Bridget Sloan, a former University of Florida gymnast and U.S. Olympic silver medalist, will be working for NBC to help cover the 2016 Olympics in Rio.
Sloan secured a temporary job covering the Summer Olympics as part of NBC’s digital media team in August.
During her four years at Florida, Sloan became the school’s record holder in the vault, bars, beam, floor and all-around portions, earning six individual first-place titles at the NCAA Championships.
“I’m just a firm believer that everything has to come an end,” said Sloan, who earned a degree in telecommunications. “I didn’t have a hard time saying, alright, my career is done. But I did have a little bit of a hard time thinking, ‘What do I do now?’”
Her job search included a stint running the Twitter account for State Farm Insurance, said Sloan, who will be working for NBC through August. She said she isn't sure what she’ll do after that.
“As athletes, we’ve always had a schedule. We’ve always known what’s coming next,” Sloan said. “And you dedicate so much time, and then at the end, it’s kind of like, 'Oh, shoot. My sport is over.' I’m not exactly sure what I’m supposed to do now, but it’s time to try new things.”
In addition to Sloan, two other former Gators will be covering the Rio Olympics for a media affiliate. Two-time Olympic gold medalist and FIFA Women's World Cup champion, Abby Wambach, will work as a TV announcer for the soccer portion of NBC’s coverage, and 1999 Pan American Games silver medalist Janelle Atkinson-Wignall will work with ESPN as part of its swimming coverage.
Competing in Rio are 31 current and former Florida athletes, including representatives from UF’s track and field, swimming, golf and volleyball teams.
Among the most notable is Caeleb Dressel, the 2016 NCAA swimming champion in the 50-yard freestyle and 100-yard freestyle, who will compete in the 100-meter freestyle and the 4x100-meter freestyle relay in Rio.
The Summer Olympics in Rio begin Aug. 5, and Sloan will begin her training for NBC Aug. 1.
“Ultimately, I really don’t know exactly what my job is going to entail,” Sloan said. “But it should be fun.”