February 19th, 2010 Olympic Blog- Golden Day, Silver Lining
Tuesday, December 21, 2010 at 02:50AM It wasn’t how they planned to come into the Vancouver Olympics. Lindsey Vonn was plagued with a shin injury that kept her off snow for almost a full two weeks leading into her first competition, and Julia Mancuso, the 2006 Olympic Giant Slalom gold medalist, was without a single World Cup podium to her name in over two years. Yet the two Americans dominated the women’s downhill race, walking away with gold and silver in what proved to be one of the most dramatic competitions of the 2010 Games so far.
I can’t emphasize enough the magnitude of what Lindsey and Julia accomplished by taking the number one and two positions yesterday. Not only was Lindsey the first American female to win Olympic downhill gold, but it was the first time Americans took two medals in an Olympic alpine skiing competition in over twenty years. What’s more, in a sport where winners are normally determined by mere hundredths of a second, Lindsey and Julia beat the bronze medalist by 1.46 and 0.56 seconds respectively, a huge and convincing margin in ski racing.
What set these two women so far apart from the rest of the field?
According to Thomas Vonn, Lindsey’s husband and closest on-hill companion, “It’s determination.” He claims that his wife is the most determined competitor out there, and that even though her shin injury derailed their original plan coming into the Games, she gritted her teeth and fought through the pain with signature determination.
Likewise, Lindsey admits that because of her shin injury, which forced her to forgo any on-snow training for two weeks leading into the Games and place an exceedingly heavy emphasis on simply “getting healthy,” she did not have the ideal preparation coming into her first race. She couldn’t just coast into the Games on the wake of what’s been a dominant season on the World Cup circuit like she had originally planned. Instead, she had to spend time explaining her injury to media rather than training, and had to undergo hours of physical therapy rather than soak in the opening ceremonies. Every single thing that Lindsey has done for the last four years has been geared toward these Olympics. This setback wasn’t in the plan.
Julia Mancuso has struggled to find the same groove she had during her World Cup dominance three years ago. Her lackluster results the last two seasons caused critics to question whether she’ll ever regain the top form she had during her 2007 run for the overall World Cup title. But despite her extended absence from the podium, Jules said she knew “the speed was there.” She said, “I just never stopped believing in myself,” and maintained faith that her results eventually would come around. Although Julia didn’t exactly have the track record a top skier would like heading into the Olympics, she had unconditional belief in herself.
And she made it work. Julia laid down the run of her life in the Olympic downhill. She skied confidently through the bumpy and challenging course, a course that caused seven racers to ski out or crash. She wasn’t sure her time would hold up, but sure enough, racer after racer failed to challenge her for the top spot.
That is, until teammate Lindsey Vonn came down. The pressure for Lindsey was tremendous. As her former teammate, even I had intense butterflies in my stomach as Lindsey stood in the start gate. But Lindsey did exactly what she does best: compete. The confidence and composure Lindsey brought to her Olympic run was inspiring. It wasn’t a perfect run, but the impressive part was Lindsey’s presence and patience as she kept pointing her skis in the fall line. I was not surprised when Lindsey came down in the lead. She’s the best female skier in the world and she showed why.
Lindsey says that finally achieving her childhood dream of winning Olympic gold is the best feeling she’s ever had in her entire life. When asked about her mindset before the race, Lindsey said, “It’s not as easy as just saying ‘you can do it.’ I knew Julia was nine tenths ahead so I knew I had to ski an aggressive run. No one is going to give it to me for free. I have to go out there and get it. I have to earn it.”
As I listened to Lindsey and Julia reflect on their historic competition in the finish area, I couldn’t help but think, “This is why Americans love the Olympics so much.” It’s the inspiration these athletes so deftly deliver. For both women, things weren’t going exactly as they would have liked leading into the Olympics, but Lindsey and Julia continued to believe in themselves, and both competed with true determination.
No matter who you are, or what you do, we all can relate to Lindsey and Julia’s journey in one way or another. Just like Olympic athletes, every one of us has some degree of drive to be “good.” To be “better.” To be a better parent, a better friend, a better employee, a better citizen. Better at something. And just like athletes, it’s safe to say that we’ve all been against the odds. We’ve all had our plans derailed. We’ve all had our ability questioned.
So what can we take away from the women’s Olympic downhill race?
Setbacks are common. What matters is how you deal with them. As every one of us is certain to face adversity in the future, can we believe in ourselves regardless of circumstance like Julia? Or can we confront challenges with the same gritty determination as Lindsey?
Regardless of what it is you want in life, like Lindsey wisely said, no one is going to give it for you for free. And like Lindsey did, you have to go out there and get it.
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