You would think a Canadian, coming from a place with all that snow, would have skied cross country faster at some time since the Winter Games began in 1924.
But Friday at Soldier Hollow, Beckie Scott not only did something no other Canadian could do, but by earning a bronze medal in women’s pursuit won only the second cross-country skiing medal ever by a North American. And in a photo finish too.
The only other time any skier from Canada or the United States, male or female, won a medal was 1976, when American Bill Koch took silver in the 30 kilometers.
Scott has made American connections. Her boyfriend is U.S. Olympian Justin Wadsworth, and she and Canadian teammates trained extensively right in the Salt Lake City region to get used to the 5,600-foot altitude on the hilly course.
“We decided we’re not going to be mediocre anymore,” said Scott, 27, of Canmore, Alberta. “I’m comfortable with the altitude. I’m comfortable with the terrain.”
Now she’s comfortable with the awards podium.
It was no surprise that Russian women, Olga Danilova, 31, and Larissa Lazutina, 36, took gold and silver, respectively, although Lazutina, who won her ninth Olympic medal, was a better bet.
To say that North American cross-country fans had never seen anything like this was true in more than one sense. Crowds like this–13,406 strong, screaming, swinging cowbells–are unprecedented outside of Europe.
“On the last hill, everyone was chanting, `Nina! Nina!'” said top American Nina Kemppel, who placed 32nd.
The pursuit itself is a little-known discipline. At 9 a.m., 73 starters left the stadium at 30-second intervals to ski 5 kilometers in classical style over a rugged course. The top 50 finishers then had less than two hours’ rest before skiing 5 kilometers in the skate style. This time they left in bunches, in the order of the morning result–a full-fledged chase.
Fans couldn’t cheer fast enough when names were announced. The World Cup circuit is planning an experimental pursuit in Sweden in a couple of weeks, eliminating the rest gap altogether.
All four Americans who raced–Kemppel, Wendy Wagner, Aelin Peterson and Kikkan Randall–are from Alaska, making the sparsely populated state a country unto itself Friday. Only Kemppel and Wagner, who was 50th, advanced to the final.
Danilova and Lazutina finished the first 5 kilometers in a virtual dead heat. Scott was sixth. But the Russians broke from the pack on the hills in the second race. Lazutina tried to shadow Danilova.
Danilova said she was trying to conserve strength, but approaching the stadium knew “I had to risk it.” She opened daylight on Lazutina and won in a combined time of 24 minutes 52.1 seconds, 6.9 seconds ahead of Lazutina.
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Scott, whose best finish in four individual events in the 1998 Games in Nagano was 45th, approached the finish in a pack of seven. She dug deepest. In the mad sprint for the line, she edged Katerina Neumannova of the Czech Republic by one-tenth of a second. Less than seven seconds separated bronze from ninth place.
“This has been 10 years in the making,” a happy Scott said. “It means so much for our sport and our country. I’d like to think a lot of people can share in this medal. It means the world.”
Friday the world was watching.