"I had a better life when I was a nobody" - Bode Miller Interview

Fame is like a poison, says American skiing ace Miller
Feb 16 11:58 AM US/Eastern
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American skiing ace Bode Miller says he can understand while some
athletes turn to drugs in their quest for fame.

Miller, who on Tuesday was disqualified from the Winter Olympics'
alpine skiing combined event after a slalom slip-up, believes the
pressure to succeed forces some competitors to cheat.

"Sport was born clean and would remain so if it was about just
competing for the fun of it, but the media and the public corrupt it
because of the pressure they create," the outspoken Miller told the
Gazzetta dello Sport.

"Any athlete who isn't doing well is left in the corner, nobody asks
for their autograph and they're left out in the cold. However, those
who win things are regarded as symbols.

"Fame is like a poison. I don't care for it. I used to have a better
life when I was nobody.

"This pressure is inhumane, born out of an athlete's need to be number
one.

"Sport should be a pleasure, a challenge against one's self. Sport is
an act of freedom. On the piste you can push your limits and that is
the essence of life."

Miller, 28, flopped badly in Sunday's downhill and the combined was his
chance to make amends.

But after topping the opening downhill leg of the event, the World Cup
champion overcooked it on the first of the two slaloms. Despite
reaching the finish line, he was later disqualified for his infraction.


Miller has three more opportunities to finally win a first Olympic gold
to add to his downhill world championship crown, in the super-G, giant
slalom and slalom.

wrote:

Article snipped.

Um, ya know you don't have to post the whole article. A link and a
short summary would suffice. Especially since somebody else already
posted it.

//Walt