Red, White & Trending: May 19-25

What are Team USA athletes — Olympians, Paralympians and hopefuls — up to when they're not competing? They're training. They're practicing. They're traveling to competitions and meets and games and tournaments. They're relaxing. They're getting engaged and married and having children. They're taking hard-earned vacations. Or retiring. Or coping with the raw emotions that come from losing and winning. And they're sharing. Through the reach of social media, we're able to follow along on their often extraordinary journeys. We'll catch you up each week on what's "Red, White & Trending."

Close To Home

For two-time Olympic gold medalist and reigning FIFA World Player of the Year Carli Lloyd, the tragedy in Manchester, England, could not have been more real or present. Lloyd, who is living in Manchester while playing for Manchester City in the Women’s Super League, thankfully, remained safe.

How Times Change

World Cup champion and Olympic soccer player Morgan Brian has had herself a pretty busy run these past few months. Much to the dismay of a Team USA bestie …

Brian, who shared an engagement post on Valentine’s Day and graduated from the University of Virginia this past weekend, has relied upon a fluency of time-saving emojis.

Winter Is Coming

Even with the signs of summer in the air — particularly the long weekend to mark its unofficial beginning — PyeongChang is in the air, too. Well under a year remains until the Winter Games, which means that training regimens are fully underway. It also means fantastic promotional materials featuring a famous country singer … and a whole lot of Team USA Olympic medalists …

Downhill From Here

If you’re looking for the next generation of downhillers, three-time Olympic alpine skier Steven Nyman is doing his part to help fan the flames of young talent and interest. Nyman hosted a speed skills camp this past week, much to the delight of some very lucky young skiers.

One of the comments on Nyman’s post may have been more gratifying than even the many thank-you comments made by campers — and it came from one of their moms.

@sarahsflinders: It is the greatest thing in the world for a mom to hear from @dillonflinders, "mom, this is the most amazing experience of my life!" Loving this opportunity for these athletes @americandownhiller

Nyman later put his own heartfelt sentiment into a post. And he deserves extra credit for the rhyme. But it all did leave him sapped.

(Moto)Cross-Training

“Part of #americandownhiller training is skiing all conditions and terrain on race skis,” four-time Olympian Daron Rahlves wrote during a post(card) from the camp. But he’s also a fan of going fast on two wheels.

Work, Work, Work

While we’re on the topic of skiing, Olympic gold medalist slalom star and world cup overall champion Mikaela Shiffrin is back to training. For an idea of just what kind of core workout one of the world’s best skiers puts herself through — with a twist, no less — have a look …

’More Dorks In Spandex’

Olympic cross-country skier Jessie Diggins seems always to be revealing the bright side of life (even with totally banged-up, bloody knees, she’s smiling and giving thumbs-up), and this past week offers some of her best work since an epic snow dance this past January on a mountainside in northern Italy.

For starters, while training at Mt. Bachelor in Oregon, there are a pair of ineffective techniques on display, beginning with a modified sort of arabesque — but they are fun …

Diggins and teammate Julia Kern also squeezed in a little dance routine of their own …

Hawaiian Vacation

On the other hand, at least one winter athlete has decided to chase summer and surf to Maui, Hawaii. This past week, Olympic alpine skier Travis Ganong wrapped up what certainly appeared to be a fantastic Hawaiian vacation.

Endless Summer

There are so many reasons in this video to think spending a day with Olympic water polo gold medalist Kaleigh Gilchrist might be a blast. Gilchrist, who has also found success as a surfer, schools the uninitiated on some popular surfing terms — including “charging,” which, when applied in the parlance can mean a buddy crushing it at lunch — for a “Surf Slang” segment on the Olympic Channel. And, of course, “grom” and “gnarly” make cameos, too. Like surfing itself, some of the execution is all about attitude.

Congratulations Corner

Congratulations are in order for Olympic gymnastics medalist Alicia Sacramone Quinn, the 10-time world championship medalist who was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame this past week. Husband Brady Quinn, the former NFL quarterback and Notre Dame standout, posted a pic for the family album — along with his own note of gratitude.

Fellow Team USA Olympian Dominique Moceanu came away with a pretty good pic, too …

USA Hockey star and four-time Olympic medalist Angela Ruggiero earned the esteemed honor of induction into the IIHF Hall of Fame this past week, too. Since her days as an Olympian, Ruggiero has gone on to become a leader in the sports field, including with the Women’s Sports Foundation, United States Olympic Committee and International Olympic Committee.

Unfortunately, Ruggiero could not attend the ceremony in Germany due to the sudden passing of her father, making this post all the more poignant.

Congratulations are also in order for Hawaii’s first family of volleyball. For the Shojis, volleyball is a family affair, and at its heart is longtime Hawaii coach Dave Shoji, who has coached the program since 1975 and is the all-time winningest coach in NCAA Division I women’s volleyball history. This past summer, sons Erik and Kawika played for Team USA in Rio.

And don’t mind Lauryn Williams, the first U.S. woman to medal at both the winter and summer Games, who might just clean out a row of magazines. And for good reason.

Whoops

Seven-time Paralympic medalist Amanda McGrory may have been thinking about digging into a comic series, but a teammate wasn’t going to let her get away with it.

Flashback Fun

Nothing to see here, just a couple of ‘90s stars — Olympic gymnastics champion Dominique Dawes and "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" actor Alfonso Ribeiro — sharing some signature moves.

Long’s Best Friends

Here’s a social media question, which was posed by Olympic soccer midfielder Allie Long, that will almost always be answered in the affirmative:

So …

Upside Down

When your dad is two-time Olympic medalist gymnast Jonathan Horton and your mom is former University of Oklahoma gymnastics standout Haley Horton, this is the kind of thing that’s bound to happen:

For His Next Act …

Olympic champion decathlete Bryan Clay won silver in 2004 and gold in 2008 (by a wide margin, no less), and he’s also made four appearances in heptathalon at indoor worlds, all of which suggests he’s open to exploring new sporting pursuits. Including tetherball.

Best Seat In The House

A week ago, we noted that team camp was underway for USA Luge at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and one of the team-building events included a trip down the Arkansas River. In addition to a paddle, Sochi Olympian Jayson Terdiman had a pretty good seat to record a POV video of the thrill ride.

Three-time Olympian Erin Hamlin left Colorado Springs experiencing a range of emotions and PyeongChang most definitely on her mind …