Erin Jackson, world's top speed skater, headed to the Beijing Olympics after U.S. teammate Brittany Bowe gives up her spot
The world's top-ranked speed skater, Erin Jackson, is going to the Beijing Olympics after a teammate gave up a spot for her.
Jackson, 29, revealed in an Instagram post on Monday that fellow American speed skater Brittany Bowe, 33, decided to forgo her place after she won first in a qualifying race at U.S. Olympic trials in Milwaukee on Friday. Jackson finished third – one spot short of qualification – after she slipped during the event.
"Definitely not the way I imagined qualifying for my second Olympic team... but I guess I had to one-up my story from the 2018 Trials. I'm incredibly grateful and humbled by the kindness of @BrittanyBowe in helping me to secure a chance at reaching my goals in #Beijing2022," said Jackson, who is ranked No. 1 in the women's 500-meter by the International Skating Union.
Bowe, who qualified for 1000-meter and 1500-meter races, will still go to the Olympics. Jackson praised Bowe, calling her an "amazing friend, teammate and mentor."
"This is an act I'll never forget," she wrote. "You can bet I'll be the loudest voice in the oval cheering for her in the 1000 and 1500 next month."
Both of them appeared on "Good Morning America" on Tuesday. Jackson said she "looked up" to Bowe ever since they were former inline skaters who grew up Ocala, Florida. Bowe said her "heart sank" when she saw Jackson slip, but encouraged her teammate after the race.
"That evening, I said if it comes down to me, if there's anything I could do to get you on the team, you have my place,'" Bowe said, adding that she had not finished her 1500-meter qualifying race yet. "I put it on the back burner a little bit, but when I was done competing that was the first thing that went back into my mind."
Jackson, who in 2018 was the first Black woman to qualify for a U.S. Olympic long-track speed skating team, will make her second Olympics appearance next month while Bowe is making her third. She also became the first Black woman to win the speed skating World Cup in November. Bowe currently holds the world record in 1,000 meters and is a former world champion in speed skating.
