Team USA on Their Favorite Athletes Growing Up

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Sue Bird, Sue and Diana,

those are the ones that I'm always looking up to,

even though I had the pleasure of also playing with them.

But then it's like, Lisa Leslie, Dawn Staley,

Cheryl Swoopes.

We had a lot of amazing role models

come through USA basketball.

I don't think I had anyone to look up to.

I think Gabby Douglas was

pretty in my face when I was

watching the Olympics and whatnot.

But I think everyone is an inspiration honestly.

Allison Felix is definitely my inspiration

when I was younger kind of growing up thinking about

wanting to go to the Olympics,

she was someone I really, really looked up to.

But she's someone who I think just carries herself

so well and does such a wonderful job representing women

in every sport that goes to the Olympics.

I loved watching Apolo Ohno 'cause I loved speed skating.

[Samantha chuckling]

And Michael Johnson was fantastic to watch running.

I think watching him race still brings awe.

I think my favorite Olympian growing up

was actually Usain Bolt.

I used to be a sprinter before my accident

and he was my big inspiration.

I definitely was never watching any swimming events

unless Michael Phelps was swimming.

Yeah, so Michael Phelps is probably,

dude just gotta give it to him.

He's the man.

The young kids don't know who he is though.

It's okay, they don't know Jamal Hill.

I would say recently my favorite Olympian,

and she's my friend too now, is Kerri Walsh Jennings.

And I looked up to her maybe in the middle of my career.

Just because her and my other teammate, Kari Miller Ortiz,

both of them because they redefined

what a woman in sport looks like.

People think your life ends, like you have your kids,

you can't do anything else, you can't still compete.

So from her, it was really cool seeing her

maintain her notoriety, maintain her athleticism

and her competitiveness, and still have her children

and still have her business p1440.

And still be just so nice

and just humble and able to talk to people.

There's so many amazing female athletes.

I got a poster of Mia Hamm on my wall,

I thought she's amazing.

And then tennis got added to the Olympics,

I'm a huge Serena Williams fan

and I feel like she's done so much

for women's sports in general.

And so that's super exciting.

I love gymnastics, I love track and field,

but in swimming I was always very inspired by Jessica Hardy.

Michael Phelps sticks out.

He won so many times, just dominated really for so long.

And I think as I've gotten older,

seeing how hard that actually is to do

and understanding it more, it's really impressive.

And in swimming as well, which is a very difficult sport.

I actually did not have a favorite Olympian growing up

or Paralympian because I did not see

anyone that looked like me.

And for me, I knew of all these incredible athletes.

I obviously knew Kerri Walsh and Serena Williams

and knew all these incredible athletes

and I was like, oh my gosh, but that's not me.

I can never be that.

They have their legs, they can do this.

I didn't have that person that I really connected to

and could aspire to

because you can't be something that you cannot see.

I really looked up to,

well Anita more recently she's been in

the last two Olympics.

But her, especially throughout my competitive years.

Someone who I also call my teammate

who made national teammate at an early age

would probably be Matt Scott.

His first Paralympics was I think Athens if I'm correct.

And I think he was only like 16 at the time.

And basically that was right around when I first started.

So to see him making the team that early

and while still me competing against him

along that age range was amazing.

And I just wanted to be that as well.

Be able to compete at a high level that young.

I watched a lot of beach volleyball actually.

Kerri Walsh is a icon to me.

And Gabby Douglas, Ali Raisman,

just all of those big names out there.

I love them.

Actually my favorite Olympian, she's from China

and her name is Zhang Ning.

Same sports as she's playing badminton.

Towards her end of her career actually

she won the second gold, her Olympics gold, yeah.

I don't think I had one favorite.

I think I just remember watching it when I was younger

and just seeing everyone

and how they inspired so many of my friends and I.

And to be in that same position, it feels weird saying it,

but we are the potential next Olympians.

So to follow in their footsteps is a huge honor.

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