S.Young Interview- 10/23/99
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STEVE YOUNG HOSTS TEEN PRESS CONFERENCE
On October 13, 1999, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Steve Young hosted a student journalist press conference at Sun Microsystems' Customer Briefing Center in Menlo Park, CA. Students from across the country were invited to participate in either the simultaneous online chat or LIVE satellite press conference. The topic of this conference was "Drugs and Sports" and Young discussed the importance of living a healthy lifestyle, remaining drug-free, and a plethora of other topics. This event was made possible by a team effort between the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy's National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaigns Straight Scoop news Bureau; Sun Microsystems, OpenVoice, Athlete Direct, and Young's own Forever Young Foundation. For exactly one hour, the seven-time Pro Bowler fielded questions about everything from how he feels about performance-enhancing drugs to his senior Prom date (In case you're wondering, she ended up winning the Miss USA pagaent). Each question had to be first sent to a moderator and who then chose which questions to enter into the conversation. One may wonder about the abilities if this omniscient moderator; however, for he rejected about ten of my questions and then entered in one that I never would have asked, with my name attached. Of the questions that did get included into conversation, one of the most popular seemed to be about the use of perfomance enhancing drugs like Creatine and Andro among high school athletes. In answer to this, Young says "It's important to let your body develope... clearly, I think taking drugs is wrong. The best thing I can say is be careful with doing anything to your body because it is a temple and should be treated with respect." He reminded everyone that he got to where he is today by staying healthy, taking care of his body, and never smoking or using drugs of any sort. He even told a story about how he used to chug milk at parties instead of the usual beer or other forms of alcohol that his friends were drinking. You've got to admit-- milk really does do a body good. One topic that was obvioulsy avoided was that of his future plans. For those that do not follow football, Young received a serious concussion on September 27 against Arizona. He was leveled to the ground by cornerback Aeneas Williams and struck the knee of tackle Dave Fiore on the way down. This is his fourth concussion in three years and to many, it is seen as a sign for him to end his pro career. He underwent a series of medical tests on October 8 to establish whether it is safe for Young to continue playing or if there are too many health risks. The results of these test have not yet been made public. Even if Steve Young's career has to end tomorrow, he has accomplished so much in his fifteen years in the NFL and has become a role model to so many. One can truly admire him for his hard work and dedication to the game of football and his generousity towards mankind. His humble attitude and drug-free nature makes him stand apart from many of the other players. I feel truly honored to have participated in this press conference-- even if none of my questions ever got asked. Editors Note: I would like to take this oppurtunity to thank Alissa Clendenen for this rare oppurtunity to post outsiders work on my site. Thanks Alissa for adding your perspective to my site for all 49ers fans to see! |
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