Olympian Doug Sharp Makes Dreams Come True

By Laura Proctor

The photograph captures a perfect moment in time - four athletes poised on the brink of Olympic history. Wearing aerodynamic suits and spaceman-like helmets, the men are caught in mid-flight - each straining to push a 545-pound bobsled at the start of a run during the 2002 Winter Olympics. The sun glints off the sleek sled like a beacon sent from above. For Doug Sharp, it was.

Just a year earlier, Louisville-area resident Sharp had dreamed of this day. He had it down to the color of the uniforms, design of the bobsled and position of the stands. "I woke up a year to the day," recalls Sharp, of his dream exactly one year before he would stare down an icy track in Park City . "I could describe the uniforms, the sled, the course, the stands.all things that then didn't exist." Sharp shared this vision with his teammates. They thought he was nuts. After standing on the medal podium in Salt Lake City to receive a bronze medal, they reconsidered.

Now 33 year-old Sharp is preparing to make his next dream come true.

After years spent devoted to reaching his Olympic goal, along with a stint in the Army as a member of its World-Class Athlete program, he's developed the toughness and tenacity to make his next vision happen.

"I spent five years on edge 24/7 preparing for the Olympics," explains Sharp. His daily routine included an agonizing hour of weight lifting, followed by a four-hour training session working on high-speed treadmills, hauling heavy sleds on in-line skates and intense sprints - seven days a week. The world of bobsled has few loyalties; witness the last-minute changes on the women's 2002 Olympic team. Sharp knew that if he let his competitive guard down for an instant, he risked being replaced. So he didn't. "I defended my position on the team every second of the day for five years."

When the team wasn't training, they were traveling. Canada , Italy , Switzerland - the list is long. Living an exhausting lifestyle, with little time for a personal life, Sharp's time spent preparing for the Olympics provided a foundation of mental and physical toughness that few can match. Sharp is now ready to funnel that toughness and tenacity towards a new goal, which involves Louisville and over 15,000 sq. ft. of real estate on River Road.

SHARP'S NEW GOAL

Utilizing his chiropractic degree from the Palmer College of Chiropractic in Davenport , Iowa , along with his extensive athletic background, Sharp recently launched Proformance, a chiropractic and massage therapy center geared to help athletes and others receive hands-on care from a world-class competitor. As a person who lives with two crushed vertebrae, thanks to years withstanding the multiple G-forces of world-class bobsledding, Sharp understands how to help athletes of all abilities manage aches and pains while continuing to train. His experience with athletes is extensive. While preparing for the Olympics, Sharp regularly gave chiropractic care to members of Team Canada , Latvia and the U.S. Virgin Islands bobsled teams - much to the chagrin of his teammates.

Sharp's chiropractic center isn't limited to treating just athletes, though. It's designed to be a family practice, helping individuals of all shapes and sizes lead more comfortable lives.

Along with Proformance chiropractic, Sharp and partner Cary Cox will also open a 4,000-sq.-ft. training studio and a 10,000-sq.-ft. Velocity Sports Performance center. Modeled after similar training studios in larger metropolises, the center will allow both youth and adult athletes to ratchet up their performances through the use of Olympic-based training methods. Cox, a popular personal trainer with a master's degree in sports management from the University of Louisville , will help serious young athletes increase their abilities to compete in their chosen sports, as well as adults looking for a world-class workout. Sharp and Cox will be joined by Wendy Wormel, the former strength and conditioning coach for U of L's track and field, soccer and softball teams.

Sharp hopes to quickly build up Proformance's clientele and then work to expand the Velocity Sports Center . In the near future he intends to add an oxygen deprivation chamber, one that has athletes performing workouts in a reduced oxygen atmosphere, allowing them to naturally increase their ability to utilize oxygen and increase cardiovascular performance. The chamber would be a boon to local climbers looking to mimic the demands of mountaineering. In short, the training center would give Kentuckiana athletes a chance to ramp up their performances under expert guidance.

U of L's pole-vaulting team is a prime example of the results Sharp can get with a group of athletes. A Conference Champion in pole-vault during his college years at Purdue who narrowly missed qualifying for the '96 Olympic team, Sharp has quickly taken U of L's pole-vaulting program from a state of non-existence to that of a contender. In the past five years, Sharp has helped produce three conference champions, five in the top five, and two national regional NCAA qualifiers. He plans on continuing his work with U of L's track team even as he develops his chiropractic/sports business.

Sharp has done more than develop a business plan since the 2002 Olympics, though. He has traveled to 38 states and eight countries on an Army-mandated speaking tour, visited the White House and Pentagon, coached and briefly played for the Louisville Fire football team, served as the assistant coach to the U of L men's track team and raced Indy cars. Whew! Through it all, Sharp has maintained a physique of Olympic proportions, looking like he could don a skintight suit and launch a bobsled at any moment. And in fact, he has. Just last year Sharp donned his spikes and helmet and pushed the U.S. four-man bobsled team to a top-ten finish in the World Championships.

Yes, he still has a need for speed. The charismatic young man now gets his adrenaline rush by guiding racecars at 200+ miles per hour on the U.S. Speedway Series. It's a hobby that he hopes to be able to continue once his business venture becomes established.

The variety of endeavors in which Sharp has immersed himself illustrates the tremendous energy the handsome blonde exudes. Yet, he admits he's at a crossroads. Once listed as one of People magazine's Top 50 Bachelors, a part of Sharp would like to give up his single ways and settle down in Louisville , a place that now feels like home. "I like Louisville ," says the Michigan native. "I've been around the world.lived everywhere. I like the fact that Louisville is small and relatively hidden, yet it has a purpose with the Derby ."

Yet the next Olympics continue to beckon. "It was a five-year passion.there's now a void in my life." Sharp regularly receives phone calls from former Olympic teammate Brian Shimer, who now serves as the U.S. men's Olympic bobsled coach. Shimer's desire to have Sharp on the 2006 Olympic team tugs at Sharp. "It's the call of the wild," laughs Sharp. "The wolves are out there screaming. I'm staying fit in order to go back. I'm a dream chaser."

Yet deep down, he's not really ready to go. "It's such a tough lifestyle.I'd be gone ten and a half months of the year, traveling with a bunch of guys." Instead, Sharp would rather make his next dream a reality. This one includes developing a successful business, continuing to coach at U of L and racing fast Indy cars on the side.

Laura Proctor is an area real estate agent who writes in her free time.

Sidebar

Doug Sharp's Proformance and the Velocity Sports Performance Center are located at 2041A River Road . Call 502-895-4447 for more information.