BEN WATERWORTH

Ben's Olympic obsession began at the age of five, watching Kieren Perkins and Kathy Watt win gold for Australia at the Barcelona 1992 Olympics. Like many kids, he dreamed of one day becoming an Olympian himself, before several humbling encounters with future field hockey legend Eddie Ockenden helped him realise talking about the Olympics might be a slightly safer path.

That path has since taken Ben across more than 20 years in media, beginning as a 17-year-old when he was hand-picked to host his own radio show on Hobart’s Edge Radio. Since then, his award winning journalism career has seen him work across print, radio, podcasting and digital media in Australia, New Zealand and Canada, interviewing some of the biggest names in sport, entertainment and politics along the way.

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His Olympic experience extends beyond Off The Podium, having worked as a researcher for Channel 7 during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and as a journalist and digital content creator with the Australian Olympic Team at Paris 2024. Paris also marked the first Olympics he attended in person, before he backed it up by heading to the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics for his first Winter Games. He is also the man behind Hobart’s unlikely bid for the 2020 Olympics, a joke that went much further than expected and still leaves him mildly bitter that Tokyo somehow won out.

Equal parts Olympic tragic, broadcaster and dreamer, Ben brings passion, experience and a lifetime of Olympic love to every episode of

Off The Podium.

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COLIN HILDING

Colin’s Olympic love story began with missed chances, near misses and one very Canadian spark. After narrowly missing the opportunity to attend the Seoul 1988 Olympics as a child, as well as a visit to Calgary Olympic Park, his interest in the Games truly began to take hold while watching the Barcelona 1992 Olympics at home during summer vacation.

That interest became a full-blown obsession four years later during the Atlanta 1996 Olympics, when Donovan Bailey stormed to gold in the men’s 100 metres for Canada. From that moment, Colin was hooked, following every Games across the next three decades with the kind of passion, pride and increasingly specific opinions that could only lead to one place.

After eventually accepting that his own Olympic dream may not quite happen, Colin found the next best thing in 2016 when he joined forces with Ben and Jarrod to create Off The Podium. What began as three Olympic tragics talking, joking and dissecting their way through the Rio Games soon grew into something far bigger, giving Colin the chance to share his love of the Olympics with fans and athletes around the world.

Based in Winnipeg, Colin brings a proudly Canadian perspective to the show, along with a deep love of winter sport, a particular expertise in moguls and a continued ability to have an opinion on almost anything Olympic-related. Having now interviewed many of the athletes he once grew up admiring, Colin remains one of the driving voices behind Off The Podium and its never-ending celebration of the Games.

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JARROD LOOBEEK

Hailing from the Land of Emus in the world's favourite Olympic city, Jarrod’s Olympic journey began with Sydney 2000 and the unforgettable buzz of a home Games. While he did not attend any of the competition events in person, the atmosphere surrounding the Olympics was impossible to miss, from the citywide excitement to his own star turn dancing in the local torch relay celebrations while costumed in a garish sequinned top and coverall “space suit”, topped off with a ribbon routine.

That early taste of Olympic magic was enough to spark a lifelong love of all things Games-related. Growing up wanting to be a professional athlete, (insert long list of failed sporting pursuits here), the Olympics became a natural fit for Jarrod’s competitive personality and endless fascination with sport in all its weird, wonderful and occasionally confusing forms.

Unbothered by logistics, scheduling or the increasingly absurd challenge of trying to follow everything at once, Jarrod is a firm believer that the more sports included, the better. He particularly appreciates the way the Olympics can shine a light on events that rarely receive mainstream attention, giving athletes from every corner of the sporting world their moment to be seen, celebrated and over-analysed.

When Ben and Colin approached him in 2016 about branching out from the Survivor Oz podcast to create Off The Podium, it was an immediate no-brainer. Since then, Jarrod has enjoyed appearing on Games recap and review episodes, bringing his humour, passion and strong opinions to the show’s ongoing Olympic deep dives. As a wise man once said, “mogul, mogul, mogul”.​

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JAMIE LYKO

Jamie’s Olympic love story began at age three, watching his extended family of rabid New Englanders erupt as the United States hockey team beat the Soviet Union at Lake Placid 1980. He had no idea what was happening, but by the Los Angeles 1984 Olympics he was captivated by the Games, from Carl Lewis and Chris Mullin to Mary Lou Retton and swimmer Tracey Caulkins, who he hoped could be his babysitter because she might be fast enough to save him from Jaws.

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That early fascination became a lifelong obsession, eventually taking him to the Atlanta 1996 Olympics, where he saw Donovan Bailey and Michael Johnson set world records in person. Jamie later competed in collegiate track and field at the University of Connecticut, dreaming of one day reaching the Olympic Trials. He never came close, but his passion for the history of the Games and their place in global culture only continued to grow.

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Based in California, Jamie brings a proudly American perspective to Off The Podium, along with a deep love of Olympic history, obscure stories and the complicated legacy of the Games. Away from the show, he has also been working on a book about the 1980 U.S.-led boycott of the Moscow Olympics, further proving his credentials as a fully fledged Olympic obsessive.

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After years of following the show from afar, Jamie joined Off The Podium as an official host in 2025 and helped lead the creation of the Games Review episodes, diving into every Olympics in the history of the modern Games. He is extremely grateful to be part of the OTP fold, even if it means being the regular target of Ben and Colin’s jokes about Americans.

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