By Mark Couch

A couple days before I left to begin my semester in D.C., I thought about how I would be interning for Monumental Sports & Entertainment and getting to see the D.C. sports scene first hand. I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect, but I figured it would be a good time.

My experience at Monumental has been everything I thought it would be and then some. I’ve gotten to meet and talk to some of the most high profile athletes in sports; there’s nothing like going into work every day and wondering who I’ll meet next.

First I met John Wall, Bradley Beal and the rest of the Wizards. They’re a fun team to be around and all the guys have great senses of humor. The fans love to come out and support their franchise point guard, John Wall.

Next, I met all the Capitals. That was extremely exciting for me because I’m a huge hockey fan. Meeting Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, T.J. Oshie and the rest of the guys was amazing. I was able to work the Rock the Red Carpet event at their home opener in October and that was a blast. Hearing those guys joke around off the ice was a fan’s dream and being able to watch them play two-touch every night in the tunnels of Verizon Center is truly a privilege.

I’ve also gotten to meet three-fifths of the Final Five, the U.S. gymnastics team that won gold in Rio over the summer, when they stopped at Verizon Center during their Tour of Gymnastics Champions. I had the pleasure of meeting and talking to Simone Biles and Aly Raisman, as well as 2008 Olympic gymnasts Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin.

Thanks to WMI, I’ve had the opportunity of a lifetime to be able to work in sports and meet all these incredible athletes and role models. Creating a relationship with some of the Capitals and Wizards players has been amazing, and I’ve truly created memories that will last a lifetime.

Originally posted December 5, 2016