the famous and
the unknown,
and the five
[people] I
selected for this
90-minute doc-
umentary are
unique in dif-
ferent ways. I
watch for the
sensitive sto-
ries."
Greenspan,
Who grew up in
New York, was
inducted into
the Jewish
Sports Hall of
Fame in Israel
four years ago
and plans to
return in 2001
for the actual
induction cere-
mony during
the Maccabi
Games.
As a young-
ster, he seemed
destined for a
legal career with a father who was a
judge and a mother and brother who
were attorneys. Instead, even though
he had worked after school in the
sports department of a radio station
and had become a sports commenta-
tor, he actually was pursuing opera
opportunities when another aspiring
singer, John Davis, pushed him
toward the Olympics.
"We were both spear carriers in
the Metropolitan Opera and used to
exchange record albums," recalls
Greenspan, whose own sport of
R
choice has been
recreational
tennis. "While
we were at his
home, I saw an
Olympic gold
medal and
asked about it.
He said he won
it in 1948 as a
weight-lifting
champion.
"I found
that fascinat-
ing, wrote a
story for
Reader's Digest
and sold it. A
lot of people
asked for his
picture, and I
thought if they
wanted to see
his photograph,
they'd want to
see him on
film.
"I went to
Finland in
1952 for his
second performance at the games,
and he won again, so I made a 15-
minute film with borrowed money.
When I heard that the State
Department was looking for a vehicle
to offset Soviet propaganda that
blacks (Davis is African-American)
had no opportunity in the United
States, I sold it to [that agency]."
Greenspan, elated about making a
$45,000 profit on that project,
decided on the career that would
bring him several Emmys, the
George Foster Peabody Award for
Santa Monica College in California, he made time for water sports again.
Permitted to train with the University of Southern California team, he
worked alongside Atlanta Games champion Brad Bridgewater. The Ukrainian
native attributes part of his success to a routine of five hours daily practice
and weight exercises.
"I don't like to think a whole let about my races beforehand," Krayzelburg
told MSNBC. "I try to spend a lot of time with my teammates, maybe
coaches, maybe swimmers from the other teams. Usually, when we're in inter-
national competition, we have a masseuse and trainers so a lot of times I just
spend time with them, trying to keep my mind off swimming."
Krayzelburg, purported to have high-income endorsement deals already,
negotiated with Speedo to pay for his family to attend the Olympics. That
includes father Oleg, a Ukraine coffee shop owner who became a Los Angeles
chef; mother Yelena, a Ukraine accountant who became a pharmacy techni-
cian; and younger sister Marsha.
"It's becoming common for athletes to move to other countries for politi-
cal reasons and represent the new countries in the Olympics," Greenspan
says. "Africans are moving to Denmark, and Yueling Chen, earlier in walking
races for China, will be walking for the United States."
— Suzanne Chessler
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