A Downhill Slope

Over a month has passed since the 2010 Winter Olympics concluded and many of the athletes have already vanished from the media’s eye, not to be seen again for four years. Even an athlete like Julia Mancuso, who has two medals under her belt, has faded from the spotlight and out of the minds of the American public.

Julia Mancuso earned two silver medals at the games yet is probably better known for her “feud” with fellow down-hill skier, Lindsey Vonn. The feud was sparked by Mancuso’s comment about Vonn in Sports Illustrated:

“People are having a hard time reaching their potential because it’s such a struggle for attention. You come to meetings after races and it’s like it’s a bad day if Lindsey didn’t do well.”

The media quickly transformed the comment into to a feud between the two athletes, and pitted one against the other as battling for the spotlight. Mancuso claimed her comment was taken out of context and that the media was just looking to stir up controversy, but the controversy was not enough to keep Mancuso current.

What Mancuso lacked was the ability to appeal to a wide range of audiences. She focused herself only to the audience that she felt related to her through her own personal interest. Although she denied any feud between herself and Vonn, any competition between the two is a clear victory for Vonn. Vonn recognized the need to diversify one’s image to many audiences and used her appeal to become the face of the skiing team.

Mancuso has held herself back by not appealing to the family oriented audience. She has never presented herself as a role model and there for cannot be treated as a role model.

By simply comparing Mancuso’s personal Web page to Vonn’s own Web page, the two athletes are presenting themselves completely different. Vonn’s page is sophisticated and neatly organized with pictures and videos of the athlete. Links to all her sponsors are clearly listed at the bottom of the page. The first thing seen on Mancuso’s page is an animated depiction of her lying on a bed in underwear and ski boots. The sponsors are not shown on the front page but the link to Mancuso’s lingerie line can be found.

Since the Olympics, Vonn has embarked on a media tour, won the World Cup championship for women’s skiing, and just finished filming her cameo on Law & Order. Mancuso appeared on Larry King Live, the Daily 10, and other talk shows after the Olympics but has yet to leave an impact on the American audience.