Opinion

Erin Jackson, Brittany Bowe and the heroic gesture that led to Winter Olympics gold – Best of Beijing

ByBen Snowball

Updated 29/03/2022 at 12:51 GMT

Erin Jackson became an Olympic champion on Sunday – but it could have been completely different had American team-mate and childhood friend Brittany Bowe not given up her own spot so she could compete. Elsewhere, Marco Odermatt tamed a blizzard to win the men’s super-G and the victorious Dutch short track relay starts paid tribute to their late colleague Lara van Ruijven.

Erin Jackson and Brittany Bowe speak to the media

Image credit: Getty Images

BEST MOMENTS OF DAY 9

Bessies for life

We all need a friend like Brittany Bowe.

Beijing 2022

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Erin Jackson’s dream of reaching the Beijing Olympics looked over after she stumbled in the 500m to finish outside the qualification spots at the American trials. Bowe won the race but after realising the plight of her childhood friend, gave up her spot to allow Jackson a shot at glory.

The heroic gesture paid off. Jackson ripped to the 500m title in the Chinese capital, beating Japan’s Miho Takagi by eight hundredths of a second, for her first Olympic medal. She qualified for the last Games in South Korea after just four months on the ice, having transitioned from inline skating.

In the end, Bowe was also able to compete in Beijing after a late withdrawal. The 2018 bronze relay medallist didn’t have a narrative-busting run in her, however, as she finished off the pace in 16th. It seems only right that both athletes are given gold medals – or, failing that, the Olympic hacksaw (we assume one exists) slices the medal in two during the ceremony.

Any Team GB athletes who want to give us their spot in Milan-Cortina 2026, just let us know.

'She strikes gold' - USA's Jackson celebrates stunning speed skating triumph

Odermatt conquers blizzard

It’s hard to have too much sympathy for skiers who struggle because it’s snowing.

Then again, after an Olympics dominated by talk of China’s artificial white snow, the Beijing weather gods decided to turn on the tap to the real stuff – and it looked brutal. It led to a blizzard in the men’s giant slalom and boy oh boy did it make things interesting on the slopes.

In chaotic scenes, the skiers could barely make out more than a few flags in the distance as they were forced to trust their instincts. For many, 33 on the first run, seven on the second, it was all too much as the DNF tally ramped up.

Slovenia’s Zan Kranjec led the way after a gung-ho run, with the six skiers after him unable to match his blistering, wild pace. It was down to first run leader Marco Odermatt to snatch gold away on the final run – and he did exactly that after surviving more than a few scares.

There was also a beautiful story as Benjamin Alexander became Jamaica’s first ever Olympic skier. Although he didn’t crash and a have an emotional finish, we’re sure Disney bosses are already wondering how they can tweak events to make a Cool Runnings sequel. After all, they didn’t stick to the whole truth in the first film…

'Just holds on' - Odermatt grabs thrilling gold in giant slalom at Beijing 2022

Van Ruijven remembered

In July 2020, Dutch short track star Lara van Ruijven died from complications caused by an autoimmune disorder in 2020. She was part of the team that won bronze at Pyeongchang 2018.

In their first Olympic final since that day, the Dutch quartet of Suzanne Schulting, Selma Poutsma, Xandra Velzeboer and Yara van Kerkhof won gold in Beijing before blowing a kiss for their late team-mate.

"Lara is very close to our hearts," said Schulting. "And we are very proud to have won the Olympic championship."

IN OTHER NEWS

The words ‘search party’ usually send a shiver down the spine – but that wasn’t the case during the men’s giant slalom after a hunt was launched for an escape-ski.

‘Send some people, we need to find the ski!’ – Official ‘doesn’t understand’ after ski lost in snow

Meanwhile, everyone’s favourite image from the Winter Games sparked a new idea…

THREE TO WATCH ON MONDAY

Ice dance - free dance (01:15 GMT)

It’s that time of year where for one Sunday night, we stay up into the early hours to watch spectacular sport. We’re not talking about the Super Bowl - instead, feast your eyes on a stunning conclusion to figure skating’s ice dance competition, which French pair Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron lead after a frankly beautiful rhythm dance on Saturday.

They look pretty much unbeatable in that form, but Victoria Sinitsina and Nikita Katsalapov of the Russian Olympic Committee are their nearest rivals - though they trail by almost two clear points.

Music selection is half the fun and there is a treat in store for Hans Zimmer fans - the British pair of Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson start 10th and will skate to The Lion King, while Canadians Laurence Beaudry Fournier and Nikolaj Soerensen have picked the Gladiator soundtrack for their dance.

Spare a thought as well for Madison Hubbell and Adrian Diaz - couples off the ice but rivals on it - in what is likely to be a rather awkward Valentine’s Day.

Bobsleigh - two-man (from 12:05 GMT)

We have resisted the urge to write the ‘are Team GB going to return home empty handed for the first time since 1992’ story so far…we’re far more positive here…

There’s reason to be too, because Brad Hall has put together a team which finished fourth on the World Cup circuit in the 4-man and fifth in the 2-man. The latter comes first, and Hall will link up with Nick Gleeson, who replaced team-mate Greg Cackett as brakeman during the season.

Germany have won all of the sliding events across luge and skeleton but GB are one of the leading contenders to cause an upset and they are in great shape having set the second quickest time in one of the final training heats on Saturday.

Freestyle skiing - women’s slopestyle qualification (from 02:00 GMT)

‘Snow plays havoc with Winter Olympic schedule’ is definitely on par with ‘slightest drop of snow breaks down British rail network’ for things that shouldn’t really happen, but it did cause big issues to the schedule on Sunday.

It means we still haven’t seen China’s American-born star Eileen Gu begin her challenge for a second gold medal of the Games, which she will begin that in the early hours. The teenager won a brilliant big air title last week but she faces a challenge once again from Tess Ledeux of France. Kirsty Muir, who’s produced Britain’s best performance of the Games so far with a fifth placed finish in big air, is in action - as is her team-mate Katie Summerhayes.

BRIT WATCH

Hall and Gleeson could give Team GB something to be excited about when they go in the opening pair of 2-man bobsleigh runs and by the end of the day we may have a better idea of whether a first British medal is on the way.

Muir was hugely impressive in the big air competition and will look to try out a few tricks in slopestyle, an event Summerhayes won a silver medal in at the 2015 World Championships.

Snowboarder Katie Ormerod finished 18th in slopestyle and continues her campaign with the big air qualification rounds (from 0130 GMT).

The curling round robin phase keeps rolling on and GB’s men will be looking to continue their impressive form when they face Switzerland (0605 GMT), followed by Eve Muirhead’s women, who are chasing a third successive victory when they take on struggling Canada (1205 GMT).

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Watch every moment of Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 on discovery+

Beijing 2022