Swimming legend Summer Sanders has more than just four Olympic medals on her resumé. The Roseville, CA native has acted as a commentator during several Olympic games and hosted a consistent stream of television series: NBA Inside Stuff, The Sports List, MTV's Sandblast, Skating with Celebrities, and Nickelodeon's classic game show Figure It Out. Now, as a contestant on NBC's current season of Celebrity Apprentice, Sanders's Olympic-size goal is to please The Donald and deal with Cyndi Lauper's scatterbrained work ethic. The 37-year-old legend talked with Movieline about Celebrity Apprentice's zany cast, her favorite Figure It Out memories, and an inspiring trip to Rwanda.
You led the ladies team last week, winning the advertorial challenge. The editing tried to make you seem flustered, but you were the winner from the start. You had it in the bag.
Isn't that interesting? Going into a reality show, you know they have the power to edit however they want to. Going into the challenge when I was actually doing it, it was very confusing and time-consuming. There were so many deadlines and so many things we had to do, but actually, once we wrapped our brain around the concept and knew that Sharon was going to be our spokesperson -- I mean, it took us awhile to actually understand what an advertorial was, and exactly what the executives were looking for. They try to be really devious with us, not giving us any answers. The funny thing is, the whole time we were doing it, we had a great time. I actually never felt extremely overwhelmed. It was just really fun, especially with Selita [Ebanks]-- who's a Victoria's Secret supermodel, could not be more gorgeous, more real -- was in charge of the photo shoot. And I got to see my son during the photo shoot.
So, editing sucks, but in the end, when you saw our finished product it was pretty obvious. I thought we did a pretty good job, and the reason I did the show was to showcase my charity Right to Play. I was so emotional when I won, I tried my best to take a deep breath and compose myself because I was so worried -- I wanted people to understand, I wanted them to hear me clearly. So they actually cut that down, because I was choked up for quite awhile. And quite awhile was probably 30 or 40 seconds, but in TV time it seems like an eternity.
Sharon dissed you in the confessionals, calling you "Polly Perfect." Did you feel like a perfectionist team leader?
The funny thing is, I remember so many times where our presentation wasn't all the way complete, and it was kind of out of order. I kept saying to Holly, "It doesn't have to be perfect. It's totally fine. Doesn't have to be perfect." When we were taking the photos, I kept saying to Selita, "This one looks great, it doesn't have to be perfect. We just have to complete it. If we don't have a completed product, then we're screwed." It looked fine to me. I didn't think we needed to take any more photos. I was constantly saying the exact opposite, which is kind of ironic. "It doesn't have to be perfect. It looks great."
I kept praising Sharon. I always sensed from her that there was a lot of watching, and... not judging, but... somewhat of judging. I mean, she's Sharon Osbourne. I knew she was saying stuff in her private interviews. I talked to Holly [Robinson-Peete] about that. I just sort of sensed it. And my nature is I'm a Libra. I love when people are happy, you know? My goal is balance and pleasing people. You can say that's a fault, but it's who I am. So I'm not going to be the Sharon Osbourne type. I'm not going to say nasty comments about people.
You and Cyndi Lauper had a dust-up too. Why were people shocked to hear that you thought Cyndi needed to blather less? Everyone was thinking it.
I felt like Cyndi and I, kind of what we went through in that boardroom and afterward, was actually pretty true to life. You should be able to give someone constructive criticism as nicely as you can and try to work through it. She can call me out if she wants to, but the fact that we worked through it -- I thought, OK, this is how it is in real life. You figure it through and learn how to get better.
It seemed harmless. Donald wasn't going to fire Cyndi.
Yeah, no. I mean, he asked me a question. I actually listened to The Donald's questions.
He asked who on my team was the weakest player, and maybe they thought I should've said myself. But I really didn't think I was the weakest player. I felt as if we all sort of knew what kept getting us off track. As much as we love her, she was a bit of a distraction at times. You can only go so far in this game not telling someone the truth. I tried to say it as nicely as I could. You'll see in this next episode -- we all love Cyndi, but there are times when she tries our patience. And so, you have to talk to her about it. You'll see. Bret [Michaels] and Cyndi share that creative way of going about things, which I appreciate. But when you only have six hours to accomplish a task that should take you three or four months, you sometimes need them to just get to the point. You know, "I love, appreciate all this, but maybe come back to us when you have your point. And I know it'll be great." One of those deals.
Unfortunately, it seems like Cyndi is always determined to answer her own questions and no one else's.
We need to go back to that old-school mentality of, like, second grade. If you have a question and everyone else is talking, raise your hand and we'll get to you. And that's sort of what I said to her post-boardroom. I said, "Listen, we've got to work through this. We're part of a team. How can we talk to you? How can we make this better?" And we did, we figured it out. And you'll see more of that as the show goes on.
I'm from Illinois, so you have to understand that Rod Blagojevich's presence sends me into hideous flashbacks. What did you make of him on the show? Does he really speechify every three seconds?
It's unbelievable, isn't it? It's almost like he's a caricature of himself. The funny thing is, people are like, "Is he really like that?" And of course I don't know the guy. I only know him from working with him on the show. But he's exactly that way. The way he comes across is the way he is on TV. I don't think he's a good representation of politicians, I hope. I think it was maybe ten seconds after meeting him that he told me he was innocent. And that the truth would be told. That he'd be exonerated. I remember just walking away going, "I don't know what just happened." I have no idea, that whole exchange. I mean, it's sad, because people are analyzing everything, from his eyes to his hair to his lip, or lack thereof. I have to say, he's smooth. He knows how to not answer the question. But you think he answered the question -- so much so that he even gets the Donald. The Donald will ask him a question, and he gets done, and you're like, "I don't even know if he answered it or not. It seemed like he did? Alright, let's move on." Yeah, but the state of Illinois must be absolutely livid or loving the fact that he's just laying it all out there.
His dialogue with Donald is fascinating.
A part of me was like, "Maybe I need to sit down with him, because I'm not really good in the boardroom. I need some tips." Then I thought twice about it and didn't do it.
You've been a TV personality and broadcaster on everything from ESPN to MTV to Nickelodeon since the very year you competed in the Olympics, 1992. Was TV a lifelong ambition for you?
It was. For as long as I wanted to swim, I also wanted to do something on TV. My best friend in high school, we used to pretend like we had a TV show and we had this dream of being the next Kate & Allie. Having that kind of a shtick. Do you remember that show?
Jane Curtin and Susan Saint James, of course.
Exactly, exactly. So we'd turn our tape recorder on, and we'd have all these scripts and play these roles. But I always knew I wanted to do something on TV. That's part of the reason I retired from my sport as soon as I did, because I was lucky enough to have opportunities. I just had this desire to continue to do it, and to take all the little jobs that came my way in between Inside Stuff and Nickelodeon and MTV and all of that. There are people that try it -- Olympians that try it -- and don't stick with it. I don't think there's anything wrong with that. But it's possible that they were given the opportunity, and they don't love it. I absolutely love it. I love my work on television. I love getting to know all the people I am privileged enough to interview. I think that's why I've been at it for so long. Even the little kids and their creativity! And wouldn't it be funny to combine the two -- Nickelodeon and ESPN. And sliming everybody.
There are plenty of athletes who should be slimed. I can think of a few.
I can think of... several! There's something so humbling about being slimed. It brings every one down to the same level.
Let's talk Figure It Out, your Nickelodeon game show about kids with special talents and achievements. You must have stellar memories. I will name mine in a moment.
One time we had this girl, a "cricket spitting champion." The [producers] didn't have to make me, but I actually loved trying the talents. And so I spit this cricket -- I spit this thing so far. I mean, everything must've just come together at the right moment to get this cricket to fly out of my mouth the way it did. But I mean, I put her to shame. I felt so bad. And then we had to redo it of course, because I can't beat the kids. But I'll never ever forget that. "Wow, I think I might have found a new real talent. Cricket spitting." But the kids were awesome. I genuinely loved the show.
Ha! Some kids on the show accomplished incredible things -- that one kid who invented underwater walkie-talkies?
They sold that stuff! This kid had his underwater walkie-talkie on sale. I saw it at a store.
One time there was a girl who could fit her body through a coat hanger. I want you to know that age 10, I could fit my malnourished frame through a coat hanger too. That episode spurred a rage in my household.
Oh my god. That's unbelievable. See, if only you had gone on the show before her.
I just had no idea it was marketable.
I used to get kids that would stop me. I'll never forget -- I'd be at the Garden, watching a Knicks game, and we'd be on the steps at an arena. These kids would be stopping me there, and I remember one girl did the splits and then her feet came around and touched her head. I'm just looking at this long line of gnarly Knicks fans trying to get up to their seats, and this poor little girl was showing me her awesome talent. It was amazing, the creativity. I was always just so floored by it.
You were Star Search wherever you went.
And the one with the kid who grew his own toe jam, I think it was? Oh my God. It smelled so bad. I will never forget that one. That one I felt like I was set up. They're like, "Yeah, open it up, no problem." I think we took out an entire city block with that one. Do you yet know what slime is made of?
No!
So, I just need you to understand: It's funny, because I found Danny Tamberelli [a regular Figure It Out panelist, and Adventures of Pete and Pete/All That actor] on Twitter. We were just Tweeting back and forth, and I was talking about the Kids Choice Awards, which just happened. It reminded me of Kenan Thompson, who's now on SNL, Amanda Bynes, who's now a big movie star, and Danny and Lori Beth [Denberg, from All That]. And getting slimed every single day. When I think back to those times, it would take us two, three weeks, maybe a month to film 40 episodes. For that month, I smelled like vanilla. The slime is made of vanilla pudding and green food coloring. And literally, it's in these huge vats with these giant sticks, and this person just stirs it. They keep it in the fridge and it's freezing cold. So whenever I smell vanilla pudding, I'm like, "Uh, slime. There we go." A vanilla high the whole time.
Talk about your charity Right to Play more. It brings sports, games, equipment, and organized fun to children who are affected by war in third-world countries. How did you get involved?
Well, I missed the Olympic team in 1996 -- missed making the team. I tried to make a comeback in my sport, and soon after the Olympic trials, Johann Olav Koss, who is a Norwegian speed-skater, called me up and asked me to be a part of Olympic Aid. Now Olympic Aid is Right to Play. It's a wonderful, narrow focus. It doesn't mess around with a lot of different things, it knows exactly what it is.
In 1996, I took my first trip with Olympic Aid. I went to Rwanda, two years after the genocide. It's just life-changing. There's no simple way to describe being around those kids, who were around such unimaginable atrocities, could feel uplifted when you brought them a game, a ball, just an organized day of play and sports. That's what it was in Rwanda, and I will never, ever forget this one girl. She was a double amputee. She had stepped on a landmine, and her prosthetic legs were two really skinny pieces of wood. She was literally walking around on two pegs. And the look in her eyes was so excited, focused, and serious about running this relay race. And when she got the baton and she jammed out and around -- they had to go around this cone -- and back, I will absolutely never ever forget how she didn't feel disabled, or different, and that's all through the power of sports.
In 2001, I went to Sierra Leone with Right to Play. I got to hang out with the child soldiers, and I got to see it the way it is now, which is that through sport and play we teach kids, for instance child soldiers, who are now expected to be a part of a community and society when for the last ten years of their life all this effort... has been in killing. Through sport we teach them about conflict-resolution, inclusion, nutrition, leadership, health, every imaginable thing you can learn through sports -- failure, success, working together as a team. It's a sustainable organization. They teach the older kids to be leaders, and they run these programs for these kids. Everyone there, it's a common language: They know how to play soccer, football there. It's wonderful to give these kids a chance to be kids, to play, and to see the smiles on their faces.
So winning last week was super-emotional for me. I gave up time with my own children to put myself out there on a reality show to raise money and awareness for millions of kids in Africa and Asia and other areas of the world. And that's how important it was to me.