As a keen skier, it is easy for me to get ecstatically excited when the Winter Olympics come around, and at roughly halfway through the games in Sochi, I can say I am not disappointed. However, I’m aware that it’s not for everyone and that some would ask why I care about these sports and competitors at all, especially as Great Britain, without mountains or snow, is at a disadvantage. I would argue that it isn’t just about the sport or nationalism, or even the snow, but about the competitors and the challenges they face, their emotional stories and journeys. I am particularly interested in the women of the Olympics, and despite its controversies in the build-up, Sochi’s events are some of the most gripping and surprising, to date, for female athletes. It is proving to be a wonderful Olympic competition for women around the globe, whether they are world champions, ex-Games medallists, previous Olympians, favourites to win, underdogs, or first-time competitors. The new disciplines that have been introduced are certainly worth it! Here is a little round up of some of the most awesome women from the games.
The British competitors have competed alongside some of the world’s greatest winter athletes but have showed their Olympic mettle and improved rankings. Team GB is placed 17th at the moment, thanks to skeleton athlete, Lizzie Yarnold, who has won Team GB’s only gold medal so far in the competition. This is an absolutely incredible achievement, given that she has only been competitively involved in the sport for three years. She is joining Amy Williams, who won gold in the Vancouver Olympics in 2010. Lizzie had a one-second lead over her nearest competitor at the end of the final. This victory made all of the hard work and training worth it, she said, in interviews with Clare Balding on BBC highlights of the Winter Olympics.
Jenny Jones won the first GB medal with a bronze in an absolutely spectacular show of skill and daring in the Snowboarder Freestyle, which had the commentators, team-mates and spectators screaming with joy and crying with emotion. The first ever GB Olympic medal on snow was overwhelming for spectators and professionals alike.
Chemmy Alcott, in her last Olympics, placed 16th overall and 23rd in her competitions after recovering from a broken leg. She has confessed to having broken 42 bones in the course of her career, but has battled on to compete to the best of her ability alongside the top competitors in her events. How inspiring is that?!
GB women’s curling team are now in the semi-finals; the world champions are on track for a medal with their skip, Eve Muirhead, powering the girls on. The hash tag, ‘#lovecurling’, has been trending on Twitter and it seems the vast majority in Great Britain are going gaga for the bizarre sport. Personally, I don’t understand it, with the ends, the hammer, and what look like squeegee mops, but that doesn’t diminish their achievement, in my eyes, of complete teamwork and determination when it matters.
Elise Christie, British speed skater, has had a difficult games; she was disqualified from two events and targeted by internet trolls as a result. However, she has pulled through to qualify for the quarter-finals in her best event, the 1,000 metres, looking for that so far all-elusive medal.
Zoe Gilling competed in the certifiably crazy and incredibly dangerous sport of Snowboarder Cross. She missed out on qualifying for the finals, losing out by just thirty centimetres after a close photo finish.
Now let’s consider the awesome international women of the games; they have won medal after medal, contest after contest with style and finesse.
Two female downhill skiers made Olympic history by sharing the gold medal, getting exactly the same time, down to the hundredths of a second of one minute, 41.57 seconds. Slovenia’s Tina Maze and Switzerland’s Dominique Gisin both hurtled down the course and shared the podium gladly. This is a kind of sportsmanship and respect that I don’t think you get in the same way at other competitions; everyone wants everyone to do well.
Canadian sisters, Justine and Chloe Dufour-Lapointe, from Montreal, wowed the judges in the Mogul Freestyle, winning gold and bronze medals.
Swedish cross country skier, Charlotte Kaller, made up an impossible thirty-second deficit in the Cross Country Relay, surprising everyone and winning gold for her team. This was incredible to watch and had me and my family jumping on the sofa screaming her on. This was perhaps one of the biggest upsets of the games as they defeated big favourites, Norway.
America’s women half pipe snowboarders outshone the men, even the famous and previously thought-to-be-untouchable Shaun White, who left the games this year without any medal. Kaitlyn Farrington and Kelly Clark edged the tough competition to win gold and bronze medals in very tough slushy conditions.
The newly introduced women’s ski jumping events also captured my attention and admiration. These women athletes demonstrated clearly that they want to, and can do, what men can. Some women have been fighting the IOC to be included in the sport for 90 years, and 17-year-old Sara Takanashi made history when she jumped for the first time in Sochi. However, despite being the hot favourite, she was beaten to gold by Germany’s Carina Vogt.
These women’s achievements are transcendent of sport. Their determination, sportsmanship, ambition, talent, and ability to stay calm under pressure, are inspirational to any girl who wants to go somewhere and be something they dream about. Pursuing what they love with their resilience and enthusiasm is something I aspire to do in future. I’m hardly going to be an Olympian or a sports competitor of any sort (the Edge frightens me more than anything else), but I’d love to be able to say in whatever I chose to apply myself to: “ I gave it my all”, like these athletes have. I can’t wait to see what the rest of the games will bring!
Image Sources:
2) http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/02/14/article-2557854-1B58BA7200000578-96_634x399.jpg
3) http://jto.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/p10-ski-a-20131227-870×590.jpg