Maggie Steffens asked for more support for the U.S. women’s water polo team, and the captain got one particularly surprising response.
From a bell-wearing rap icon.
Inspired by Steffens’ Instagram post, Flavor Flav has stepped forward to help the U.S. team on its way to an unprecedented fourth straight gold medal at the Paris Olympics this summer. He is finalizing a deal that will make him the sponsor of American water polo and the official hype man for a program that wants more of a spotlight.
Flav, 65, a founding member and hype man of Public Enemy, has immediately taken to his new duties, spotlighting some of the team’s best players on social media. He is also making plans to watch the women’s team play in Paris.
“When I come out and look at this water polo team… ‘USA! UNITED STATES!’ Yo, I’m going to be the biggest hype man they ever had in their lives,” he told the AP on Friday. “I’m going to be bigger than any cheerleader they had in their lives. I’m going to cheer on this team and I’m going to cheer on this team to win a gold medal.”
Winning has been the usual outcome for the U.S. women’s team since the 2012 Olympics. But it has not received the same attention or support as similarly dominant American programs, largely because water polo remains a niche sport in most of the world.
That — along with a little nostalgia — prompted Steffens, 30, the last surviving member of the 2012 team, to post on Instagram. While she expressed gratitude for the opportunity to play and her love for her sport, she also encouraged everyone who read the message to check out her team and highlighted the ongoing financial struggle for most Olympic athletes.
“We’ve gotten a lot of comments, you know, ‘Oh, it’s so cool what you’ve done. Too bad you’re not a football player or a basketball player, because your team would get a lot more publicity or a lot more support,” Steffens said on Friday from Paris, where the team is on a training trip in the run-up to the Olympic Games.
“And instead we are still about where we were 12 years ago, which for me is not my goal. I have always wanted to move the sport forward.”
Enter Flav, who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013 with the group Public Enemy. Flav’s manager brought the position to his attention and he decided he wanted to help.
“One thing about me: I know what it feels like to see a dream come true,” says Flav, who is known for wearing a large clock on a chain around his neck. “I know what it feels like to want to achieve a goal, and I’m the type of person that, if I see you trying, I’ll do whatever I can to help you.”
Steffens said it was “very surreal” when Flav – whose legal name is William Jonathan Drayton Jr. is – got in touch. When asked what she knew about Flav and Public Enemy before the connection, Steffens promptly imitated Flav’s frequent “Flavor Flav!” declaration.
Steffens is one of the oldest players on the US team, but she said 24-year-old Ryann Neushul had Public Enemy in her top five on the music streaming service Spotify. A number of the team’s coaches and Steffens’ family were also enthusiastic about the collaboration.
“My whole family was like, ‘Is this real? Is Flav part of the water polo world now?’” Steffens said. “I thought, ‘I don’t know what’s going on, but I want to wear a clock now and that’s how I feel.'”
Steffens and the American team also have a high-profile supporter in Taylor Swift. They had plans to attend the musician’s Eras Tour concert Friday evening at the La Défense Arena, the venue for the women’s water polo final on August 10.
The women’s head coach, Ally Beck, contacted Swift’s camp and surprised the team with the tickets. Flav said he also contacted Swift’s team, but the tickets had already been approved.
Flav, who is working on a new tour with Public Enemy that could start later this year, then held up a T-shirt with his photo that read “KING SWIFTIE.”
“I am proud to support Taylor. … Flavor Flav is a Swiftie, the king of all Swifties,” he said.
That’s another connection Flav has with his new favorite team.
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Summer Olympics AP: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games