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August 20, 2008
Posted: 1142 GMT
BEIJING, China — It looked as if Yelena Isinbayeva’s corporate obligations and the media-merry-go-round had taken it toll more than winning her gold medal on Monday. 
No automaton: Winning Olympic gold is still a thrill for Yelena Isinbayeva.
 She arrived at the enormous media center next to the Bird’s Nest Stadium for her Talk Asia interview in denim skirt, flip flops and a grey T-shirt. It wasn’t the tsarina of the pole vault but more a quite ordinary, but slightly tired, 26-year-old. Perfectly ordinary, apart from the touch of bling watch on her wrist and, of course, her incredibly honed physique — she could probably crack walnuts in the bend of her knee. Wearing dark blue nail polish, she unconsciously clutched her gold medal during most of the 30 minutes that CNN had with her. Soft spoken and initially slightly bashful, she opened up as the interview progressed. As much as she’s had plenty of practice talking about herself recently, it was clear it wasn’t a tricky topic for her. What did she think of her rivals? Her piercing blue eyes narrowed slightly, her soft Russian accent snapped as she said, no, she had no rivals. No, no one could compare in her sport. True, she had beaten her nearest competitor to gold by a mile in pole-vaulting terms, but it was a rare glimpse into the steely competitor she is. The only other question to get a similar intense blue stare was when asked what it felt like to be compared to Maria Sharapova. More than anything the dismissal of the question was because no girl like to be compared to others, “we all want to be the best in the world.” She batted away accusations that she only breaks world records when she wants and does so for financial rewards — it seemed a well practiced answer. If nothing else, she’s a woman who knows what she wants and when it comes to her sport at least, knows how to get it. For someone at the top of her game who dedicates their life to training and competing., there were heartening glimpses that she wasn’t a sporting automaton. She giggled like a school girl at a few questions from CNN’s John Vause, and was relaxed and happy talking about her family, upbringing and sister back in Russia. Most of all she was still genuinely excited to have won her second gold medal, even if she and rest of the world knew it was almost a forgone conclusion. Her tanned, pendant wearing agent looked on throughout proceedings occasionally checking his BlackBerry. London 2012 was too far away for her to think about, he said, and now he had to get her back to the Olympic village and on the 29th back into competition. There was just time for a can of drink before she was off to pole vault another day. Posted by: CNN.com's Dean Irvine |
 
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Receive updates from across the world on the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. "Olympics and the World" is a blog offering you the thoughts and observations from athletes, journalists around unique personalities preparing for the Olympics in China. Whether it's from the training field, the newsroom or the homes of everyday people, "Olympics and the World" provides you a global pulse as the Beijing Olympics approach. Special Report: Beijing 2008  Athletes
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