Eating Like an Olympian…An Inside Look at the Olympic Village Dining Hall

Below is a story I wrote for The Austin American Statesman

As the athletes of the 21st Winter Olympiad prepare for the sporting moments of their lives, one thing’s for sure: They all need to eat. After winning two gold medals in the Beijing Olympics for swimming, I know firsthand what the athletes of Team USA are about to experience as they fuel their bodies to win gold in Vancouver.
Over the years, I’d heard stories of the mounds of food, huge seating areas, desserts in droves and strangely, McDonald’s. So when I approached the dining hall of the Olympic village in Beijing for the first time, my heart began to pound harder and faster in anticipation. It was if I were witnessing the parting of the Red Sea when the hall’s sliding doors opened. Eyes wide, I was in awe of the rainbow of color and commotion. One foot in front of the
other, I walked into this massive structure that seemed as big as two football fields.
Surrounding me were all the colors of the rainbow. At the Olympics, each country’s perfectly tuned athletes are draped in clothes that feature the colors and insignias of their homeland. Forget deciphering where you were based solely on the language. There were too many to have any idea what you were listening to.
Fellow University of Texas swimmer and three-time Olympian Ian Crocker told me that when you first arrive in the Olympic village, you’ll walk around completely on a high for the first couple days. He was right \u2026 at least on an emotional level.
But my purpose in Beijing jolted me back to reality like I’d been grabbed by an internal force with the power of Goliath. It told me, “Hey, buddy, you’re here to take care of business, and you can’t afford to expend this much emotional energy on the simple act of eating.” Through my nose I inhaled a deep breath of surprisingly clean Beijing air, and as the carbon dioxide left my mouth, so did the excitement. Now my mind-set was right: I came to Beijing to win gold medals \u2026 no time for people-watching.
I began my search for the food my body required for maximum performance. The difficulty was where to begin. I turned on cruise control and began to peruse the massive dining hall. Cruise control? Think again. This was no open highway, but rather a New York City street during rush-hour traffic, much like the athletes in Vancouver will face in their own dining halls.
In Beijing, as athletes walked into the dining hall, there were two huge salad bars with various types of greens, beans, veggies, pasta salads, pickled veggies, nuts, cottage cheese, fruits, cereals, granolas, yogurts and more. In the same area was a large bakery pumping out muffins, scones, croissants, pretzels, five-grain breads and bagels. At the end of the salad bar and opposite the bakery was the dessert area, with a huge spread of cookies, cakes, parfaits, bread pudding and candy bars. Throughout the games, I stayed strong and didn’t touch a dessert until my events were over. Trust me when I say I was not the norm.
The more substantive food was along the back wall. People waited in line at each food station, elbow-to-elbow with all sorts of famous athletes, from gold medal gymnast Shawn Johnson to Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki.
The aromas and flavors were all-encompassing. In keeping with the Olympic spirit, there was food from all around the world, including the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, Asia, America and Italy (including a huge pizza bar) and a sushi bar. One section was dedicated solely to different preparations of duck (probably 15 to 20 per day). Depending on your desires and appetites, you could enjoy anything from baked salmon or chicken to curried lamb, blackened sea bass, chicken Parmesan, quinoa and black bean salad, mac and cheese, filet mignon, wild rice, sweet potato casserole and so much more.
After filling my tray for my first meal at the Olympics, I found a seat among fellow Team USA athletes. Generally, athletes from the same country sit together, but this isn’t always true.
As I ate, I looked to my right. Lo and behold, who sat down literally five feet from me? Nothing short of the greatest tennis player in the world, Roger Federer. What a surreal experience. Not only was I taking in the Olympic experience for the first time on the first day, but I ended up sitting next to one of the greatest athletes of all time. Incredible. The real beauty was that for the most part, people left him alone.
Every diet’s different
So what do the top athletes eat? Who decides the menu? Do they serve everything a world-class athlete needs?
Many athletes have strict diets both in and out of competition, but a surprising number gorge themselves on McDonald’s and desserts. Some determine their diets based on calorie counts, protein content, carbohydrate levels and vitamins and minerals. Incredibly, each food item