BEIJING (NEXSTAR) — With the end of the Beijing Games days away, a pair of podcasters hope to keep the Olympic conversation alive.
“There were a few podcasts out there,” explains Jill Jaracz, host of ‘Keep the Flame Alive.’ “They’d start a few weeks before the Olympics, and then once the Olympics are done they’d be gone.”
But with thousands of athletes from hundreds of nations training year-round, Jaracz decided to create a year-round podcast to discuss them. That’s what ‘Keep the Flame Alive’ is. Hosted by Jaracz and Alison Brown the podcast is recorded from two separate states, Ohio and Connecticut.
“We used to work together in Chicago, we were researchers at a consulting firm,” recalls Jaracz. “And then one day, I used to live in New England and she was traveling through, and I said, ‘Hey, do you want to start a podcast about the Olympics?’ And she said, ‘yes.'”
Thus the podcast was born, dedicated to approximately one hour of Olympic talk every week.
“We love finding our people,” Jaracz says. So we know they’re out there, we know they’re around the world. And it’s fun to get together and have people to talk about the Olympics with and share.”
Jaracz says the podcasts usually feature an interview with someone related to the Games, whether they’re athletes or behind-the-scenes personalities.
“That’s one of the things we like to do is talk with announcers and officials and historians,” says Jaracz. “And we also have a book club and a movie club.”