Radio Interview with Brendan

Father Dave Dwyer interviews Brendan for the Busted Halo show on the Catholic Channel.

Brendan's Today Show Appearance ONLINE!

For those of you who missed him this morning you can catch him discussing the loss and return of his Olympic Gold Medal on the Today Show's website. They also have video of Dara, Cullen, Brendan and Aaron discussing their work with Toyota's Engines of Change program. Check that out too!

Brendan on Today Show 9/24/08

Mrs. H sent word that Brendan will be appearing on the Today Show tomorrow morning between 8 and 9 am with Aaron, Dara and Cullin. I'm sure the topic of Nike dropping out of the elite swimwear business will be part of the discussion. If you haven't heard about it you can read more here. Evan certainly didn't try to put a happy face on the news. The young woman who found his medal will also make an appearance so y'all set your tivo or whatever other recording contraption you have at your disposal.

Lost and Found

Olympian Reports Gold Medal Missing After Flight
Photo of Brendan at the link

An Olympian with local ties has reported his gold medal missing after flying from Philadelphia to his home in Texas.

Brendan Hansen, a native of Havertown, Delaware County, reported that the medal was missing once he got to Austin. The flight made a stop in Nashville before heading on to its Texas destination.

Hansen told authorities that he knows he had the medal at Philadelphia International Airport, when a TSA inspector checked his backpack, which he was carrying onto the flight.

Fox 29's Claudia Gomez reported that surveillance camera footage at PHL shows the TSA inspector taking out the medal, which was in a case. He then put it through an X-ray machine and showed it to a colleague before putting the medal back into the backpack's side pouch.

It's not clear whether the medal went missing in Philadelphia, Nashville or Austin. Police said they are trying to determine whether Hansen took the medal out on the plane or whether it might have been stolen.

Good Samaritan recovers Olympic swimmer Brendan Hansen's lost gold medal

"It's like I was missing a child," Brendan told his father after he retrieved the medal yesterday evening from a Good Samaritan.

A fellow Austin resident, unidentifiable last night, spotted the boxed medal on the floor of the plane as she exited. She picked it up, looked in the box, and left the airport. Hansen's father asked Brendan why she didn't turn it in to Southwest authorities or Austin airport officials or Austin police.

Buzz Hansen was told the woman had turned in a wallet under similar circumstances, and the wallet never found its way back to the owner.

She figured any such item in Austin's city limits would have a connection to local University of Texas, so she called the school. The school called Hansen, an alum. They met late yesterday afternoon. He gave her a modest monetary reward; she reluctantly accepted.

American swimmer Brendan Hansen reunited with lost gold medal

Hansen finally met the woman who found the medal, gave her a cheque, and said she promised to donate the money to charity.

Miriam Hansen said she wants to know everything that happened, but that didn't interest her son.

"All he thought was, 'I have my medal back, what difference does it make?"' she said.

Even TMZ covered the story.

Thanks to everyone who texted me and sent me links yesterday. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to post them! Erm...carry on.

Brendan in the News...

Havertown Olympian Celebrates Gold With Family, Friends

Breastroker Brendan Hansen helped the U.S. men's swim team win the medley relay in Beijing and helped Michael Phelps get his eighth gold medal.

Friends and family from his hometown finally got a chance to celebrate with him, when he came for a visit, Friday, and Aloft Hotel, near Philadelphia International Airport, threw a party to welcome him home.

Hansen lives in Texas, now, but he says his swimming roots are planted here.

"I grew up swimming on the Main Line," he said, "at Karakung Swim Club and for Suburban Swim Club, which are still very predominant swim teams, here, and I go back and swim with them still, to this day. So you never outgrow your roots in swimming because it's such a grass roots sport."

About his Olympic gold medal, he had this to say:

"It makes all the hard work, all the mornings getting up, all the sacrifices you make as an athlete, worth it. I mean, the National Anthem's played for 2 1/2 minutes and it's the best 2 1/2 minutes of my life."

The party doubled as a fundraiser for Children's Hospital Cancer Center. Hansen spent the day, there, visiting patients.

Inside pitches

Rookie catcher Lou Marson, a bronze medalist at the Olympics in Beijing, caught the first pitch from gold-medal-winning swimmer Brendan Hansen of Haverford, Pa...

Brendan on Oprah!

Oprah Winfrey's's PR folks have released the full list of Olympians who will gather in Millennium Park on Wednesday for a special edition of her talk show.

The tickets that were available to the public have already been snapped up (as this Tribune story notes). There will also be some lawn seats available for the 10 a.m. Wednesday rally, but if you want to try that option, you'll have to line up starting at 6 a.m. If you don't want to get up that early, you can see the Olympians basking in the Oprah-rific glow on your TV when the talk show returns on Monday.

snip

SEASON PREMIERE OF "THE OPRAH WINFREY SHOW" MONDAY, SEPT. 8

yada yada yada

Swimming (Men's)
Ian Crocker, Mark Gangloff, Matt Grevers, Brendan Hansen, Cullen Jones, Jason Lezak, Ryan Lochte, Aaron Peirsol, Michael Phelps, Peter Vanderkaay, Garrett Weber-Gale

Swimming (Women's)
Elaine Breeden, Caroline Burckle, Natalie Coughlin, Margaret Hoelzer, Katie Hoff, Megan Jendrick, Kara Lynn Joyce, Christine Magnuson, Christine Marshall, Lacey Nymeyer, Allison Schmitt, Emily Silver, Julia Smit, Rebecca Soni, Dara Torres, Kim Vandenberg

Y'all set your tivos!

Alexandra's latest..

This one features almost all of my favorite photos of Brendan and 2 of my favorite songs (White Stripes and Killers) so I'm a pretty happy camper. I especially love the pics of him with kids at clinics. I hear from so many parents how fun and accessible he is to them and how impressed they are.

Also, in case you missed Mrs. H's comment below, Brendan did indeed survive the 10k yesterday and ran it with his brother Sean. He finished in a time of 49.57 and in 27648th place according to Nike's Human Race site. A fan, Lizzy, was at the event last night and sent me a few photos of Brendan and Aaron on stage which have been added to the Gallery. I'm pretty freaking impressed by the numbers of people who turned out to participate. Go Austin!