2019 Winter Deaflympics: Alpine Skiing, Snowboarding, Cross Country Skiing
[Transcript] For the past week, I’ve been in Chiavenna. I drove 2.5 hours east to Santa Caterina where the mountain sports take place. We had many events yesterday. I’m going to ask Sarah Gordon to recap.
Hello, today in the mountains at Santa Caterina, we had 3 events - Alpine Downhill Skiing, 5km Free Women’s/10km Free Men’s Cross Country Skiing, and Snowboarding Parallel Giant Slalom (PGS).
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Skiers had challenges with the weather due to whiteout conditions reducing visibility as well as a technical challenging course.
We had two Americans race in Downhill Skiing today, Jakob Wollan, who placed 7th with a time of 1:13.22. The second athlete was Witt Williams, who placed 17th with a time of 1:19.29.
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I’ve gone to many Deaflympics. Since ’87 in Norway, this is the first most technical course. I sign ‘course’. The course is really bumpy and steep. It is scary. 3 to 4 people have withdrawn from the race. This Italian slope, Deborah Compagnoni, is world-famous course for Europe championships and World Cup championships. It is very inspiring.
You two just finished a really tough course, how do you two feel?
Okay.
I felt amazing. It was hard to see, but it was fun!
What? FUN! It was FUN!
I loved it and the speed, too.
Our second event today Snowboarding PGS (Parallel Giant Slalom) meaning two snowboarders go down at the same time. It started with 16 athletes competing down. The top 8 best time gets into the finals.
American athlete, Jeff Pollock, was in this race and his results placed him in 9th.
The first run, I slipped and was a bit slow. The second run was better. It was still fun!
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Thank you, Sarah, for the summary. Today is Day 4 of the Deaflympics with more mountain events.
This is Cross Country Sprint Classic where the athletes ski 5km as fast as they can. American athlete, Christoper Smith, in red clothing will be competing.
There was one tough part of the course: the downhill curve. It was tough.
I feel good. I’ve gained more experience racing with deaf people. It’s my first time in Deaflympics.
Chris advanced to the quarterfinals, but didn’t advance to the top 4. The top 4 will compete for the finals. Chris is done with the 5km Sprint Classic and will have another race next Monday.
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Jeff Pollock competed in Men’s Snowboarding Parallel Slalom.
Parallel Slalom is very technical, it’s not quite about the speed. Yes, speed is important, but the turning techniques are important.
Jeff’s about to start his third run (heat).
His slip caused him to be behind and didn’t advance to the finals.
At the top, there were heavy, sharp turns. That slowed down my time and now I’m out. It was fun playing. It’s my last PSL race. I’m done, I’m retiring from racing, seriously. I said I was retiring 4 years ago, retiring before that, and keep coming back. I’m truly done. It was fun and I enjoy the Deaflympics. I will always be involved. I will coach.
That was Jeff Pollock who says he’s retiring from that event, Parallel Slalom. This is his 6th Deaflympics, 4 time medalist with one silver and three bronzes. He made it to the top 4 in other events. He’s a decorated Deafolympian. He will have one more event, Boardercross, on Monday.
How did you do?
Honestly, I didn’t do the best I thought. I did not have a lot of training before. Only a few weekends. But I really had a great time.
When’s your next event?
Tomorrow, it will be Super Giant Slalom, “Super G”.
I went faster today.
How did you get into skiing?
My parents skied when they were young.
When is your next event?
The Super G.
Good luck! I hope you do your best!
This is Jakob’s mother, Nikki Wollan. Today, you watched your son ski down the slope. How are you feeling?
Wow, we’re so proud!
Is this your first time coming to Deaflympics?
Yes.
How do you feel about the whole Deaflympics? Was it inspiring?
Oh, so inspiring! Yes.
I’m from Russia.
I’m from Finland.
I’m from China.
It’s my first time, I’ve never had a medal until now. I’m happy.
I’m happy but I’m a little disappointed at her beating me so closely. I’m still happy though!
Is it your first time medaling?
I had my first yesterday, and now this is my second one.
Calle: Congratulations!
I have a total of 11 gold medals.
1 and 1?
No, 11.
Oh, eleven!
Yes.
Impressive. You’re very talented. Congratulations!
I’m very happy. Yes.
How does it feel to receive the medal? It’s your first one.
I was nervous, but I’m happy that I can win.
I was nervous inside, but I’ve won and I’m happy.
So, that’s two days of mountain sports with skiing and snowboarding. In Chiavenna, the U.S. Men’s Hockey team rested. They did not play today but will play against Russia tomorrow.
The U.S. Men’s Curling team defeated Korea 6-4, which is their third straight win.
The U.S. Men’s Chess team, in team competition, lost to Belarus 2.5 to 1.5.
What is the total medal count — which country is leading? Russia is first with 15 medals. The second is Ukraine with four medals. The third is Italy with three.
That’s all. Now I will teach you two Italian sign language words. The first is “athlete.” (shows sign).
The second one is “thank you.” It’s the same as ours, which is said to be influenced by America or the world. Their original sign is this (shows sign).
That’s all, see you tomorrow. Bye!
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