Obama adds presidential buzz to KC
President Barack Obama told the world on Wednesday that “something is going on with Kansas City.”
“It’s a pretty good day to be from Kansas City, ” the president said to a KC-friendly audience at the White House on Wednesday. “You guys are feeling kind of cocky right now.”
To see the video of Wednesday’s meeting between the president and Sporting KC, go to http://www.sportingkc.com/
President Barack Obama points to a framed team jersey that was given to him by the members of the Sporting Kansas City soccer team during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, where he honored the 2013 Major League Soccer champions.
Kansas City took center stage Wednesday when Sporting Kansas City players and coaches met the president for a ceremony to celebrate their current MLS Championship. Obama joked around with the team and congratulated players, coaches and support personnel on their successes before posing for a photo in the East Room of the White House.
Obama also gave kudos for the latest KC sports roll, including the Chiefs’ NFL win on Monday night; the Royals’ dramatic MLB wild card win on Tuesday night, and the outpouring of local support for the summer World Cup tournament.
“Clearly, something is going on in Kansas City,” he said. “But, apparently, these guys (Sporting KC) are the ones that got it all started… they got the ball rolling.”
The president gave kudos to Sporting KC for its accomplishments on the field and off, and provided shout-outs to two of Sporting’s neighrbors in Downtown — the Power & Light District and the Kansas City Ballet.
“It seems like 10 minutes couldn’t pass (last summer during the World Cup tournament) without seeing live shots of thousands of fans crowding the Power & Light District and cheering on Team USA,” the president said. “As soccer continues to grow here in the United States, it does so in large part because of the great example of dedicated fans in Kansas City.”
The president also gave kudos and humor to Sporting KC players for embracing Kansas City in several ways, including the Kansas City Ballet.
“You’ve got Seth Senovic, assistant coach Kerry Zavagnin and goalkeeper Jimmy Nelson, who all made their debuts with the Kansas City Ballet (in The Nutcracker) last year. That’s impressive,” he said with a laugh. “They got to bring the (MLS Cup) trophy with them on stage to distract the audience from their limited ballet skills.”
