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"    SOCHI, Russia - Iouri Podladtchikov says, &amp;quot;Did that really happen? Did I do what I needed to do?&amp;quot; with red eyes still drunk as I bounce my one year-old daughter on his face to wake him up. &amp;quot;Seriously,&amp;quot; he says, &amp;quot;that is crazy. That is fucking crazy.&amp;quot; I make her kick his Adam&amp;#039;s apple. Yes, Iouri Podladtchikov did what he needed to do. He smashed Shaun White and the rest of the field on his pipe, in his country, while his people went mad in the stands. He did what Col. Ivan Drago should have done to Rocky Balboa and actually landed the knockout shot. Boom! And he stood there, head thrown back to the sky, getting his flowers atop a makeshift podium (his medal will come tonight) and the world was at his feet. So what happens after the exact moment of sporting glory in the life of an Olympic gold medalist? 11:15 p.m. He gets his flowers atop a makeshift podium and the two Japanese kids he beat frown on both his sides. Mashable&amp;#039;s story on the moment is one of forgiveness. They forgive him, on behalf of America, for his &amp;quot;adorable reaction to his epic performance that made us OK with seeing him win over Team USA&amp;#039;s Shaun White.&amp;quot;  11:30 p.m. An International Olympic Committee doping agent rushes to his side in order to capture his urine. Athletes who medal have exactly one hour from the end of competition to prove that they are drug free. He will escort him directly to the IOC sanctioned bathroom. 11:31 p.m. But an adoring press blocks their way! Iouri cannot help but smile and talk and revel in the moment. Each of their questions is a delicious morsel that he savors. He takes time in answering questions. He is thoughtful. Part of this may be because his father is a famous scientist and his mother a famous mathematician. Iouri was born with lots of brains. At the press conference, Iouri answered five different national press corps questions in five different languages. Part of this is also because he is the rare athlete/public figure that is not cowed by the possibility of negative press. Iouri Podladtchikov does not care. He says what he feels. He says what he wants. 12:29 a.m. He urinates in front of an unsmiling Frenchman. 12:35 a.m. One more interview with Swiss television that is, for some reason, being broadcast live in Switzerland even though it is the small hours there. Iouri is still beaming, still talking, still reveling. 12:50 a.m. He is mobbed by fans as he leaves the press tent. Even though he is absurdly narcissistic, he has a child-like wonderment about him and cannot believe the people are here for him. He cannot believe he did what he needed to do -- that he won and Olympic gold medal by beating the prohibitive odds-on favorite. He loves the attention and he humbly appreciates the attention. 12:50 a.m. He is driven to the Swiss team house where he is slapped on the back and given alcohol and changes out of his snowboard kit into a fresh outfit. The Swiss are thrilled. Certainly, Iouri is Russian but he has lived in Switzerland almost his entire life. He just bought a new apartment in Zurich and I asked him why. Why not Paris or LA? And he says, &amp;quot;Because Zurich is the most beautiful city in the world.&amp;quot; He parties with the Swiss and soaks in their patriotic congratulations for being the first Swiss ever to win a halfpipe gold medal. 2:10 a.m. He is driven back to the dacha. Everyone in the house and his entire family retreat to an Irish pub and drink and dance and drink and dance. A group of Swiss alphorn players show up dressed in traditional Swiss garb and blow their alphorns. A Russian mobster wearing a thick gold Orthodox cross necklace steals my one year-old daughter, puts his necklace around her neck, and carries her around like a little doll. I guess she is vory v zakone, a &amp;quot;thief-in-law,&amp;quot; now. There is nothing I can do. She has always been fierce. 6:00 a.m. Bed? 8:50 a.m. I wake Iouri up by making my little Russian mobster daughter kick him in the Adam&amp;#039;s apple. He has more press to do and now is not the time for sleep. And what will the coming hours and days look like for Iouri Podladtchikov? They will look crazy. His last answer at the press conference when asked, &amp;quot;What&amp;#039;s next?&amp;quot; was to say, &amp;quot;I am going to shoot the cover of Vogue.&amp;quot; But to get there he has a job to do and there won&amp;#039;t be time for sleep. There will only be time for him to get United States famous and replace cardboard Roger Federer as the face of Switzerland. To do that, my powerful and successful agent wife says he needs to date an American starlet. I don&amp;#039;t think Phantogram&amp;#039;s Sarah Barthel -- Shaun White&amp;#039;s girl -- will cut it anymore. I think he needs Taylor Swift. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.esquire.com/sports/news/a27315/ten-hours-with-iouri/>