My View: Experience sports through the eyes of world-class athletes
Experience the thrill of sports through the eyes of world-class athletes
Using the latest in video technology, SI gives you the chance to feel what it's like to take a walk in the shoes of your favorite athletes. From catching a pass in the NFL to executing a double backflip on the slopes, we've got it all covered from the perspective of the athlete, unfiltered.
. Kelly Slater
Surfing
Kelly Slater’s impact on the sport of surfing is unparalleled. He claimed the ASP World Tour title at the age of 21, including a run of consecutive titles between 1994-1998, and in 2007 became the all-time leader in career events won.
. Julian edelman
NFL
On the time between the ball leaving Brady's arms and his arms going up to catch it: “It depends on the route and what happens with the defense. Sometimes it feels like a long time. Sometimes it feels bang-bang. But you’re not really thinking about that. You’re thinking about containing the ball and doing your job.” On the parallel that an NFL punt return is akin to a NASCAR crash: “I would say it’s comparable. When you watch Nascar, there’s a crash and smoke and there's an old saying: Find the lane. Sometimes there’s a crease and you may not know what’s on the other end, but if you don't hit it full speed, you don't have a chance of actually breaking it or gaining positive yards. Sometimes you just have to bite your lip and go full speed into the crease and hope for the best. Sometimes you get blown up on the other end, sometimes you get through.”
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Skiing
On doing a double backflip: “Everything kind of leaves your brain right before you go. When I’m up there, it feels like I’m floating in the clouds. I can see the flat part of the jump right before, and when I hit it, I feel like I just got shot out of a cannon.”
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Women's Soccer
On shooting off the dribble: “When you’re dribbling at speed you have to take a quick glance up and strike through the ball, land on your shooting foot, maintain good form and get it on frame – all those things are going through my mind. Goals are hard to come by and scoring off of the dribble isn’t easy. Scoring is the best feeling in soccer.”
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Wrestling
On jumping off the top rope: "Since I started, I always told myself you have to be fearless because what you’re doing is dangerous. You kind of have to throw caution to the wind. In wrestling, if you hesitate to do something it might not work out for the best. You have to commit, and when you hesitate, accidents happen."
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Lacrosse
On what it feels to crash the net and take a pass from behind the goal: "It happens so fast. The feeling is euphoric when you score or setup a goal, and a tempered rush to chase the opposing team's defender down if they take it away. But much like any sport, a player has to simplify any scenario into simple decisions. Every time I catch the ball in front or behind the net, I'm either a dodger or feeder. If I'm a dodger, my responsibility is to score - simple as that. If I dodge and draw a slide, I have three looks: in front of me, through the defense, or back to the area I just vacated."
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IndyCar
On changing a tire in the pit stop: “I remember when I first started changing the outside front tire, it all seemed to happen so fast. You’re responsible for making sure each guy is finished, you have to watch for other cars coming down pit lane so you don’t send your guy into the side of someone else. It can be overwhelming at first. Once you’ve done it a few times, it all seems to slow down, you settle in and everything almost becomes automatic.
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College Football
Perryman plays linebacker for the Miami University football team, standing at 6-foot-1 and weighing in at 242 lbs., the defensive specialist won the 2013 Hard Hitter Award as well as Defensive MVP after leading the Hurricanes to a 9-4 overall record.
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Moto X
Jason on racing in Moto X: "When I'm riding under race conditions, inches from the ground, there's not room for much else to happen in my mind. You've got to be totally in the moment and totally focused. The feeling you get on a modern day sportbike is unlike any other. It's all about power, acceleration and precision."
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BMX
Danny MacAskill is a professional street trials rider for Inspired Bicycles Ltd, born and raised in Dunvegan on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. Via Redbull.com, "I’ve always just ridden for fun, it’s better than sitting watching the TV," says Macaskill.
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Gymnastics
Jonathan Alan Horton is an American gymnast. He is the 2008 Olympic silver medalist on high bar, 2010 Worlds all-around bronze medalist and a two-time U.S. National All-Around Champion. He is a 17-time medalist at the U.S. National Championships.
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Figure Skating
On the synchronized twizzle sequence: “The Twizzle is one of the most important, most recognizable elements in a program. It’s easy to tell if it’s good or bad, but that doesn’t speak to the difficulty of the element itself. You have to be perfectly matched with your partner, and rotate and travel across the ice as quickly as possible, but also completely in sync."
