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LONDON - Local volleyball enthusiasts have known Logan Tom for at least 14 years. Olympic followers have seen her around since 2000, but how many really know the person behind the veteran staple on the U.S. Women's Volleyball Team.
Well here is the chance to get to know Tom, open and honest, in her words, "I'm not filtering and I'm not going to."
So, after nearly two decades of volleyball, what does she do to relax?
"I'm human, you know, we all have our moments where we need a little bit of clarity," Tom said. "And how I do that is I take my time away from that and I kind of hermitize myself."
Hermatize, not a real word, but the Stanford graduate gets her meaning across. She has a desire to just be alone, get away from it all. But, at one point the volleyball Olympian might have wanted to get away from another sport.
"Baseball was my first love love sport," Tom said. "I did everything my brother did. He played soccer, I played soccer. He played baseball, I played baseball. It just went like that. He peed standing up, I peed standing up."
She joked about that last part, hopefully, either way she said that she was younger then and doesn't do it anymore. What she doesn't joke about is her role as an influence on people. A few years ago she was voted as one of the 100 hottest women in the world by "Maxim Magazine." She took some racy photos, which she is fine with, but wants her legacy to be more than just as a pretty face.
"It's not that I'm not comfortable with it," Tom said. "I don't mind taking pictures, it's just I'd rather be seen in a different light as a role model."
She was also able to look at her life and change where she was focused in her life.
"I definitely took a step out of that spotlight area, because it just wasn't the right place for me." Tom said.
Part of stepping out of the limelight was feeling comfortable in her skin and who she is as a person.
"Dude, I'm quirky, I'm weird, I'm whatever. I cuss," Tom said. "I'm a girl, I like to shop, but I also like to go camping."
She also has some strong feelings regarding two strong smelling condiments.
But she also likes to unwind and go out to bars to party. Her choice of drink is a little shocking and she gets some questioning looks when she orders it.
"I love scotch," Tom said. "Scotch is my favorite drink."
But in the end she just wants people to be good to everyone.
"I don't judge people, you know what I mean, because I don't want to be judged myself," Tom said. "If you're a good person, you're a good person. If you want to do weird stuff like sniffing your armpit or rubbing your right foot when you go to sleep that's your deal. That's cool, as long as you're a good person I don't care."
