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Maggie Steffens asked for more support for the U.S. women\u2019s water polo team, and the captain received one particularly surprising response.<\/p>\n
From a clock-wearing rap icon.<\/p>\n
Moved by\u00a0Steffens\u2019 Instagram post<\/a>, Flavor Flav has stepped forward to help the\u00a0U.S. team<\/a>\u00a0as it goes for an unprecedented fourth consecutive gold medal at the\u00a0Paris Olympics<\/a>\u00a0this summer. He is finalizing a deal that will make him a USA Water Polo sponsor and the official hype man for a program seeking a bigger spotlight.<\/p>\n The 65-year-old Flav, a founding member and hype man with Public Enemy, has jumped headfirst into his new duties, highlighting some of the team\u2019s best players on\u00a0social media<\/a>. He also is making plans to watch the women\u2019s team play in Paris.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I come out and I watch this water polo team \u2026 \u2018USA! USA!\u2019 Yo, I\u2019m going to be the biggest hype man that they ever had in their life,\u201d he told the AP on Friday. \u201cI\u2019m going to be bigger than any cheerleader that they had in their life. I\u2019m going to cheer this team on, and I\u2019m going to cheer this team into winning a gold medal.\u201d<\/p>\n Winning has been the usual result for the U.S. women\u2019s team since the 2012 Olympics<\/a>. But it hasn\u2019t attracted the same attention or support as similarly dominant American programs, largely because water polo remains a niche sport throughout most of the world.<\/p>\n That \u2014 along with a little nostalgia \u2014 prompted Steffens, 30, the last remaining member of the 2012 team, to post on Instagram<\/a>. While expressing gratitude for the opportunity to play and her love for her sport, she also encouraged anyone reading the post to check out her team and highlighted the constant financial struggle for most Olympic athletes.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve gotten a lot of comments you know of \u2018Oh, it\u2019s so cool what you\u2019ve done. Bummer you\u2019re not a soccer player or a basketball player, because your team would be getting way more publicity or way more support,\u2019\u201d Steffens said Friday from Paris, where the team is on a training trip ahead of the Olympics.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd instead we\u2019re still kind of where we were at 12 years ago, which for me isn\u2019t my goal. I\u2019ve always wanted to propel the sport forward.\u201d<\/p>\n Enter Flav, who was inducted with the group Public Enemy into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013. Flav\u2019s manager brought the post to his attention, and he decided he wanted to help.<\/p>\n \u201cOne thing about me, I know what it feels like to want to see a dream come true,\u201d said Flav, who is known for wearing a big clock on a chain around his neck. \u201cI know what it feels like to want to achieve a goal, and I\u2019m the type of person that, if I see you trying, then I\u2019m going to do whatever I can to help you.\u201d<\/p>\n Steffens said it was \u201cvery surreal\u201d when Flav \u2014 whose legal name is William Jonathan Drayton Jr. \u2014 reached out. Asked what she knew about Flav and Public Enemy before the connection, Steffens promptly imitated Flav\u2019s frequent \u201cFlavor Flav!\u201d declaration.<\/p>\n Steffens is one of the oldest players on the U.S. team, but she said Ryann Neushul, 24, had Public Enemy in her top five on the music streaming service, Spotify<\/a>. A couple of the team\u2019s coaches and Steffens\u2019 family also were excited about the partnership.<\/p>\n \u201cMy whole family was like \u2018Is this real? Flav is part of the water polo world now?\u2019\u201d Steffens said. \u201cI was like \u2018I don\u2019t know what\u2019s going on, but I want to wear a clock right now and that\u2019s how I\u2019m feeling.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Steffens and the U.S. team also have another high-profile supporter in\u00a0Taylor Swift<\/a>. They attended the musician\u2019s Eras Tour concert on Friday night at La D\u00e9fense Arena \u2014 the venue for the women\u2019s water polo final on Aug. 10.<\/p>\n Women\u2019s national team manager Ally Beck reached out to Swift\u2019s camp and\u00a0surprised the team<\/a>\u00a0with the tickets. Flav said he also contacted Swift\u2019s team, but the tickets had already been approved.<\/p>\n Flav, who is working on another tour with Public Enemy that could begin later this year, then held up a T-shirt with his picture that read \u201cKING SWIFTIE.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m proud to support Taylor. \u2026 Flavor Flav is a Swiftie, the king of all the Swifties,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n That\u2019s another connection Flav has with his new favorite team.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nSubscribe to The Broadsheet newsletter to stay updated on the world’s most powerful women in business. Sign up<\/a> for free.<\/div>\n