July 30, 2007
GoRedbirds.com: What was your favorite TV show growing up?
Samantha Springer: Saved By The Bell and all of those kind of shows.
GR: If you could date any celebrity, who would it be?
SS: One of my favorite actors is Matthew Perry because I think he is hilarious. So, either him or Adam Sandler ... someone that is funny like that.
GR: What CD is currently in your CD player/ iPod right now?
SS: Something country...like Tim McGraw or Faith Hill.
GR: What is your favorite thing about ISU?
SS: I really like the people here. I have met a lot of people on the track team and I like to hang out with them.
GR: If you could live anywhere in the world for a year, where would you live and why?
SS: Some place warm like Florida or any other place that is warm, maybe even Hawai'i.
GR: What is your favorite sport to play besides track and field?
SS: Swimming.
GR: What are three adjectives you would use to describe yourself?
SS: Hardworking, trustworthy and dependable.
GR: What is your least favorite conditioning workout to do as a thrower?
SS: [laughs] Coach Chakouian will laugh at this one. He knows that I hate to do overheads and underheads with the shot put or sprints. I am just not a runner, so if it has to do with running it is a no.
GR: You grew up in Tremont, Ill. Do you think it was hard to transition from a small town when coming to school at ISU?
SS: It was a little hard, but not as bad as I thought it was going to be. Even though I did come from a small school, it was a tough school so it was not that hard.
GR: Have you ever been to the Tremont Turkey Festival?
SS: [laughs] Oh yeah of course I have! There are all different kinds of stuff; a pageant, softball tournaments and bed races. I love the bed races. My senior year, the track girls did it and beat the guys. [laughs] They were pretty mad. It is a good time, I like going on all the rides, the turkey sandwiches and all that kind of stuff.
GR: What are your early predictions about the 2007-08 Redbird track and field season?
SS: As a team, I think we are going to do awesome because we are getting a lot of new people on the team, girls and guys. We are getting three new girls in the throws and I am pretty excited about having them join the team. We are going to do really well as a team, especially the throwers. For myself, I expect to do really well this year because coach Chakouian will coach us for the entire season instead of the small amount last year because he came in late. But, we ended up doing well with the six months that we had him so I have a feeling that by having him all year long we are going to do really well.
GR: What do you feel has been your proudest moment in your entire track career?
SS: In high school, I would say being a state champion. In college, I scored quite a few points this year compared to past years so I was pretty happy with that as well making to the NCAA Regional. Next year I will hopefully be able to make it to nationals.
GR: What personal goals do you have for the upcoming season?
SS: I want to break the school record for the discus and hammer throws. I think I'm either second or third on the hammer list right now and third on the disc. I would also like to record a throw in the top-three in the shot put. I also really want to make nationals, and if I throw the school record in the discus there is a chance for me to qualify for the Olympic trials.
GR: What is something unique or interesting about you that most people do not know?
SS: I used to swim competitively for 11 years and when I was a senior in high school I ran a marathon in Salt Lake City, Utah, with my track coach. I bet I am one of the only throwers in the state of Illinois to ever do that [laughs]. Will I ever do it again? Probably not [laughs]. It was probably one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life. My track coach challenged me to do it. I said I would do it because he really didn't think I would, but I ended up running it with him.
GR: What food will you never try or eat again?
SS: I will probably never try sushi or oysters or anything like that, not anything slimy. I also am not a big fan of seafood so I will probably never try that again.
GR: What is one thing you can't live without?
SS: My family and friends, because they are always there for me. So, that would be the hardest thing to live without.
GR: Who has been a role model for you throughout your life?
SS: My parents and grandparents as well as my parents because they never pushed me to do anything. They never told me that I had to do track or had to go to college and throw; they just encouraged me to do it. If I had to go and work out in high school, my dad would go with me. We would try to figure out how to throw because I had only one coach in high school since we were small. My coach had to do everything so he couldn't help just me all the time so my parents helped me. My grandparents, especially my grandma, because she has been to every track meet. If she is not there it messes me up. I really like her to be there and I don't think she knows how much I appreciate her coming to my meets.
GR: What is the first thing you would do with $1 million?
SS: I would probably share it with my parents because they have done so much for me, especially paying for school. I would pay them back for school and whatever else I could do for them.
GR: Who would you like to be for a day? Why?
SS: Maybe one of the coaches [laughs]. I would want to be them for a day because I just want to be in the coaching spot one day. Sometimes I wish I could be the coach and sit around all day relaxing. I know they are not just relaxing; they have a lot of work to do too. Someday I want to coach and I just want to know what it is like from their perspective.
GR: Do you do anything special or have any rituals before track meets?
SS: I have to do my hair exactly the same way every time and I have to wear the exact same thing. I have a pair of spandex I always wear and a tank top I wear under my jersey. I have to do that and small things like I have to take a shower before, I can't wait until afterwards. If I eat anything it has to be something small. If I eat something big I know I am not going to do well, even though it should not affect me because I am a thrower. I am really picky about what I do before I throw.
