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They also will share a unique bond. Well, several bonds. They're
friends who met two decades ago. They both grew up in Ocala,
Florida. They started with inline skating before switching
sports. And, perhaps most meaningfully, they're teammates
forever linked by what happened four years ago when one (Bowe)
offered a spot in the 500 meters at the Beijing Games to the
other (Jackson), who went on to collect gold in that event.
“To be a small part of that puzzle was an honor, to say the
least. I truly believe that everything happens for a reason, and
people come into your life for different reasons,” Bowe said in
an interview with The Associated Press. “We’ve been able to
share our story with a lot of people. Seeing ... how much it
touches other people is priceless.”
This is the fourth — and, she says, final — Olympics for Bowe, a
two-time bronze medalist; she'll turn 38 on Feb. 24. Jackson,
33, is at her third Games and will defend her 500 title on Feb.
15.
Jackson calls Bowe “an amazing mentor.”
Bowe, who holds the world record in the 1,000, says Jackson
“really inspires me.”
Neither is likely to forget what transpired at the U.S. trials
in Milwaukee in 2022.
Jackson was the world's best in the 500 at that point and
considered a lock to go to the Olympics at that distance. Still,
she needed to officially earn that at the trials. In a surprise,
Jackson slipped and, although she kept going, finished with the
third-best time, meaning she did not manage to qualify for one
of the two 500 slots on the American team.
“She wouldn’t have been at the Olympics at all, potentially,”
U.S. Speedskating coach Ryan Shimabukuro said.
“When it happened, I’m running through scenarios in my head:
‘How do we navigate this?’” Shimabukuro remembered. “'EJ' took
full accountability. She didn’t say, ‘Oh, the selection process
is ridiculous. This is stupid.’ That shows what kind of
character she has.”
And Bowe, who won the race at the trials, demonstrated the sort
of person she is by giving up her place in the Olympic 500 to
Jackson (although later, the U.S. got a third berth, which
allowed Bowe to participate in that sprint in China, too).
“She was obviously upset, and I went up to her and gave her a
hug,” Bowe said. “In my opinion — and, I would argue, in
everyone’s opinion — she was the most deserving to start in that
event at the Olympic Games. There was no doubt in my mind that I
would do whatever it took to give her that spot, even if that
meant relinquishing my spot. That was just the clear and obvious
choice for me.”
In the locker room after the 500 in Milwaukee, Bowe approached
Jackson to console her — and to tell her what she'd decided to
do.
“She was really heartbroken for me," Jackson said. “She said if
there’s anything that she could do to get me on the team, she
was going to do it. ... We went together to the racing officials
and told them what we were going to do.”
All this time later, Shimabukuro choked on his words and dabbed
at his eyes as he discussed the choice Bowe made.
“I still get emotional thinking about it. There’s not too many
athletes that would do that, even if the reasoning is sound,”
Shimabukuro said. “I just told her how proud I was of her. ...
That’s what makes people great. She’s a great athlete. She’s a
great skater. But it’s stuff like that that makes her who she
is.”
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