Becoming the first American man to win an Olympic medal in luge has opened up a world of possibilities for Chris Mazdzer.
“There are some endorsement deals coming my way,” the silver medalist told Cheddar. “This has completely changed my life. It hasn’t changed who I am, but it changes what I can do.”
Mazdzer points out that Olympic athletes can work long and hard without ever seeing much financial rewards. He, for example, had been training for 21 years, juggling practice with bartending and working weddings just to make ends meet.
He says, “Some athletes work two, three jobs, just to keep doing what they love doing.”
To raise awareness, Mazdzer donated $5,000 -- about a third of his winnings -- to athlete-mentoring organization Classroom Champions. He’s also raised over $35,000 more in matched contributions.
He’s also planning for a future after sports.
“I want to go into financial planning, but I also want to go into...life fulfillment planning,” he said. “If you can manage how you view money and if you can manage how you feel about what you’re trying to do with your life…then you have the chance to be completely at one with yourself.”
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/olympic-luger-chris-mazdzer-makes-history).
Serena Williams's altercation with a chair umpire during the U.S. Open final was just the latest example of women being treated differently than their male counterparts in the sport. But whether things change by the Australian Open in January, said the Washington Post's Cindy Boren, is hard to say.
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Randal Hill, a former NFL wide receiver, is optimistic even in the face of the protest controversy that has divided America. He told Cheddar Big News that one of the best things about sports leagues is how they can heal national wounds.
Rich Tamayo, the director of guest experience for the Baltimore Ravens, said that the changes being made for Ravens fans will "change the game in the way our fans experience the stadium." The Ravens start their season against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.
Social live-streaming is today where social media was in the mid-2000s. At least that's what 21st Century Fox is betting. The CEO of Caffeine, which just took a $100 million investment from the media giant, is looking toward the future of the industry.
Todd Martin, the CEO of the International Tennis Hall of Fame, said he sees a possibility for an upset in the men's semifinal, but Serena Williams has it all but wrapped up on the women's side.
Nate Boyer, a former NFL player and Green Beret, is the man behind Colin Kaepernick's protests in 2016 when he suggested that the quarterback kneel instead of sit during the National Anthem as a sign of a respect. Two years later, Boyer believes people are missing the point of his protest and not listening to both sides of the issue.
Scooby Axson, a writer and producer for Sports Illustrated and an Army veteran, said that Pres. Trump is using Nike's Colin Kaepernick ad to stoke anger in his base.
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Brand consultant Allen Adamson said the companies that don't speak up in the age of social media, are doomed to become irrelevant. That's the bet Nike is making with its new campaign.
