The 29-year-old American Erin Jackson won Olympic gold in the 500m speed skating event after finishing first with a time of 37.04 sec. She overtook the Japanese Miho Takagi, who led for a very long time, but in the end, fell behind by 0.08 sec and finished 2nd. Third place went to Angelina Golikova of the Russian Olympic Committee, who was 0.17 sec behind.
For Erin Jackson, the victory is completely expected, as this is her favorite discipline and so far she has won four 500m starts this season.
In this way, Erin Jackson became the first black woman to win a medal in speed skating at the Olympics. She failed to take a quota and did not participate in the previous Olympics in PyeongChang 2018. Apart from that, this is the first US title in this sport in Beijing.
“What Erin did tonight will be a jumping board for so many little girls and boys. She gave them the opportunity to look at someone they never imagined they would see and touch”, said her compatriot and teammate Brittany Bowe, who was 16th in the race. “Her gold medal from today far exceeds what any of us could imagine. Namely, the hearts of how many people, especially little girls, she will touch after this performance”, added she.
Erin Jackson, who was explosive at the starting line and then increased her speed, hopes her success will inspire others like her to take to the snow and ice.
“We hope we can see more than minorities, especially in the United States, who are stepping out of their comfort zone and trying some of these winter sports, and I just hope to be a good example”, said Erin Jackson.
In a sport that is usually dominated by the Scandinavian countries and more recently by skaters from the Netherlands, she is closely following in the footsteps of another American – Shani Davis. He was the first black athlete to win gold in ice skating.
For Erin Jackson, the start is actually with roller skates, and she seems to have switched seamlessly between wheels and blades depending on the season, but she just loves the speed that this sport gives. She herself does not aim to set examples, but if she is a role model, she would be happy.
Women’s Speed Skating 500m:
1. Erin Jackson (USA) – 37.04 sec
2. Miho Takagi (Japan) – 37.12 sec
3. Angelina Golikova (Russian Olympic Committee) – 37.21 sec