Throughout my lifetime, I have been inspired by courageous women who have broken boundaries in the realm of sports. The resilience and determination of these individuals is inspirational because the journey reaching their dreams can be challenging. The Winter Olympics have become a grand sporting event where women from all around the world compete at the highest level. Here are eight female individuals and groups that have captured our hearts and inspired us this winter.
1. The Nigerian Women’s Bobsled Team
Seun Adigun, Ngozi Onwumere and Akuoma Omeoga are a trio of Nigerian women who made history by being the first African women to compete in bobsled.
Photo courtesy of CNN.com
2. Snowboarder Chloe Kim of The United States of America
Even though Chloe Kim is only 17 years old, she became the youngest person to win an Olympic gold medal in the snowboard halfpipe. She has been snowboarding ever since was 4, and even trained in Valais, Switzerland during her childhood.
Photo courtesy of NBCOlympics.com
3. Figure Skater Alina Zagitova of Russia
Although Russia was banned from competing in the Olympics due to doping crimes, Alina participated as a “neutral athlete from Russia,” and won the gold medal in ladies single figure skating.
Photo courtesy of HuffingtonPost.com
4. Snowboarder Anna Gasser of Austria
While Anna Gasser had always dreamed of being a professional gymnast, it wasn’t until she was 18 that she decided to seriously pursue snowboarding. Lucky that she did considering she just won the gold medal for snowboarding in women’s big air.
Photo courtesy of Pyeongchang2018.com
5. Alpine Skier Michelle Gisen of Switzerland
Although the United States’ Mikaela Shiffrin was the favorite to win the combined event in Alpine Skiing, Michelle Gisen of Switzerland, who is only 24, edged out her veteran opponent to win her first ever gold medal.
Photo courtesy of TheWashingtonPost.com
6. Speed Skater Nao Kodaira of Japan
Nao Kodaira became the fifth Japanese women to win an Olympic medal in speed skating. She recently won the gold medal in an exciting, close race by beating the defending two-time champion Lee Seung-Hwa from South Korea.
Photo courtesy of YahooSports.com
7. Biathlete Anastasiya Kuzmina of Slovakia
Anastasiya Kuzmina had already won two silver medals before winning the gold in Women’s 12.5km Mass Start. Even though she was born in Russia, she has represented her home country, Slovakia, ever since her Olympic debut in 2008.
Photo courtesy of NBCOlympics.com
8. Short Track Speed Skater Suzanne Schulting of Netherlands
While the Netherlands are notorious for dominating in speed skating, they have not necessarily made the same mark in short track. This changed when Suzanne Schulting won the gold medal in 1000 meter short track speed skating, a milestone achievement for her country.
Photo courtesy of TheScore.com