Journalism alum savors experience covering Paris Olympics
- Don Manley
- October 31, 2024
- Alumni
- Contributors: James Greco, Photo
5 – minute read
Sebastian Gonzalez can speak with firsthand knowledge about the exhilaration of the Olympics.
The 2017 Florida Gulf Coast University journalism graduate wasn’t a competitor in the 2024 Summer Games in Paris. Instead, he was there capturing the action for Hearst Television’s coverage of the international athletic competition.
Gonzalez is the director of photojournalism for Hearst-owned WBBH-TV (NBC2) and WZVN-TV (ABC7) in Fort Myers. He was one of six reporters and videographers who traveled to the City of Lights to provide content for the nationwide network.
The sights, sounds, atmosphere, people and sporting excellence of the Olympics are now treasured memories for the Cape Coral resident. His excitement hasn’t dimmed in the months since the sporting extravaganza’s closing ceremonies Aug. 11.
“It was so cool,” he said. “It was one of those experiences where you were like, ‘Oh my gosh, I can’t believe that I’m doing this.’”
Gonzalez and his camera teamed with a reporter from Hearst’s New Orleans station. They documented the performance of Team USA in women’s swimming, soccer and rugby as well as the star-studded men’s basketball team.
“We would be at the Olympics for an entire day doing live shots for Hearst stations around the country,” he explained. “Every third day, you would go live and the other days would do stories on local athletes or sometimes fans. It really depended on what was happening. We had a great time.”
There were three pairs of Hearst reporters and videographers providing coverage, with each pairing displaying the Olympian spirit where their work was concerned.
“It was kind of like a friendly competition of trying to provide the best coverage that we could,” said Gonzalez. “The days and the hours were long, but the experience was so amazing that every one of those hours was worth it. The good thing about the teams was everyone shared the idea of working really hard and doing their best.”
He was able to witness some of the most memorable moments and meet top American athletes along the way.
Gonzalez and his partner were present for the men’s basketball team’s nail-biter of a victory over Serbia, 95-91. The win preceded the USA’s 98-87 victory over France to clinch the gold medal. Seeing the men’s basketball team in person was exciting, he said. “You’re seeing LeBron (James) pass it to (Stephen) Curry and then from Curry to another big star — and then there’s Kevin Durant. Oh my gosh!”
Durant was one of the major stars Gonzalez and his partner interviewed, along with swimmer Katie Ledecky, America’s most-decorated female Olympian. They were on the job when she captured the gold medal with her Olympic-record-setting performance in the 1,500-meter freestyle.
“It was just such a surreal moment to be there and to interview her after the race,” recalled Gonzalez. “She’s very humble. Everyone else just kept walking like they didn’t want to do interviews, but she talked to everyone who wanted to talk to her. She had a really nice aura.”
Other highlights included being on the pitch sidelines to cover the U.S. women’s soccer team’s gold medal victory over Brazil, 1-0, as well as interviewing bespectacled U.S. gymnast Stephen Nedoroscik, who won the pommel horse bronze medal and became an internet sensation.
After the games, Gonzalez’s wife, fellow FGCU alum Laura Ariza, joined him in Paris for some vacation time, after weeks apart. She graduated in the Honors College with degrees in economics and finance in 2014.
“I was over there having a great time, working, doing my thing,” he said. “But I’m definitely happy to be back. The hardest thing was not seeing my wife for four weeks.”
The plum assignment wasn’t something Gonzalez sought out. Tim Klutsarits, the Fort Myers stations’ news director, had recommended him to be considered for Olympics contingent. Gonzalez was shocked to be among the lucky six.
“I thought my news director and my general manager were pranking me when they told me,” said Gonzalez, 32. “I was like, ‘Okay, where’s the camera?’ It was very unexpected. I knew that they’d thrown my name into the pool, but I was honestly very surprised to be selected.”
Gonzalez has been the stations’ director of photojournalism since 2022. Administrative duties occupy much of his time. However, he also is responsible for hiring and training photographers and video editors, which has enabled him to recruit some fellow Eagle alumni.
“I’ve been pretty proud of the work I’ve done finding people from FGCU and bringing them here to be photographers and editors,” he said. “I have a few graduates who are doing an amazing job, and their careers are definitely going the right way.”
