Summer Sanders still driven by her post-Olympics passion
Janet Evans | Rulon Gardner | Shawn Johnson | Greg Louganis | Edwin Moses
The world first met Summer Sanders as a 19-year-old swimming sensation at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, but now knows her best as a successful television host, reporter and analyst.
Sanders was a natural in the pool, and it didn’t take long for her to reach an elite level. At 15, Sanders was already creating buzz after she just narrowly missed an Olympic berth in the 400-meter individual medley at the 1988 U.S. Olympic trials.
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Four years later, the Stanford University student became the first American woman in 16 years to qualify for four individual swimming events at one Olympiad. At that summer’s games in Barcelona, Sanders took home bronze in the 400 IM, silver in the 200 IM and gold in the 400 medley relay and the 200 butterfly, with her butterfly victory setting an Olympic record.
After reaching the top of the podium in Barcelona, Sanders dove headfirst into another passion of hers — television. Starting as a commentator at the NCAA Swimming Championships in 1992 and 1994, Sanders was added as an analyst for NBC’s coverage of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. She continued her work with the network for the 2000, 2002 and 2010 Olympics, and also served as a correspondent on the “Today Show.”
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She has hosted a number of shows including NBA TV’s “Mind, Body and Spirit,” Fox Sports’ “The Sports List” and “Inside/Out with Summer Sanders.” Sanders has also taken a turn as a game show host with Nickelodeon’s “Figure it Out” and HLN’s “Keywords.”
Sanders served as an analyst for Yahoo Sports at the 2012 London Olympics, and is currently reprising her role in Rio de Janeiro. She also runs her own production company, and, most importantly, is a mother to two kids.
