Maia & Alex Shibutani named Sports Envoys | Golden Skate

Maia & Alex Shibutani named Sports Envoys

T

Tallorder

On the Ice
Joined
Oct 28, 2014
An honor and unique opportunity for figure skating to be represented and promoted in a positive way.

"American ice dancers Maia and Alex Shibutani will visit Seoul, Republic of Korea from February 20-21 as Sports Envoys for the U.S. Department of State. As Sports Envoys, the brother-and-sister team will meet with Korean youth in advance of the 2018 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in PyeongChang.

In their role as Sports Envoys, the Shibutanis will conduct a skating clinic for young Korean skaters in Seoul. The U.S. Embassy will host a discussion with the Shibutanis and 60 Korean youth on topics such as sportsmanship and youth empowerment at the historic U.S. ambassador’s residence. The Shibutanis will learn to prepare Korean Buddhist food with renowned monk/chef Sun Jae. The pair will also visit with students at an arts high school and learn Korean traditional dance. Such person-to-person diplomacy will offer opportunities to engage directly with Korean citizens while underscoring U.S. support for the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Games."

Sports Envoys are described as serving as educational and cultural ambassadors, promoting friendship and respect for diversity.

The Shibutanis follow in the footsteps of Michelle Kwan and Evan Lycacek, other figure skaters who have served in this role. Sports Envoys from other sports include Shaquille O'Neal, Jason Collins, Ken Griffey Jr. and Jackie Joyner-Kersey.
 
W

WeakAnkles

Record Breaker
Joined
Aug 1, 2011
Cream rises to the top...

...so do class acts.

Smart of the US State Department to recognize this. :)
 
VIETgrlTerifa

VIETgrlTerifa

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
How common is it for currently competing elite athletes to serve in this role? In terms of skating, I just know of Michelle Kwan and she was retired from competitive skating by that point even if it wasn't official in terms of her making a public declaration, and also Evan Lysaceck but only because the article.
 
ice coverage

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605
Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 27, 2012
VIETgrlTerifa said:
How common is it for currently competing elite athletes to serve in this role? ...
Click to expand...

FWIW, snowboarder Chloe Kim, who currently competes, was the Trump administration's first sports envoy.


Mathman said:
The State Department could not have found better sports ambassadors than the Shibs. It is an exciting and well-deserved honor.

Here is the official U.S. State Department press release.

http://www.satprnews.com/2017/02/14...d-alex-shibutani-visit-the-republic-of-korea/
Click to expand...

:agree: Congratulations to the Shibs. Very cool honor for them :cool:.

For posterity, here is the State Department link to the press release:
 
Mathman

Mathman

Joined
Jun 21, 2003
VIETgrlTerifa said:
How common is it for currently competing elite athletes to serve in this role? In terms of skating, I just know of Michelle Kwan and she was retired from competitive skating by that point even if it wasn't official in terms of her making a public declaration, and also Evan Lysaceck but only because the article.
Click to expand...

There are (were?) two separate titles. The post that Michelle Kwan held was "Public Policy Envoy." Michelle was the first, beginning service in 2007 under then-Secratary of State Condoleezza Rice and continuing in this capacity under Secretaries Hillary Clinton and John Kerry. Somewhere along the way she picked up the extra title of Senior Advisor in the State Department (I think that this latter mifght have been a paying job; the envoy positions are volunteer.) There have been only two other Public Policy Envoys, retired baseball players Cal Ripkin Jr. and Ken Griffy Jr.

Cal Ripkin Jr. also served, I believe, as co-chair (the other was gymnast Dominique Dawes) of the President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition, on which Michelle served for several years. (The Council appears to be vacant, now, run by a skeleton crew of career diplomats, until the new Secretary of State, Mr. Tillerson, gets his organization in place.*)

Besides the three "Public Policy Envoys," there is also a large number of official "Sports Envoys." Typically these are recruited for single missions, rather than as a continuing responsibility. I think Evan Lysacek was one of these, and that some were currently competing athletes in various sports.

------

* Edit: I mean, the new secretary of Health and Human Services, which oversees, several layers down, the President's Council.

The same is true, however, of the State Department, which oversees the Sports Envoy program. The program is chugging along under the leadership of more-or-less apolitical career diplomats who have served under both Obama and Bush, if not longer.
 
Last edited:
ice coverage

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605
Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 27, 2012
More FYIs for anyone interested:

In connection with Olympic test events in Korea, a total of eight current athletes were given roles in community outreach by USOC and the State Department.

Seems that of the eight, only Chloe and the Shibs were given the title of Sports Envoys.

The other five current athletes are from speed skating, snowboarding, and freestyle skiing.​

.... Athlete community outreach activities in Seoul and PyeongChang

As a part of the USOC’s PyeongChang goodwill campaign and in collaboration with the U.S. State Department, a number of notable U.S. athletes and 2018 hopefuls will participate in envoy programs and community outreach activities in Seoul and PyeongChang around the one-year out milestone. 

Snowboarding halfpipe sensation Chloe Kim will represent Team USA as a U.S. Department of State Sports Envoy in Seoul on Feb. 8 and PyeongChang on Feb. 10. ...

On Feb. 2, four-time Olympian KC Boutiette (speedskating) held an on-ice clinic for more than 30 local skaters in Gangneung, where ice sports will take place at the 2018 Games. On Feb. 13, four U.S. athletes will participate in an Embassy Youth Forum with 60 local university students at the American Center in Seoul: three-time Olympic medalist Kelly Clark (snowboarding), Olympian Annalisa Drew (freestyle skiing), Olympian Arielle Gold (snowboarding) and Olympic silver medalist Devin Logan (freestyle skiing). And Feb. 20-21, two-time world championship medalists Maia and Alex Shibutani (figure skating) will host a skating clinic in Seoul and participate in traditional Korean experiences in goodwill exchanges with local hosts.

All of the athletes will be in South Korea for official test events of the 2018 Games. And all eight will be representing Team USA as they share their support for the organizing committee and the people of South Korea, and their excitement for the 2018 Games. 

 
B

brightphoton

Medalist
Joined
Jan 23, 2009
I'm really surprised. Don't these roles usually go to retired or former athletes?

The Shibs could get an Olympic gold medal at the 2018 games. Most athletes would be too busy training training training for that Olympic gold medal, can't spare a second to do anything else. I'm really glad to see they are so dedicated to them advancement and promotion of this sport.
 
B

Barb

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 13, 2009
Bunch of pictures and some videos

Maia learning a traditional dance and looking beautiful dressed in a Hanbok https://www.instagram.com/p/BQvQg_qA_Ad/?taken-by=maiashibutani

Performance at Seoul https://www.instagram.com/p/BQufUo8DMWW/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQvcA3AlISK/?tagged=maiashibutani

Pictures
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQui6Q0BQfG/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQuzrWqlNV1/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQuc0HZF3rn/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQucaPsDcEH/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQubxf_Dk2I/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQubczCDCN5/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQubL47j3oN/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQubL47j3oN/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQwfxsxj14U/?taken-by=alexshibutani

Teaching some moves to kids

https://www.instagram.com/p/BQuYY4MgHER/?taken-by=aaron_rok
http://www.newsis.com/view/?id=NISI20170220_0012709538
http://www.newsis.com/view/?id=NISI20170220_0012709531
http://www.newsis.com/view/?id=NISI20170220_0012709522
http://www.newsis.com/view/?id=NISI20170220_0012709506

Photos & articles (in Korean) are here:
http://news.naver.com/main/search/s...=clustering-related&start=1&display=10&page=3

Learning to cook korean food

http://www.ibulgyo.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=155729
 
Last edited:
VIETgrlTerifa

VIETgrlTerifa

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
chapis said:
Bunch of pictures and some videos

Maia learning a traditional dance and looking beautiful dressed in a Hanbok https://www.instagram.com/p/BQvQg_qA_Ad/?taken-by=maiashibutani

Performance at Seoul https://www.instagram.com/p/BQufUo8DMWW/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQvcA3AlISK/?tagged=maiashibutani

Pictures
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQui6Q0BQfG/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQuzrWqlNV1/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQuc0HZF3rn/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQucaPsDcEH/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQubxf_Dk2I/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQubczCDCN5/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQubL47j3oN/?tagged=alexshibutani
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQubL47j3oN/?tagged=alexshibutani

Teaching some moves to kids

http://www.newsis.com/view/?id=NISI20170220_0012709538
http://www.newsis.com/view/?id=NISI20170220_0012709531
http://www.newsis.com/view/?id=NISI20170220_0012709522
http://www.newsis.com/view/?id=NISI20170220_0012709506

Photos & articles (in Korean) are here:
http://news.naver.com/main/search/s...=clustering-related&start=1&display=10&page=3

Learning to cook korean food

http://www.ibulgyo.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=155729
Click to expand...

Maia looks absolutely beautiful in a hanbok.
 
C

Celine

On the Ice
Joined
Jun 30, 2013
Such an engaging BLOG that Maia and Alex wrote about their first DC dinner back in 2012 as guests of Secretary of State Clinton. Such warmth and personality in their writing. Signs of the storytelling skills that have grown with their videos and now with the programs they are creating

http://web.icenetwork.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120508&content_id=30719578&vkey=ice_news


They were invited to DC again in 2015. Photos with Vice President Joseph Biden (who recognized them!), the beautiful invitation, Japan's Prime Minister Abe with John Kerry on their Facebook fan page.
https://www.facebook.com/Maia.AlexS...543383162265/1144393945577199/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/Maia.AlexS...543383162265/1144400312243229/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/Maia.AlexS...543383162265/1144393882243872/?type=3&theater

Poised and gracious representatives for the sport of figure skating.
 
Last edited:
B

Barb

Record Breaker
Joined
Oct 13, 2009
Y

yuzushenko

On the Ice
Joined
Nov 21, 2014
Doesn't this mean that they're working for the Trump Administration? What a shame
but congrats, they are great representatives. just a shame it had to happen under this administration

im so proud of them
 
Last edited:
VIETgrlTerifa

VIETgrlTerifa

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
yuzushenko said:
Doesn't this mean that they're working for the Trump Administration? What a shame
but congrats, they are great representatives. just a shame it had to happen under this administration

im so proud of them
Click to expand...

Technically they are, but these sort of appointments are usually in the works for a while.

It's under this program:

https://eca.state.gov/about-bureau

As stated earlier in post #16, this isn't the first time they interacted with the State Department as they went to State Department functions in 2012 and 2015 under the Obama Administration. The function of their roles is more about doing their part to represent the U.S. in a positive way as opposed to being a political appointment.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

gsk8
Death of IOC Honorary Member Ottavio Cinquanta
Replies
1
Views
901
Mathman
Mathman
L
FREE Kudo Kids Book Event With Olympic Medalists Maia & Alex Shibutani on June 19 at 12PM EDT
Replies
4
Views
464
LadyMissG
L
dorispulaski
Sihyeong Lee
Replies
8
Views
3K
gsk8
gsk8
A
Ladies Short, personal review
Replies
0
Views
571
Alex D
A
gsk8
Maia and Alex Shibutani to Take Off 2019-20 Season
2
Replies
20
Views
4K
ice coverage
ice coverage
Top