For American speedskater Derek Parra, there’s only one way to focus before a big race.
There’s only one way he can calm his nerves, channel his energy and prepare to take on the world in the 5,000 meters, one of the events that kicks off the Winter Olympics on Saturday.
Fig Newtons.
Parra gorges an entire pack every night before a big race, a superstition he says gives him “tunnel vision.” But when you consider the Americans are big underdogs in long-track speedskating, with the top medals expected to go to dominant Dutch and German skaters, Parra’s strategy may be as good as any.
The Utah Olympic Oval is 4,675 feet above sea level and is the highest speedskating arena in the world. It has also been called the fastest. As the altitude increases, the harder the ice gets. Combine that with dry air and low air pressure and world records are very likely to fall. In World Cup competition on the oval in March, five world records fell in 10 events.
Parra and fellow American KC Boutiette made the Olympic team in 1998, but neither finished higher than fifth in Nagano, Japan. Still, Parra earned a silver medal at the 2001 World Single Distance Championships in the 1,500, and Boutiette finished eighth in the 5,000.
“I would say two years ago [our team] wasn’t that good,” said Boutiette, the American record-holder in both the 5,000 and 10,000.
“Then all of a sudden, we grew off each other and became strong. It’s confidence too.”
Ultimately the 5,000 suffers from a lack of star power because of the absence of world record-holder Gianni Romme of the Netherlands. Romme surprisingly failed to qualify for the Dutch team in the 5,000, an event he won at Nagano. Jochem Uytdehaage, who is peaking after a strong World Cup season, is considered the favorite.
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Kevin Van Valkenburg is a staff reporter for the Baltimore Sun, a Tribune newspaper.