Paddler Dame Lisa Carrington, New Zealand’s most decorated Olympian, joins us to talk about kayaking and how the sport varies from solo races to doubles and fours. We also discuss her children's book "Lisa Carrington Chases a Champion" and her new partnership with Zespri kiwifruit. What's Dame Carrington's favorite kiwi? Kiwi vs. feijoa? Where are her silver ferns? We've got answers!

Follow Dame Carrrington on Insta and Facebook: @liscarrington and check out her website!

Milano Cortina 2026 has announced its Olympic Opening Cermony theme and details around the event, which might be more complicated than Paris 2024's spectacle along the Seine. With four locations, a lot could happen, but it means more athletes will be able to take part in the Parade of Nations.

Also, NBC adds to its primetime commentator lineup, Ester Ledecka makes a decision, and the International Ski & Snowboard federation makes a decision about whether Russian and Belarussian skiers can compete as neutrals.

Plus, we thought that all of the construction for Milano Cortina 2026 was under control, but there's one project that is way behind schedule. We have a new novela--and the dramatic details!

For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com.

Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive!

***

Keep the Flame Alive: Obsessed with the Olympics and Paralympics? Just curious about how Olympic and Paralympic sports work? You've found your people! Join your hosts, Olympic aunties Alison Brown and Jill Jaracz for smart, fun, and down-to-earth interviews with athletes coaches, and the unsung heroes behind the Games. Get the stories you don't find anywhere else. Tun in weekly all year-round, and daily during the Olympics and Paralympics. We're your cure for your Olympic Fever! Call us: (208) FLAME-IT.

***

Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support

Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod

Become a patron and get bonus content: http://www.patreon.com/flamealivepod

Buy merch here: https://flamealivepod.dashery.com

Hang out with us online:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod

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Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod

Newsletter: Sign up at https://flamealivepod.substack.com/subscribe

VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348

We are excited to talk with Doug Levy, author of the book Hero Redefined: Profiles of Olympic Athletes Under the Radar. The book contains amazing stories you may not have known – or athletes who for some reason or another, made our collective conscious for a Games and then fell off the radar. We talk with Doug about some of those stories.

Learn more about Doug and the book at his website, and follow him on:

• Insta: @doug.levy.author
• Facebook: Doug Levy Author
• LinkedIn: Douglas Levy

Plus, news from Milano Cortina 2026, LA 2028, the International Olympic Committee and Team Keep the Flame Alive.

Also, Super Fan Sarah joins us to review the new exhibit Game Changer: United by Sport at the George W. Bush Presidential Library.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com.

Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive!

Note: Links to products may be affiliate links. We earn commissions through purchases made through them, which helps to fund the show.

***

Keep the Flame Alive: Obsessed with the Olympics and Paralympics? Just curious about how Olympic and Paralympic sports work? You've found your people! Join your hosts, Olympic aunties Alison Brown and Jill Jaracz for smart, fun, and down-to-earth interviews with athletes coaches, and the unsung heroes behind the Games. Get the stories you don't find anywhere else. Tun in weekly all year-round, and daily during the Olympics and Paralympics. We're your cure for your Olympic Fever! Call us: (208) FLAME-IT.

***

Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support

Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod

Become a patron and get bonus content: http://www.patreon.com/flamealivepod

Buy merch here: https://flamealivepod.dashery.com

Hang out with us online:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod

Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod

Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod

Newsletter: Sign up at https://flamealivepod.substack.com/subscribe

VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348

It's the latest installment of our retrospective on the 25th anniversary of the Sydney 2000 Olympics and Paralympics! Jill looks at the Paralympic Football 7-a-Side competition, while Alison explores the Olympic television advertising campaigns in the U.S.

Playlist of ads referenced in this episode:

Nike slasher ad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXTBrRjb4Zg

McDonald’s ad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4El7e4YwyTA

Coke ad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXddSktwMcQ&t=1s

Adidas https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q16WeQGTv_E

Buick https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1T35mZ3KO0

Visa https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o894b4gX-es

Also, we announce which Games you, the listeners, have selected for us to cover in 2026!

For a complete list of sources used in this episode, visit: https://tinyurl.com/sydney2000sources.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit http://flamealivepod.com.

Thanks so much for listening, and until next time, keep the flame alive!

***

Keep the Flame Alive: Obsessed with the Olympics and Paralympics? Just curious about how Olympic and Paralympic sports work? You've found your people! Join your hosts, Olympic aunties Alison Brown and Jill Jaracz for smart, fun, and down-to-earth interviews with athletes coaches, and the unsung heroes behind the Games. Get the stories you don't find anywhere else. Tun in weekly all year-round, and daily during the Olympics and Paralympics. We're your cure for your Olympic Fever! Call us: (208) FLAME-IT.

***

Support the show: http://flamealivepod.com/support

Bookshop.org store: https://bookshop.org/shop/flamealivepod

Become a patron and get bonus content: http://www.patreon.com/flamealivepod

Buy merch here: https://flamealivepod.dashery.com

Hang out with us online:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flamealivepod

Insta: http://www.instagram.com/flamealivepod

Facebook Group: hhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/flamealivepod

Newsletter: Sign up at https://flamealivepod.substack.com/subscribe

VM/Text: (208) FLAME-IT / (208) 352-6348