Although Detroit Shock forward Katie Smith won gold¹ in Athens, she spent most of the 2004 Olympic Games on crutches with an injured knee. In the four years since, she’s gotten into the best shape of her life and won a WNBA championship in 2006.²
“I’m really excited to get to Beijing and get together with the whole team,” says Smith, 34, who also won gold in Sydney in 2000. “Just soak up what the Olympics are and try to see some other events. Not rush through them, but try to take every day and enjoy all the hoopla. Hopefully win some basketball games.”³
Smith’s parents will also be making their third Olympic trip. “They’ve enjoyed their travels and they soak it all up,” she says. “They wander on their own. Dad likes to taste all the crazy foods, different things. He asks me, ‘Did you try some of that?’ I’m like, ‘No.’ They pick people’s brains to find all the interesting sights.”
The past two Olympics, one of Smith’s teammates was point guard Dawn Staley. She may have retired from playing after the 2006 WNBA season, but Staley will be with the team in Beijing as an assistant coach.⁴ “She’s the same as when she played,” says Smith. “The way she interacts with us, the way she sees the game. Her personality and the way she directs, demands—her leadership is normal.”
The third-leading scorer in WNBA history (behind Olympic teammates Lisa Leslie and Tina Thompson), Smith says the international basketball is sometimes a little slicker than the balls used in the WNBA, but thankfully players no longer have to adapt to a different sized ball. International play now uses the same women’s size ball as in the WNBA.⁵
Despite being intensively competitive, Smith is also incredibly levelheaded. She was not among the Shock players suspended for an on-court brawl on July 22. “My competitiveness is obviously a huge part of me,” she says. “As is a consistency in understanding what goes on and what you need to do.”—Lois Elfman #40

Bonus Points
1. Rather than a fancy display, her gold medals are kept in a convenient spot in her home; Smith says, “It’s neat to see people’s reactions and to allow them to hold them.”
2. Smith came to the Shock in a somewhat stunning mid-season trade with the Minnesota Lynx in 2005.
3. Smith has played with USA Basketball since her college days at Ohio State. Her first gold medal came at the 1994 Goodwill Games.
4. After eight seasons at Temple University, Staley was recently named head coach at University of South Carolina.
5. She’s spent the past few WNBA offseasons at home in Ohio, but says she plans to go overseas for the next couple of years.

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