Members of the 1980 U.S. Olympic Boycott Team and Subjects of New Book Speak on Talk of Olympic Boycott
The athletes are profiled in the New Chapter Press released book "Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games."
New York, NY, April 21, 2008 --(PR.com)-- Several members of the 1980 United States Summer Olympics team, who were prevented from participating in the Olympic Games in Moscow due to the U.S.-led boycott, reacted to recent talks of a boycott of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
The athletes, profiled in a new book to be released in May 2008 – "Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games" by Tom Caraccioli and Jerry Caraccioli (New Chapter Press; Foreword by Vice President Walter F. Mondale) – offered their opinions on the Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Hillary Clinton’s comments and calls for a boycott of President Bush’s attendance at the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games in August as well as other calls for boycotts of the Games.
“I think it's okay for people -- such as with Tibet -- to use the Olympic Games to bring awareness to their cause, but I don't think the Olympic Games are the appropriate vehicle for Governments to use as a bargaining chip or as a 'punishment' to the host country. That doesn't accomplish anything and ultimately hurts the athletes.” -- Lisa Buese, 1980 U.S. Olympian swimmer
“This action will not produce the positive results that are intended and will only have a negative effect upon the athletes -- have we not learned from the past.' -- Don Paige, 1980 U.S. Olympian Track & Field
“A possible boycott didn't really hit home until my son's middle school principal approached me about it today [Tuesday]. She said when she started hearing the word 'boycott' she immediately thought of me. It brought tears to my eyes because I know first-hand how devastating that 'word' is. Certainly China should be handed consequences for their horrific human rights record, but as we have seen in the past, boycotts tend not to accomplish that which they intended.” -- Sue Walsh, 1980 U.S. Olympian swimmer.
“I applaud Speaker Pelosi at this point for a balanced approach to the multi-facated problem. We celebrate the people, not the host governments. In fact, the Games are held in the name of sponsoring city, not the country.” -- Robert Zagoria, attorney representing the athletes in the 1980 lawsuit to overturn the U.S. boycott resolution.
“The Olympics are obviously an international event the politicians just can't seem to keep their hands off of to further their own agendas. Surely there is a better way to handle the situation in Darfur, why should the athletes have to pay the price again? Would it really do any good?” -- Amy Koopman, 1980 U.S. Olympic Gymnastics team
Written by identical twins Tom Caraccioli and Jerry Caraccioli, Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games ($25.95, New Chapter Press) chronicles the stories of 18 elite American athletes who trained thousands of hours for their once-in-a-lifetime chance at Olympic glory in Moscow only to become pawns in a political Cold War chess match between superpowers. The book also outlines the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan that led to the boycott, efforts by a group of athletes to overturn the boycott by legal means, and the entire 1980 team eventually receiving the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award which is bestowed by the United States Congress.
More information on the book can be found at www.boycottbook.com. The book is already available for pre-sale via internet retailers such as www.amazon.com.
Athletes featured in the book are:
Don Paige (Athletics) Philadelphia, Pa.
Glenn Mills (Swimming) Ridgeville, Ohio
Gwen Gardner (Athletics) Los Angeles, Calif.
Gene Mills (Wrestling) Pompton Lakes, N.J.
Craig Beardsley (Swimming) New York, N.Y.
Sue Walsh (Swimming) Hamburg, N.Y.
Bill Hanzlik (Basketball) Beloit, Wisc.,
Amy Koopman (Gymnastics) Arlington Heights, Ill.
Isiah Thomas (Basketball) Chicago, Ill.
Carol Blazejowski (Basketball) Fairview, N.J.
Luci Collins (Gymnastics) Englewood, Calif.
David Kimes (Shooting) Monterey Park, Calif.
Brian Gust (Wrestling) Lakeville, Minn.
Lisa Buese (Swimming) Louisville, Ky.
Linda Cornelius Waltman (Athletics) Ft. Worth, Texas
Thomas Schuler (Cycling) Birmingham, Mich.
Ron Galimore (Gymnastics) Ames, Iowa
Debbie Landreth (Volleyball) El Segundo, Calif.
Founded in 1987, New Chapter Press (www.newchapterpressmedia.com) is an independent publisher of books that is part of the Independent Publishers Group (IPG). New Chapter Press is also the publisher of The Roger Federer Story, Quest for Perfection, The Bud Collins History of Tennis (due out June 1), On This Day In Tennis History (due out September 1) and Bone Appetit: Gourmet Cooking For Your Dog among others.
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The athletes, profiled in a new book to be released in May 2008 – "Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games" by Tom Caraccioli and Jerry Caraccioli (New Chapter Press; Foreword by Vice President Walter F. Mondale) – offered their opinions on the Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Hillary Clinton’s comments and calls for a boycott of President Bush’s attendance at the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games in August as well as other calls for boycotts of the Games.
“I think it's okay for people -- such as with Tibet -- to use the Olympic Games to bring awareness to their cause, but I don't think the Olympic Games are the appropriate vehicle for Governments to use as a bargaining chip or as a 'punishment' to the host country. That doesn't accomplish anything and ultimately hurts the athletes.” -- Lisa Buese, 1980 U.S. Olympian swimmer
“This action will not produce the positive results that are intended and will only have a negative effect upon the athletes -- have we not learned from the past.' -- Don Paige, 1980 U.S. Olympian Track & Field
“A possible boycott didn't really hit home until my son's middle school principal approached me about it today [Tuesday]. She said when she started hearing the word 'boycott' she immediately thought of me. It brought tears to my eyes because I know first-hand how devastating that 'word' is. Certainly China should be handed consequences for their horrific human rights record, but as we have seen in the past, boycotts tend not to accomplish that which they intended.” -- Sue Walsh, 1980 U.S. Olympian swimmer.
“I applaud Speaker Pelosi at this point for a balanced approach to the multi-facated problem. We celebrate the people, not the host governments. In fact, the Games are held in the name of sponsoring city, not the country.” -- Robert Zagoria, attorney representing the athletes in the 1980 lawsuit to overturn the U.S. boycott resolution.
“The Olympics are obviously an international event the politicians just can't seem to keep their hands off of to further their own agendas. Surely there is a better way to handle the situation in Darfur, why should the athletes have to pay the price again? Would it really do any good?” -- Amy Koopman, 1980 U.S. Olympic Gymnastics team
Written by identical twins Tom Caraccioli and Jerry Caraccioli, Boycott: Stolen Dreams of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games ($25.95, New Chapter Press) chronicles the stories of 18 elite American athletes who trained thousands of hours for their once-in-a-lifetime chance at Olympic glory in Moscow only to become pawns in a political Cold War chess match between superpowers. The book also outlines the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan that led to the boycott, efforts by a group of athletes to overturn the boycott by legal means, and the entire 1980 team eventually receiving the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award which is bestowed by the United States Congress.
More information on the book can be found at www.boycottbook.com. The book is already available for pre-sale via internet retailers such as www.amazon.com.
Athletes featured in the book are:
Don Paige (Athletics) Philadelphia, Pa.
Glenn Mills (Swimming) Ridgeville, Ohio
Gwen Gardner (Athletics) Los Angeles, Calif.
Gene Mills (Wrestling) Pompton Lakes, N.J.
Craig Beardsley (Swimming) New York, N.Y.
Sue Walsh (Swimming) Hamburg, N.Y.
Bill Hanzlik (Basketball) Beloit, Wisc.,
Amy Koopman (Gymnastics) Arlington Heights, Ill.
Isiah Thomas (Basketball) Chicago, Ill.
Carol Blazejowski (Basketball) Fairview, N.J.
Luci Collins (Gymnastics) Englewood, Calif.
David Kimes (Shooting) Monterey Park, Calif.
Brian Gust (Wrestling) Lakeville, Minn.
Lisa Buese (Swimming) Louisville, Ky.
Linda Cornelius Waltman (Athletics) Ft. Worth, Texas
Thomas Schuler (Cycling) Birmingham, Mich.
Ron Galimore (Gymnastics) Ames, Iowa
Debbie Landreth (Volleyball) El Segundo, Calif.
Founded in 1987, New Chapter Press (www.newchapterpressmedia.com) is an independent publisher of books that is part of the Independent Publishers Group (IPG). New Chapter Press is also the publisher of The Roger Federer Story, Quest for Perfection, The Bud Collins History of Tennis (due out June 1), On This Day In Tennis History (due out September 1) and Bone Appetit: Gourmet Cooking For Your Dog among others.
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Randy Walker
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www.newchapterpressmedia.com
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