via usatoday.com
Emily is from Springfield, Missouri. Her mother is in prison, and her father lives paycheck to paycheck. Before she was a speed skater, she made the Junior Olympic team for gymnastics. Unfortunately, due to her family's financial situation and the sport's expensive nature, she had to give it up. She was also a World Champion inline skater. It was from there that she decided to make the switch to speed skating.
When she first began speed skating, she found it so difficult that she almost quit. She found it challenging that her legs fatigued due to the crouched position, and wasn't used to having no rest time during a race. But Emily Scott is no quitter.
She got used to the sport, and in 2010, went to the Olympic Trials. Though she didn't make the team that year, just making it to the Trials was enough to convince her that she was close to her dream. That dream took a hit when her U.S. Speed Skating monthly stipend was cut to 600 dollars. She applied for food stamps and set up an account at GoFundMe.com. The donations to her cause were slow at first. As her story got out there, however, she began to get donations and words of encouragement at a rate faster than she could believe. This money went toward her training costs. It allowed her father, who has raised and supported her, to be at Sochi for her races. It took five separate flights, but Craig Scott got to watch his daughter as an Olympian.
During the final of the 1500m, Emily was unfortunately knocked over by a falling athlete (the same athlete who pushed her during the semifinal). Even then, she didn't give up. She stood back up and fought as hard as she could to finish, ending up in 5th place out of 7. Though she didn't medal, Emily Scott is definitely still an Olympic hero. And who knows, maybe we'll see her atop that podium in 2018.
No comments:
Post a Comment