APR/MAY 2018
and that is pretty special. I was struck by the professionalism of the
athletes, young and old, focused on “getting the job done”!
Some of the things that I will take from the games include: Bryan
Fletcher competing in his last Olympics and placing 17th in both
the normal hill Gundersen and the large hill Gundersen events, the
professionalism and maturity that the younger members of the team
showed in their first Olympic Games, Kikkan Randall and Jessie Dig-
gins winning the team sprint event, and the guts that Scott Patterson
showed, placing 11th in the men’s 50km event. As a whole, US Nor-
dic disciplines are on a roll and it was special to see them show that
to the general public in the US! I will never forget being approached
by a businessman from Texas in the airport on my way home. He
travels regularly to Alaska, and he was so excited to talk to me about
how he was going to finally try Nordic skiing after watching Kikkan
and Jessie win in the Olympics! Mission accomplished!
Of course, my trip wasn’t all about the competitions. I had a chance
to get out and experience Korea on a few occasions. The Korean
people were so welcoming and helpful, despite huge language bar-
riers. They are very proud of the fact that Korea has four seasons,
and how their food is reflected in that. It may be possible that I ate all
the kimchi in Korea while I was there! Delicious! I was able to march
in the closing ceremonies, and it was a wonderful display of artistry
and popular Korean culture. I can guarantee that if the ceremonies
looked good on TV, they were even better in person. I also found out
just how different I looked, being a little over 6 feet tall with red hair.
Everyone wanted a picture with me, which was definitely different!
My experience in Pyeongchang was one of a lifetime and I feel very
fortunate to have been able to go. If you ever have a chance to travel
to South Korea, I highly recommend it.
By Dave Cieslowski
US Nordic Combined Team
DPT Focus Physical Therapy
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