Trevor Marsicano is going to the Olympics.
But his parents plan to stay home in Ballston Spa.
After all these years, after all the training and competitions, and the associated bills, they can't afford a trip to Vancouver.
"None of that is paid for by the national governing body," Randy Marsicano said. "My wife and I had to pick up all the expenses. There really isn't (any money) left for us to go."
As a teen, Marsicano showed promise as an elite speedskater. So Randy and Linda Marsicano paid for the coaches and the equipment and the moves to Salt Lake City and then to Milwaukee so their son could train and chase his Olympic ambitions.
"We were helping him achieve his dream," dad said. "That is what you do when you're parents."
It's not that the family is destitute: He's a bank auditor, and she's a medical transcriptionist. But there are costs, staggering costs, associated with developing an Olympic-caliber athlete.
The Marsicanos estimate they're more than $200,000 in debt from their son's pursuits.
They can even break it down, from the $62,500 in travel costs to the $10,000 for Trevor's moving expenses.
"Who has working cash to cover that sort of thing?" Randy Marsicano asked. Instead, you max credit cards, "remortgage the house and start the game all over again."
The cost of becoming an Olympian is a steep one in both time and money, a cost borne not only by the athlete but also by the family. Such families make the trade-off willingly, even if there are no assurances the investment will be paid off in a shot at gold, silver or bronze.
The Marsicanos offer no complaint or regrets. But going to the Winter Games would cost them upwards of $20,000 to $30,000 in lodging, food, travel, tickets and incidentals, according to the family and a speedskating official. After fronting all that money for their son's career, the family's coffers are running dry.
"They funded a lot of my career; just for themselves they deserve to be out there," Trevor Marsicano said. "They deserve to be able to soak in the experience."
But then there's Samantha to consider.
The Marsicano's 19-year-old daughter is finishing community college and has designs on a four-year school and a career in communications. Her goal may be more modest than her brother's Olympic quest, but it's no less important to her family.
So the family's choice -- going to Vancouver to cheer the son or helping the daughter with her tuition -- is a hard one, but in the end, easy.
"We have another child, and we want to help her pursue her dreams," Randy Marsicano said. "I can't say, 'I can't help you with what you want to do, but help me pack my American flags.'"
The United States Olympic Committee and sponsors pick up the Olympic costs for athletes who make national teams, but in large part it's on the families to cover expenses for the years of training leading to potentially qualifying. There are no guarantees, except bills.
"It's horribly expensive," said Peri Kinder, a spokeswoman for U.S. Speedskating, an organization that lost its primary sponsor, a Dutch bank, when it collapsed during the economic downturn. "We try to help our families out. ... It's a chunk of change."
The Marsicanos have known for a while that the Games may be out of reach, if not for the son then for the rest of the family. So barring the emergence of a late benefactor or sponsoring organization or company, the Marsicanos will be content, if disappointed, to watch from the other side of the continent.
Besides, now it's Samantha's turn.
"Trevor," Linda Marsicano said, "will have to deal with the fact we will be home watching here on TV."
And he will. "Just because I'm going to the Olympics doesn't mean my sister can't go to college," the speedskater said. "That's not fair."
There are costs associated with almost all organized youth activities. But when you're talking about the price tag for developing world-class athletes in individual sports, the numbers mushroom at a different scale.
"In the past year we paid $10,000 for plane tickets," said Jennie Frenette of Saranac Lake. Peter Frenette, her 17-year-old son, will make his Olympic debut in ski jumping. Mom and Peter Sr., are school teachers.
"This goes right across the board (of Olympic sports). It's crazy," she said. "It's hard to compete against these kids from Germany and Austria. It's nothing for them. It's covered."
In other countries, the cost for developing and training Olympics athletes is often picked up by national governments or federations. In the United States, the financial burden falls on families. So if all goes to plan, capping this outlay is the bill for families actually attending the Games.
Betsy Napier of Schenectady is the mom of first-time Olympic bobsledder John Napier. Mom, an executive secretary, is going to Vancouver thanks in large part to a Baptist church finding her a discounted room to rent. She won't even hazard a guess on what her son's career has cost her financially.
"I don't want to know. I really don't. You'd get scared," mom said. "My credit card is tapped."
Andrew Weibrecht, a 23-year-old Alpine skier from Lake Placid, was in town this week during a training respite. His plans included a gathering with family, former coaches and others who helped him on the path toward his first Olympic Games. He has a lot of thank yous to extend.
"I was relying heavily on the support of my family financially and emotionally to help me through," he said. "Everybody sacrifices. It's nice to see it come together. It's a journey that started for me and my family more than 10 years ago."
That journey, like that of the Frenettes and Marsicanos and Napiers and others, has led to Vancouver. The destination makes the burdens worth bearing, even if not everyone gets to make the final leg of the trip.
Mark McGuire can be reached at 454-5467 or by e-mail at mmcguire@timesunion.com. Visit his blog at http://blogs.timesunion.com/mcguire.
cano said. Instead, you max credit cards, "remortgage the house and start the game all over again."
The cost of becoming an Olympian is a steep one both in time and money, a cost borne not only by the athlete but also their families. These families make the trade-off willingly, even if there are no assurances the investment will be paid off in a shot at gold, silver or bronze.
The Marsicanos offer no complaint or regrets. But going to the Winter Games would run them upwards of $20,000 to $30,000 when you account for lodging, food, travel, tickets and incidentals, according to the family and a speedskating official. After fronting all that money for their son's career, the family's coffers are running dry.
"They funded a lot of my career; just for themselves they deserve to be out there," Trevor Marsicano said. "They deserve to be able to soak in the experience."
But then there's Samantha to consider.
The Marsicano's 19-year-old daughter is finishing community college and has designs on a four-year school and a career in communications. Her goal may be more modest than her brother's Olympic quest, but it's no less important to her family.
So the family's choice -- going to Vancouver to cheer the son or helping the daughter with her tuition -- is a hard one ... yet relatively easy.
"We have another child, and we want to help her pursue her dreams," Randy Marsicano said. "I can't say, 'I can't help you with what you want to do, but help me pack my American flags. ...'"
The United States Olympic Committee and sponsors pick up the Olympic costs for athletes who make national teams, but in large part it's on the families to cover expenses for the years of training leading up to potentially qualifying. No, there are no guarantees, except bills.
"It's horribly expensive," said Peri Kinder, a spokeswoman for U.S. Speedskating, an organization that lost its primary sponsor, a Dutch bank, when it collapsed during the economic downturn. "We try to help our families out. ... It's a chunk of change."
The Marsicanos have known for a while that the Games may be out of reach, if not for the son then for the rest of the family. So barring the emergence of a late benefactor or sponsoring organization or company, the Marsicanos will be content if disappointed to be watching from the other side of the continent.
Besides, now it's Samantha's turn.
"Trevor," Linda Marsicano said, "will have to deal with the fact we will be home watching here on TV."
And he will. "Just because I'm going to the Olympics doesn't mean my sister can't go to college," the speedskater said. "That's not fair."
There are costs associated with almost all organized youth activities. But when you're talking about the price tag for developing world-class athletes in individual sports, the numbers mushroom at a different scale.
"In the past year we paid $10,000 for plane tickets," said Jennie Frenette of Saranac Lake. Peter Frenette, her 17-year-old son, will make his Olympic debut in ski jumping. Mom and dad, Peter Sr., are school teachers.
"This goes right across the board (of Olympic sports). It's crazy," she continued. "It's hard to compete against these kids from Germany and Austria. It's nothing for them. It's covered."
In other countries, the cost for development and training of Olympics athletes is often picked up by national governments or federations. In the United States, the financial burden falls on families. So if all goes to plan, capping this outlay is the bill for families actually attending the Games.
Betsy Napier of Schenectady is the mom of first-time Olympic bobsledder John Napier. Mom, an executive secretary, is going to Vancouver thanks in large part to a Baptist church finding her a discounted room to rent. She won't even hazard a guess on what her son's career has cost her financially.
"I don't want to know. I really don't. You'd get scared," mom said. "My credit card is tapped."
Andrew Weibrecht, a 23-year-old Alpine skier from Lake Placid, was back in town this week during a training respite. His plans included a gathering with family, former coaches and others who helped him on the path toward his first Olympic Games. He has a lot of thank yous to extend.
"I was relying heavily on the support of my family financially and emotionally to help me through," he said. "Everybody sacrifices. It's nice to see it come together. It's a journey that started for me and my family more than 10 years ago."
That journey, like that of the Frenettes and Marsicanos and Napiers and others, has led to Vancouver. The destination renders all the burdens worth bearing, even if not everyone gets to make the final leg of the trip.
Mark McGuire can be reached at 454-5467 or by e-mail at mmcguire@timesunion.com. Visit his blog at http://blogs.timesunion.com/mcguire.
cano said. Instead, you max credit cards, "remortgage the house and start the game all over again."
The cost of becoming an Olympian is a steep one both in time and money, a cost borne not only by the athlete but also their families. These families make the trade-off willingly, even if there are no assurances the investment will be paid off in a shot at gold, silver or bronze.
The Marsicanos offer no complaint or regrets. But going to the Winter Games would run them upwards of $20,000 to $30,000 when you account for lodging, food, travel, tickets and incidentals, according to the family and a speedskating official. After fronting all that money for their son's career, the family's coffers are running dry.
"They funded a lot of my career; just for themselves they deserve to be out there," Trevor Marsicano said. "They deserve to be able to soak in the experience."
But then there's Samantha to consider.
The Marsicano's 19-year-old daughter is finishing community college and has designs on a four-year school and a career in communications. Her goal may be more modest than her brother's Olympic quest, but it's no less important to her family.
So the family's choice -- going to Vancouver to cheer the son or helping the daughter with her tuition -- is a hard one ... yet relatively easy.
"We have another child, and we want to help her pursue her dreams," Randy Marsicano said. "I can't say, 'I can't help you with what you want to do, but help me pack my American flags. ...'"
The United States Olympic Committee and sponsors pick up the Olympic costs for athletes who make national teams, but in large part it's on the families to cover expenses for the years of training leading up to potentially qualifying. No, there are no guarantees, except bills.
"It's horribly expensive," said Peri Kinder, a spokeswoman for U.S. Speedskating, an organization that lost its primary sponsor, a Dutch bank, when it collapsed during the economic downturn. "We try to help our families out. ... It's a chunk of change."
The Marsicanos have known for a while that the Games may be out of reach, if not for the son then for the rest of the family. So barring the emergence of a late benefactor or sponsoring organization or company, the Marsicanos will be content if disappointed to be watching from the other side of the continent.
Besides, now it's Samantha's turn.
"Trevor," Linda Marsicano said, "will have to deal with the fact we will be home watching here on TV."
And he will. "Just because I'm going to the Olympics doesn't mean my sister can't go to college," the speedskater said. "That's not fair."
There are costs associated with almost all organized youth activities. But when you're talking about the price tag for developing world-class athletes in individual sports, the numbers mushroom at a different scale.
"In the past year we paid $10,000 for plane tickets," said Jennie Frenette of Saranac Lake. Peter Frenette, her 17-year-old son, will make his Olympic debut in ski jumping. Mom and dad, Peter Sr., are school teachers.
"This goes right across the board (of Olympic sports). It's crazy," she continued. "It's hard to compete against these kids from Germany and Austria. It's nothing for them. It's covered."
In other countries, the cost for development and training of Olympics athletes is often picked up by national governments or federations. In the United States, the financial burden falls on families. So if all goes to plan, capping this outlay is the bill for families actually attending the Games.
Betsy Napier of Schenectady is the mom of first-time Olympic bobsledder John Napier. Mom, an executive secretary, is going to Vancouver thanks in large part to a Baptist church finding her a discounted room to rent. She won't even hazard a guess on what her son's career has cost her financially.
"I don't want to know. I really don't. You'd get scared," mom said. "My credit card is tapped."
Andrew Weibrecht, a 23-year-old Alpine skier from Lake Placid, was back in town this week during a training respite. His plans included a gathering with family, former coaches and others who helped him on the path toward his first Olympic Games. He has a lot of thank yous to extend.
"I was relying heavily on the support of my family financially and emotionally to help me through," he said. "Everybody sacrifices. It's nice to see it come together. It's a journey that started for me and my family more than 10 years ago."
That journey, like that of the Frenettes and Marsicanos and Napiers and others, has led to Vancouver. The destination renders all the burdens worth bearing, even if not everyone gets to make the final leg of the trip.
Mark McGuire can be reached at 454-5467 or by e-mail at mmcguire@timesunion.com. Visit his blog at http://blogs.timesunion.com/mcguire.
BOX:
Costs of an Olympian
Here is the Marsicano family's breakdown of costs associated with their son's development toward becoming an Olympic speedskater. His training schedule doesn't allow for him to hold a job:
Description Years Amount
Training costs: Ice Time, gym, trainer5 $55,000
Travel expenses for competitions: 5 $62,500
Hotel, rental car, airline tickets
Other expenses: Communications USS, etc.2 $2,000
while traveling, meals not covered by
Trevor's rent, utilities, phone, food2 $42,800
Trevor's car: Payment, insurance, gas2 $23,000
Equipment: Blades, racing skins, boots, 5 $10,000
helmet and other protective equipment
Two moves: Home to Salt Lake, One time $10,000
and Salt Lake to Milwaukee
Total $205,300
BOX:
Inside
A profile of Schenectady's John Napier, the youngest American bobsled pilot in the Olympics since 1932.
A column by Mark McGuire that analyzes how Olympians manage fear.
BOX:
For more on our local Olympians, visit http://timesunion.com/olympians.
TIP:
On the Web
For more on our local Olympians, visit http://timesunion.com/olympians
TIP:
Inside
C1 Schenectady's John Napier, the youngest American bobsled pilot in the Olympics since 1932.
C1 A column by Mark McGuire that analyzes how Olympians manage fear.
CAPTION(S):
COURTESY OF MARSICANO FAMILY
RANDY AND Linda Marsicano have sacrificed to help their son, Trevor, reach the Olympics. Now they'll help daughter Samantha.
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GEIR OLSEN/GETTY IMAGES
TREVOR MARSICANO during competition at the World All Round Speed Skating Championships last February.
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