Penn State in the London 2012 Olympics

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Former Penn State women's volleyball standouts Christa Harmotto and Megan Hodge are in London representing USA Volleyball in its quest for a gold medal at the 2012 Olympic Games.

Harmotto and Hodge, who both were named to the 12-player roster for London on July 3, are set to participate in the Opening Ceremonies on Friday.  Prior to leaving the United States, GoPSUsports.com talked with Harmotto on what it is like to be an Olympian and her expectations for the 2012 Games.

Team USA Women's Volleyball begins pool play on Saturday against Korea.

Q: Just talk about the opportunity you have. Not many people are in your position and as a person in the sport of volleyball, what does this mean to you?
Harmotto: "It truly is a dream come true. When I played in high school, I had an opportunity to play for the Junior National team for two years. I think that's when the Olympic dream started. I was in that pipeline, but there was a lot of work to do before that. In the years at Penn State, I was super fortunate to be a part of a very successful and great program, where myself, Megan (Hodge), Nicole (Fawcett), and Alisha (Glass) could all go into the pool of players to compete for spots on this Olympic roster."

Q: You touched on Megan, Alisha, and Nicole. You look at the 12-person roster and two are Penn Staters and then additionally Alisha and Nicole as alternates. What's it like to have teammates around you in this elite company?
Harmotto: "It's fantastic for me. It's something for me, my senior year when Nicole and I were asked to come out and try out for the national team. Megan and Alisha that following summer came out for a couple of weeks. At some point, it was Blair (Brown) and Arielle (Wilson) were there too.  There were six Penn Staters there and former teammates. That was really cool and I think it's a tribute to the people that Penn State recruits and, obviously, the training that goes on behind Coach Rose. They build their athletes to train hard and work hard and it develops us into good players, where we can begin to compete at that international level."

Q: How did coach Rose specifically help to put you in this position?
Harmotto: "I think at this level, it's so much about the mental game, as well. You spend your life learning these skills and coach is trying to strip us of some of our bad habits here. You just stay in the trenches and grind and grind and grind. That's something that Coach Rose definitely taught us and he expects the best out of us. A lot of times, it's figuring out what you're doing wrong and how to fix it. Coach Rose helped us to figure out a lot of things on our own by presenting these different challenges, whether it was in practice or things along the way. I think he prepared us the best mentally for this and you grow up in the Penn State program and know you have to work hard in order to succeed and it's the same thing at this level."

Q: How much time have you put into USA Volleyball leading up to this summer? How much commitment did you have to be involved with leading up to this point?
Harmotto: "It's a four year all-year round commitment. My National team season began in May 2009 and went until October that year and then we all split off and went to our professional teams. The coaches here expect that you to work on things you learned the past summer and then we all meet back up again the following May.  It's constantly on your mind. It's not easy; it's been somewhat of a rollarcoaster for me both from the mental side and the physical side. I had another knee surgery last year and things like that. You have four years to get to this ultimate dream and goal. I can't tell you how rewarding it is to reflect back on the relationships I built with all of these different players that I took from this year and Penn State.  There's a whole lot more that goes into that final day when the Olympic roster is decided. I think it's a tribute to all 25-plus girls that have been in and out of the program and trained for these Olympic games. Without all 25, then the final 12 would not be as good as they are.  I think it's important to have depth and I think we showed at the Grand Prix that it didn't matter what lineup we threw out there.  We were able to get it done because of the work and the hours that every player has put in."

Q: Give me an idea of what it's like in term of the competition.  Obviously, there's a lot of talent when you look down the roster.  It's pretty much a who's-who of college volleyball in America for the past decade. What's it like competing with these people on a daily basis in practice?
Harmotto: "As we say in California, it's pretty gnarly. (laughter) Everyday when you go in that gym, it's essentially like a four-year tryout in the sense that you're building.  They're studying everything, serving, passing, hitting.  They give you chances to check back in and work on things, but they prepare you for these matches during practice.  There are only so many matches we get to play a year with the national team, so I think they do a great job of creating that environment where there's pressure.  You know that they're studying you. That's something that different people deal with differently. As far as competing against the ability level of our team, we have the three middles from the previous Olympic team.  You walk in and first off they are fantastic in showing how to work and stay healthy.  You go out to just become whatever player you become, whether it's chipping in or just watching them.  It's a combination of competition and phenomenal friendship. We have several girls who have competed for international or national championships.  We enjoy watching all of these players that are part of our era and now they're some of our best friends.  So you have the relationship aspect, the learning aspect, and the competition.  You have to go out and stay with it.  You have a bad week here and there and you have to stay in the trenches and Penn State and Coach Rose prepared me for that.  It helps me for those pressure moments, when I'm in the trenches and grinding it out while competing against these players."

Q: What was that moment like when you were notified that you were on the 12-player roster going to London?
Harmotto: "They organized individual meetings in 10-minute intervals on July 3rd in rank by seniority.  Mine was at 11:30 and I walked in, the first thing that we've spoken with all four coaches and we've nominated you for London, and I think they said some other things afterward. After you hear those words, I was trying to process everything because it all happened so fast. I can't believe it's already here.  It was very special and it's something that I'll definitely remember and have that in me for the rest of my life. There's a whole lot of preparation for the Olympics, but there's a whole lot more that goes along with it."

Q: What will your schedule entail during your time in London?
Harmotto: "We played a match against Liberia this past week and had a full day schedule, which is how it is for the Olympics.  We play a day and then we're off a day.  You can check the USA Volleyball website for the schedule.  I think we start the 28th because the opening ceremony is the 27th.  We play Korea first and then it's every other day.  We'll play each team in our pool and you can see all of that information on the website.  After pool play ends, we'll have crossover matches and then eventually if we win, which is the goal, we have the semifinals and finals." 

Q: What do you think of the field and how the team stacks up?
Harmotto: "As a team, we're definitely up there in the world rankings.  In February we were moved up to the No. 1 spot.  Coach Rose always talked about at Penn State, it's not where we start, it's where we finish.  I'm sure that stands true for this, too.  Everyone goes to the Olympics hoping to win on the international level and we've been training for this pressure for four years.  There's no turning it off.  I think it carries over from our practices and training camp, because you can't take a day off or someone will pass you by.  I think it's that same attitude on the court.  You have Brazil, Russia, and the Italians and all of those great teams.  We're ready to compete and we'll see what happens."


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