Rio de Janeiro is know for its tropical beaches, tourist attractions, and Carnaval. During the week of July 13-19, senior Roy Hibbert and recent graduate Andrew Campbell (SFS ’06), traveled to Rio for the 15th edition of the Pan American games. Hibbert competed on the fifth-place United States men’s basketball team and Campbell, a four-time all-American sailor, won a gold medal in Laser sailing.
Campbell defeated two-time Olympic medalist Robert Scheidt for the gold in a thrilling medal race. Campbell entered the race with a three-point lead, but with Scheidt controlling the final race from the start, Campbell needed to finish second to claim the gold. Trailing down the final stretch, Campbell passed two other boats to secure second. One of the greatest collegiate sailors of all time, Campbell had six top-three finishes during his time in Rio. Even more impressive, Campbell’s win came against the event’s three-time defending champion.
Hibbert headlined a 12-man roster for the United States that included Villanova’s Scottie Reynolds and all-Big Ten guard Drew Neitzel of Michigan State. Team USA was the youngest team competing in Rio and showed it in the early going, losing its first two games to Uruguay and Panama. The squad of collegiate players had little time to practice between the end of the school year and the start of the games. Despite the two losses, the team rallied back, winning three straight against Argentina, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Panama.
It was clear to Hibbert and the team from the very beginning that they were not on a vacation in Rio. The friendly chants of, `Let’s go Hoyas,’ were replaced by jeers showered down by South American fans.
“It was very competitive down there,” Hibbert said. “We were in the Olympic village and you could tell. As soon as we got on the court the crowed booed us so it was definitely a learning experience.”
Hibbert’s best performance came against Panama, when he scored 19 points while collecting 9 rebounds and 2 blocks in the 75-67 loss. That loss left Team U.S.A. 0-2 and out of medal contention, but the young squad bounced back to win its final three games, including a 77-74 victory over Panama in a game to decide fifth place.
Hibbert, who turned down an internship at the Department of Education, jumped at an opportunity to learn about international basketball.
“It was something I always wanted to do since I was a child. I felt I could learn something playing against those guys,” the first team all-Big East center said. “It’s good playing against American style basketball, but you go over there and see a different style you can see the similarities and differences, so I tried to pick some stuff up.”
There were plenty of familiar faces on the U.S.A. roster, such as North Carolina guard Wayne Ellington, whom Hibbert and the Hoyas faced in a memorable regional final last March, and Reynolds, who averaged 15 points per game in his three meetings with Georgetown last season. Hibbert said that even with all the history between him and some of his teammates, there were no rivalries amongst teammates.
“It was a relaxed atmosphere. We didn’t really think about our schools at the time,” Hibbert said. “As soon as we got on the plane people were joking around, but for those 10 days in Rio we came together and we weren’t Oregon or aryland or Georgetown or Villanova. We were U.S.A.”
Campbell is preparing for qualifying races for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing while Hibbert is back on the Hilltop for his senior year and one more shot at a national championship.
