Gold Medal Comeback: How a CEO Rebuilt a Broken Team and Made Olympic & Paralympic History (Phil Andrews)

Episode 410

Winning gold didn’t end the pressure. It intensified it.

A truth Phil Andrews, CEO of USA Fencing, came to understand through experience.

That’s the incredible story behind Team USA’s recent historic gold…

…and the leadership turnaround that made it possible.

When I sat down with Phil, I wasn’t expecting what came next.

He walked into a sport in crisis.

Broken culture. 

Divided membership. 

Declining trust. 

High visibility. 

Zero margin for error.

And somehow, he rebuilt all of it…before making Olympic & Paralympic history.

But not long after the gold, the pressure shifted…. 

Public controversy. 

Intense scrutiny. 

And—death threats no leader should ever face.

Leaders talk about “high stakes.”

BUT this is what high stakes actually looks like.

Phil shares:

• The day-one move that stabilized a fractured team 

• The bold Olympic decision that changed everything 

• The backlash that hit not long after the gold 

• How he led through threats, scrutiny, and congressional attention 

• The leadership tools he relied on when everything was on the line

This is a powerful story of crisis leadership, culture repair, and resilience.

If you’ve ever led under pressure, you’ll never forget this lesson.

What’s one leadership lesson pressure taught you?

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Published on 5 days, 7 hours ago

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