was the worst injury I've ever had. But we that's a different point. So it was a year long recovery, big surgery, and ended up redshirting that year. And so I had that extra year of eligibility. Actually, at the time I've used did not take grad students, you couldn't be in grad school and compete for an Ivy League. So I was kind of forced to transfer more or less. And then USC ended up recruiting me out to do my first grad year, went out there to LA and then la that year was 2020. So it ended up being COVID. Year. And so I ended up deciding to transfer again to University of Miami for my sixth and final year of college baseball.

Kristi Wagner  11:20  
So I bet those three experiences were like totally different. You don't have to get into a different everything. But what were some of the like major differences between Ivy League I

Ben Wanger  11:32  
would say. So, really, the Ivy League has pretty strict guidelines on how much coaches can have players formally practice. That would be the number one difference, I think, between the Yale experience and then the grad experience between USC and Miami, is just the amount of time that the coaches expect you to be there, I would say like our Yale team, would spend a lot of time on our own kind of just hitting in the cages or taking reps in the field pretty much every day, getting extra Lipson, but a lot of it wasn't required at the time. So we were kind of doing a lot of it on our own. We had some structure from our coaching staff as far as like, what we could do what they want us to do, but they really weren't allowed to be there with us. When you get to kind of a Power Five, like a USC or a Miami, the coaches are with you the whole time. And they're going to be like very hands on with your training with your development. So that was the biggest difference. I think, for me, as far as the schools go, I would say, first of all, grad school is a little bit different than undergrad in general yell. It's funny. So I studied environmental engineering and economics. There's one right answer, this is the way you do it. And that's, that's the end result. And then I got to USC and I was doing a masters and entrepreneurship out there where you kind of open up the scope and like they're literally like, unlimited ways to answer every question. So kind of that East Coast, West Coast attitude of like, yes, there's a right way to do it, you're gonna follow this certain path, which is the East Coast, and then you get on the West Coast. And it's like, oh, wow, there's so many ways that you can be successful in life and so many paths that you take. So I would say that was the biggest difference kind of mentally from that transition. But yeah, three very great programs and very different experiences across the board.

Kristi Wagner  13:15  
Yeah, I feel like it was always so interesting to me, when we would go and race other schools, we'd usually like eat in their dining hall, and, you know, whatever, use their facilities. And like, now I have a lot of friends that rode at much bigger budget schools, and like, it just seems like a night and day experience. They have, you know, whatever, tutors that are only for the athletes, and like, Oh, you didn't want to tell professors, you were on a sports team? That was like a bad thing. Like,

Ben Wanger  13:42  
exactly, yeah, I think I think that was kind of the the thought process at Yale was like, you know, we're, we're students first and we're going to get everything they're done, and not necessarily be celebrated. It's like, oh, like, this is Benny. He is in this economic class, but he's also on the baseball team. Like, it's not really the first thing that you say, when you introduce yourself to someone at Yale. And when you get out to SC. It's like, oh, you're there to play baseball. Like that's pretty much your your main function on the campus is to be an athlete and to be a sport and you're, you're celebrated for that, I think, yeah, I think that's another big difference is like you are you're celebrated when you are on these kind of power five campuses versus that. Yeah, we're like, oh, you're the focus is academics like across the board? Yeah,

Kristi Wagner  14:28  
no, totally. How did playing for Israel? Like come into all of that? Was that something that had already been in the works? Or was it more inspired like by those final two years?

Ben Wanger  14:39  
Yeah, so I grew up Jewish. I had a Bar Mitzvah when I was 13. And then after that, I kind of detached I guess from more of the religious side of Judaism but was always considering myself Jewish and like definitely a part of the the Jewish community went on birthright my sophomore year of Yale, and which was an amazing experience in itself. And then kind of the opportunity really came out of nowhere there was a another player on the team who was a year older than me, Eric brockwitz, who was in touch with the team Israel coach, who happened to have a son playing baseball at Columbia. So he was able to come out and watch us play when we were when we were playing against Colombia. But yeah, he reached out he asked by the Jewish and wanted to know all about my my background and said, Hey, we're, we're bringing a few American Jews over to Israel to get citizenship. This was my right before my senior year at Yale. And at that point, the Olympics were kind of a pipe dream, it was not like really something in consideration, it was more along the lines of oh, this would be a great way to play baseball in Europe after college and kind of a cool like, transition period for whatever happens. So this is where the story gets a little bit convoluted, but got hurt my senior year at Yale, went through that surgery and went through the recovery process, which was basically three months of nothing, because you let your tendons and ligaments biologically heal, and then you start the rehab process. And that three months later, was right when the first of the four tournaments required to qualify for Tokyo 2020 started, so I missed those first two tournaments. And they were in Bulgaria and Lithuania, so very much out there. And I was kind of following along the team, they were having some extra innings games against, I think it was Team Russia. And I just remember following in thing, oh, like they ended up winning these random two tournaments in the middle of Bulgaria and Lithuania. So the track was still on. And so those next two tournaments, I really set my sights on to come back and be able to join the team. And at this point, I think my my hamstring and the recovery was, I think it was that like 30, or 40% strength of my original before pre injury levels. So I was nowhere near like, my healthiest, healthiest stability. So I decided to go out to USC a month and a half early to start doing some very, very intense rehab process at USC. So I got out there, I think like early July, and really spent every day out there in the training room, doing this like intense rehab program with the goal of going to Israel getting citizenship and then joining the team. And I got down to the wire of like, two or three weeks before Israel tournament, which was in Germany, and I think I was at 50% strength. And I go to the the orthopedic surgeon at USC. And I'm like, Hey, like, can I make this any worse I go and like he's like, now you should be fine. Like, you might just be like, a little lopsided when you run. But, you know, go for it. I'm not gonna tell you not to play in the national team. So I made the decision to just go for it. And I left and went to Israel and got citizenship. Israel has a right of return for Jews, which is called Making Alia. So if you have one grandparent who is Jewish, which is actually the same rule as what Hitler used to identify Jews, during the Holocaust, your one grandparent who's Jewish, you're able to get Israeli citizenship, actually, my grandmother who survived the Holocaust, she escaped when she was three years old, from Lithuania. So it's it was definitely a extremely meaningful moment for me getting Israeli citizenship, and joining that joining up with the team, and not to add any more drama to the situation. But our first tournament was in Germany, and we actually had one I think it was the game in order to advance to the actual Olympic qualifiers was against Team Germany. Wow. And that was a that was a very, very intense game and my total respect to Team Germany, like they're the nicest guys in the world. But having that history kind of looming over the game was was something that was like, very noticeable, I think, across both teams. So we came in fourth in that tournament, which advanced us those top four teams advanced to the actual Olympic qualifiers, which were right after that. And then it was funny, they put all four teams on the same flight from Germany to Italy to actually go to the Olympic qualifiers. So we were flying with, with, you know, Team Netherlands, team, Italy, team, Spain, all to these, these Olympic qualifiers. And it was just like the funniest circumstance ever, because it's a lot of people who kind of know each other because the pro baseball circuit is mostly in the US. So it's a lot of people who just overlap and they're just playing on national teams during the offseason. And they know each other. So it's kind of a funny interaction with with other guys who are on the national teams. And we ended up getting to Italy. And you know, we ended up just going on a on a crazy run and beating all the teams only one team qualified out of that tournament. So we had to win all of Europe and Africa in order to qualify only six teams qualify for for baseball in the Olympics, and ended up being us out of Europe and Africa. So crazy run and then immediately after that, I fly back to LA and I started classes at USC. So it was kind of a whirlwind of events that whole year and you Like even playing on 50 to 60% strength on one leg was a wild time. And it felt like everybody was just banding together, it really like stats didn't matter. That's the one thing that I think anyone who plays on a national team really loves is like, your stats really, and personal performance really doesn't matter at all. What matters is whether or not you win the game. And whether you advance in the tournament, that's something that you don't see a lot in baseball, especially in the professional circuit, where you're just trying to go up the levels. And it's an amazing feeling. And it's amazing to be among people who have similar backgrounds to you. So yeah, I'm sure you feel the same way of playing on on Team USA, you get so close with your teammates, and it's just, it's one of the most amazing experiences anyone can have. Yeah,

Kristi Wagner  20:43  
at what point? Did you kind of like feel like, okay, because you said, you know, whatever the Olympics was kind of a pipe dream. And this is just a really cool thing to be doing and blah, blah, at what point was it? Like, wait, we could actually qualify and like go to the Olympics? And did you feel like there was a shift in energy? Or was it just like, oh, this is really cool. Let's keep the ball rolling, like the whole time.

Ben Wanger  21:10  
For me it was let's keep the ball rolling. I think for other guys on my team, I have a very distinct memory of it might have been different for other guys. So I've been very distinct memory of Danny Valencia, who's a former MLB player, great, great friend of mine. Now, we were sitting in the airport about to get onto this plane from Germany to Italy. And we're sitting next to these guys from Team Netherlands who he knows and he walks up to them, he goes, you know, we're gonna beat you in this next tournament. I was like, oh my god, I would never say that. But he was dead serious. He was like, you walked up to them? And he's like, yeah, like, we're gonna qualify for the Olympics. We're gonna beat you. And they were like, What are you talking about? He was like, I'm dead serious. We're gonna beat you. And so I have a very distinct memory of that. I was like, Wow, I love the confidence. Like, that's not my energy, necessarily. But I think we just fed off of that, that confidence across the team. I was one of the youngest guys in the team. I think it was second youngest at the time. So I kind of felt like the younger brother of the group. I was the only one playing college baseball at the time. Yeah, it was just feeding off that energy. I think for me, when I really thought like, oh, there's a chance that we're going to qualify for the Olympics, was after we were, we were four now in this tournament. And we really only needed one more win. And the last game of the tournament was against South Africa, who was I think, like, oh, and five at the time. So it was a pretty lopsided matchup. I was like, wow, like, if we win this game, we're gonna qualify for Tokyo. And then we ended up winning that game. And the celebration ensued, it was, it was probably the best feeling I've had on a baseball field was the actual qualifying. And just thinking yourself, wow, you're going to be in the Olympics with the best athletes in the entire world. That was the moment for me. It was a crazy time and one that will be amazing to look back on forever. Yeah,

Kristi Wagner  22:58  
no, definitely. It's, it's very unique feeling. I think that was that was all like pre 2020. Right. So then it ended up being like two years, because if you were just about to start classes at USC, that was like, it

Ben Wanger  23:12  
was never followed. 2019. So we did not know what was in store. We were actually the first baseball team to qualify for Tokyo. And so we were kind of sitting back thinking, Oh, we're just gonna, like, relax over the next few months and see, like, who else qualifies. And then we all went our respective ways. A lot of guys were in professional baseball in the various minor leagues. I went back to USC, and then a quarter of the way through the season, like COVID, Hudson, everything gets shut down or like, Okay, what's gonna happen, there was a lot of speculation that Tokyo was just gonna get flat out cancelled. And so that would have been heartbreaking, I'm sure for for all of us. And then the news comes out that it gets pushed back a year. And we're like, okay, I guess we have another year to get ready. And, you know, I don't think anybody wished for that. But, you know, for me, it allowed me to have the next experience of going and playing at University of Miami for the next year. That was definitely unexpected. And I think a lot of us at the time didn't really know what what to make of the situation. We just knew that we were in touch with each other. And I think by the time we got together for we had a kind of a spring training exhibition game, the February before Tokyo 2021. And I think people hadn't seen each other for like a year and a half at that point. And so it was really just kind of a coming back together really good friends. And people had shared this amazing experience together. But a lot of people like people don't realize that for baseball, like you're off doing your own thing for most of the year. You You're not on a national team, you kind of come together for those tournaments. And that's pretty much it.

Kristi Wagner  24:43  
Yeah, that's crazy. I mean, you're obviously playing baseball just for four different teams. Yeah, professional teams or college teams or whatever. But yeah, what was your experience like? In Tokyo? Like, did you go do a pre camp or anything like your Did you just I don't know, what was it like for you there?

Ben Wanger  25:06  
Yeah, so we did a little pre camp. So after my year at University of Miami, I had a teammate have helped me get on his independently team. So I was playing for the Lancaster Barnstormers in the Atlantic league. And our team had kind of made up made this little barnstorming exhibition series where we would go all throughout the Northeast playing a different independent League teams in order to get ready because we really hadn't played together in another year and a half since the qualifiers. So we met up maybe a month and a half before and kind of went on this exhibition series. And it was just great. We played, you know, started in New York went to New Jersey, Pennsylvania, DC, Virginia, so kind of jumped around a lot the Northeast, and then we got to Tokyo, and we had so many COVID scares before we went to Tokyo, I think we had a two guys actually get it during this exhibition campaign. And they they ended up going through the whole quarantine process before Tokyo started. So they ended up being able to come but it was just nonstop talk about COVID. And it really like kind of the storm clouds over the entire the entire experience, which was too bad. But like, I think when you have this kind of existential event going on, it really pushes the team together and forces you to you know, spend more time with each other hanging out with each other and just get closer together. So that was kind of our story of Tokyo is a lot of just hanging out with the team in the village, I'm sure you remember very well, like the village, the village world was very different than normal, I would say like their people weren't really hanging out too much. They were kind of sticking to themselves getting ready for their various competitions. The dining hall had these like little cubbies that you would eat. And so it made for a different experience. But I think knowing that you are among the best athletes in the world, that was the coolest part for me. I would walk into the gym they had in in the village and just see all these different workout styles. I think I saw a woman who was competing in judo, who was surrounded by like four or five trainers just like pushing her to like into one each other. I don't know what that training is called. But that was one that stuck out to me. But yeah, just like an amazing time just being with teammates and being like, in immersed in this world where it's kind of like a summer camp. Yeah,

Kristi Wagner  27:24  
no seeing people do their sports in the village was super cool. Like I remember we saw people skateboarding and like, I don't know, you'd even see like some of the runners like going around and you're just like, This is insane. Like, they're not just going for a run. They're literally like the best runners in the entire world going for a run, you know, but

Ben Wanger  27:45  
yeah, exactly. We would. So there are a few days where we didn't have any any training going on. So we would just take our gloves and walk out to like the area like that park with the Olympic rings and just play catch on that yard and people would come up to us and we were like, What are you doing? Like, oh, we're playing this off? So yeah, exactly. Ya know, like, everybody's kind of off in their own little world. And it's it's such a like a meeting of the minds that you don't really, you kind of take it for granted in the moment, but it's like such an amazing group of people.

Kristi Wagner  28:15  
Yeah. Have you been to the Maccabi Games?

Ben Wanger  28:19  
So I actually went to the Maccabi Games. No, I'm

Kristi Wagner  28:23  
sorry, I said it wrong.

Ben Wanger  28:24  
It's yeah, it's alright. Either one really calm. So I went to the Maccabi Games this past year, it was down in Argentina and I played Fastpitch softball there. So that was a new experience for me that never touched a softball before in my life. But yeah, I met someone here in LA who was on that team and actually went for team USA and played Fastpitch softball. So I have been there. It was a very cool experience. Not the same as the Olympics, I would say. I think for me, it's more about just connecting with fellow Jews around the world that kind of the competition side of it. But yeah, it was a great experience and great to see Argentina too. I'd never been to South America. Yeah,

Kristi Wagner  28:59  
my mom is Jewish. My mom is Jewish. So my brother went on birthright I didn't go on birthright I should have gone I just I don't know, we were like raised Catholic. So I felt kind of weird about it. Although I think that like makes them want you to go even more so I don't really know. Yeah.

Ben Wanger  29:18  
Age range gotta look it up.

Kristi Wagner  29:19  
I don't think I have but but yeah, especially since it's on my maternal side. They're like, come on, come back. My grandmother. So funny. She's like, No, you are Jewish. I'm like, I don't know. But whatever. I mean, I'm very I'm not I'm not proud of that, that part of my heritage. It's just like, wasn't, you know what I've decided. But yeah, and like 2016 or 2017 I want to say one of my teammates. That's also Jewish was like, Oh, I might go do this thing. Like do you want to do it and I was like, literally I just have to eat you it like, you know, whatever. And so we were going to do it but then it just like didn't it kind of like all fell apart so Oh, yeah, that's

Ben Wanger  30:01  
cool. Yeah, it should at some point. It's a cool group. My sister actually did it when she was in high school because they're resection. There's like a u 18. or So section, there's an open section, which is any age, and then there's a master section, which is like 35 Plus, but yeah, it's a really cool opportunity and like a lot of great ways to stay connected to Jews throughout the world. Yeah, I'd recommend it.

Kristi Wagner  30:23  
Yeah, it seems cool. So yeah. So then you got home from Tokyo? And how did the LA 2028 campaign thing? I guess, what exactly do you do? Because I definitely have seen some of those emails about like being part of, or like applying to whatever the program. Yeah.

Ben Wanger  30:47  
So I guess I'll start with the transition out of baseball for me. So I got back from Tokyo in August of 2021. And I really didn't know whether or not to continue baseball at that point. I think in a lot of ways. Tokyo was an amazing experience. But it was also like not, I don't want to say an anticlimactic experience, but it's like you get back and it's like, now what? Well, I'll talk about how we lost first it was a, it was an amazing experience for me, because I grew up watching this guy, but Jose Bautista hit a walk off single against us, in the bottom of the ninth inning, for Team Dominican Republic. And we if we had won that game, we would have been into the bronze medal game. So it was really like a shock to the system. Like one minute, we think we're going to the bronze medal game, and then the next it's like, you have 24 hours to get out of the village. So it was a whirlwind. It was a whirlwind for us. And then yeah, you just kind of ended up back in your own world. I went back to New York to rejoin the pro team. I was on in Pennsylvania, and you land in New York and like, wow, that experience that I had spent the last two and a half years thinking about nonstop is now over. And now what? So yeah, for me, it was like, How long do I see baseball through Do I enjoy the professional baseball experience, it's a huge grind, I have so much respect for anyone who can help them do the professional baseball schedule. It's basically six days a week, you're off days Monday, and you are just nonstop traveling and living in other hotels. And it's not a glamorous experience for people in the minor leagues and an independent ball like you're on a bus traveling between place to place. So it really didn't end up being for me. So I played that whole year through, went through an offseason and then kind of decided, like, I wanted to figure out what's next. And so in 2020, to about a quarter of the way through the year, I think like April, May time, I decided to call it. And it was a hard decision for me. But I think it was the right one. I think for me like the Olympics was the pinnacle of my career and something I could really hang my hat on and go out on a high note. So I went back to Boston was kind of talking to friends from Yale really, and seeing how much they had grown in the past two years from being in the working world was like, Oh, wow, this is really cool. I hope, I hope I can make this jump too and such a short period of time. And so just looking through different opportunities and came across the LA 2028 Fellowship, which is a two six month long rotations for Olympians and Paralympians to get experience in the working world. So, for me, I thought this was a great transition. I knew I didn't want to work in sports, but I didn't mind being sports adjacent. So I went into La 28, kind of with that in mind. And I started off actually on the sustainability team for six months, and then switched over to the transportation team for my second six months. And so that was a very cool experience, just to kind of see the different parts of the organization. I knew I wanted to work in the either energy transportation or sustainability space, hence the environmental engineering and economics background, actually, with a focus and energy study. So yeah, so I kind of knew that was my space and got in touch with the head of our transportation program. Yeah, I ended up getting hired full time after that second rotation on the transportation team. So I've been with that team now for a year and a half. And so we're really ramping up for Paris, going to do some some good observation of kind of the back of house, operation side of things in Paris. But it really is just amazing to see what work gets put in behind the scenes in order to put on an event of the magnitude of the Olympics and Paralympics. So that's one thing that was shocking for me, and it's really shocking to anyone who I talk to you about what I'm doing for work, they're like, Oh, you're four years away, and you're already planning I'm like, Yeah, but they've been planning for the last 10 years. So it's a huge process amazing to see like the growth that people have over those planning years because, I mean, I was talking to some co workers like the people who are going to be competing and La 28 are probably like might not even be in high school right now. So like we're planning for something four years away, like some of these athletes are really young. And so they might not even be high school. And that's, that's something that you don't really realize in time kind of morphs all together when you're planning an event. That's so far away. That's

Kristi Wagner  35:15  
super cool. One thing that you were said, like at the beginning, it was crazy. I feel like especially in Tokyo to like, go home, because you did have to go home so quickly. And it was so weird. I literally remember walking down the street, being like, Did I make it up? Like, it's so weird to like, have been there and like been racing and like an Olympic final two days ago, and now I'm just home, walking down the street, a regular person, you know, I don't know, I feel like they talk about the like post Olympic sort of, I don't know if depression or just like slump, but I feel like our experience was even more magnified. Because it was just like such a like, on off switch. You know, there

Ben Wanger  36:00  
really was and I think I think COVID Even magnified that like you're in this little bubble. Like there's no fans and no fans in the stands. But yet you're competing in the Olympics, which is like, the biggest sporting event on the planet. And then it's over in your home and the next 18 hours, 24 hours. And then it's Yeah, it really does feel like you woke up from a dream. So totally, totally agree.

Kristi Wagner  36:24  
That was odd. And then I remember watching like the closing ceremonies on TV and just being like, again, like, it feels super weird to be like watching this on TV like I was there. But now I'm not you know, like, I don't know. So it was just a very interesting experience. That's so cool, though. Are there a lot of other former Olympians that work for like that have done that program and that continue to work there?

Ben Wanger  36:49  
Yeah, so we we have now I think more Olympians and Paralympians at La 28, then the International Olympic Committee has, so we have around like 20 to 21. I think now, basically, it hires on a six month frequency, and it's for four spots. And so some of some people have gone on to do different things. And some people have stayed on and gotten hired full time. But yeah, it just keeps growing. And you know, it's such a good, good community of people. I'm actually so after baseball, I was like, Okay, what do I want to do for my workouts, because like, you can't play baseball, it's not really a workout. So I got really into running. And I have now like two or three co workers who are Olympic sprinters and runners. So like, it's just like, the most, it's the craziest thing because like, for baseball, we never run I think the most I've ever run before was like two miles. And they were like, yeah, just come on, come on, run with me. And like it's the greatest group of like athletes that I've ever been around. And yeah, if you want to, like get become a specialist in any sport, just yeah, come on by. And you can just sit with them for 30 minutes, and you're immediately an expert. So yeah, it's an amazing group.

Kristi Wagner  37:59  
That's super cool. Wow, that's awesome. Well, I don't know if you have any questions for me, I

Ben Wanger  38:05  
guess I'd be curious to hear from you. How you see your time at Yale kind of influencing who you are as a person now, kind of being removed from that experience from a while because that is a very unique experience on its own. And bringing that into the sports world is a unique one. So I'm curious to hear from you about about that.

Kristi Wagner  38:28  
Yeah, I mean, I think it's interesting, like growing up, I grew up in Weston, Massachusetts, I went to public school, but it was really competitive. And like education was valued, very highly, I'd say by most everyone. And then I went to Yale, where again, like, I'd say, it's cool to be smart, right? Like for my whole life, it was cool to be smart. I mean, maybe not the most cool, but it wasn't a bad thing. But also, school had always been the number one priority in my life, and rowing or sports in general. Were just something else that you did, and my parents were the kind, you know, you're going to do something, you're going to do it, you know, and like whatever. So we obviously tried hard and the things that we did, and I was competitive in sports, but again, it was always that school was the primary thing. So that was probably like the hardest transition for me in pursuing elite rowing was like, this is literally my number one thing that's crazy. And especially, I feel like coming out of college. I mean, I worked for a couple of years before I was like pursuing rowing really at the elite level. But that was hard because I saw so many of my friends kind of like what you were saying like transitioning to the working world or you know, in medical school or law school or just doing all of these really impressive things. Which makes sense because they're really smart, impressive people but it felt so strange to me to be rowing, like, that just didn't see him up to the same standard, I guess. So I don't know. But I also think it's done a good job of putting everything into perspective for me. And I've never felt like I'm rowing because it's the only thing I can do. I believe I can do other things. And I think that's also like a really nice thought that all of my self worth isn't just in sports, and isn't just in this one thing, because I do think that other people, I mean, I don't want to like put words in people's mouths, but I feel like if sports were most of what you did in college, and school kind of took the back seat, and then you're pursuing it after college, I can see how people get the idea that like, that's all they're good at. And that's going to be what they're best at in their lives. And that's kind of sad, you know, I just don't think that's true. Especially athletes, you know, you hear read all these articles about like, hire athletes, they're the best workers, you know, they run fortune 500 companies and all this stuff. So I don't know, I'd say that's like one thing I really value about going to Yale and coming coming from a school like that. Was it was just so fun. Yeah.

Ben Wanger  41:08  
It was great. It was yeah, it was such a great experience that yeah, like I Yeah, it was the perfect place for me at least. I totally, totally agree with that. Yeah. And we have our five year reunion this year. So I'm curious to see where everybody is in the world. Yeah,

Kristi Wagner  41:24  
that's super fun. Mine was during COVID. So I am jealous. But my 10 year will be coming up soon. But yeah, I've heard they're super fun. And such. I don't know. It's also just like a community thing. I think at a school like yeah, there's just community there forever. Which is really cool. That's not true. What other schools I'm sure it is.

Ben Wanger  41:48  
It's better. It's better. Yeah. Yeah.

Kristi Wagner  41:50  
I don't know. Yeah. Cool. Well, thank you so much. I really appreciate I really appreciate you coming on. And

Ben Wanger  41:58  
yeah, thanks for having me.

Kristi Wagner  42:03  
Thank you so much, Ben, for coming on, and for sharing so much. And taking the time to chat with me really told me like so much about, you know, your journey and all that I feel like it's really interesting, especially to hear people's experience with different sports and also like, representing different countries, I think it's just really cool. And how many different kinds of paths can lead to the Olympics, and his is definitely unique story, but also, you know, really interesting, so I appreciate him coming on and sharing and that everyone got to hear it. So to leave you all this week, I'm sharing a quote that I saw on Instagram from Suzy Kasam, who said that doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will. So I'll leave you with that. And thanks for listening. Have a great week, and I'll see you next time. I'd love to hear from you. So send us a topic suggestion or if you'd like to submit a question for our Ask Christy anything segment, head to our website, the other three years.com

Transcribed by https://otter.ai