February, 18, 2003
Baselga de Pine, Italy
A narrative by
Clara Hughes...
The following
text is provided courtesy of Clara Hughes and speedskating.ca
It's the
morning after and what a weekend it was...I am at a loss
as to where I should begin this narrative. It was perhaps
the most exciting weekend of my sporting career. Anyone
who knows me realizes the enormity of this statement and
it's with the last race of the four-distance All-around
World Championships I will start.
We had been
racing for a day and a half, the four shorter distances
(500 m, 1500 m, 3000 m) selecting the final twelve skaters
to race the last event: the 5000 m. Just over an hour
earlier we had skated the 1500 m and already it was time
to do the warm-up routine of bike, stretch and skate for
that final test of truth. The lowest cumulative time at
the end of the day would be crowned World Champion and
silently we hoped to see that maple leaf fly high in the
cool Swedish winter night.
For a week
we had trained and rested in Gothenburg, Sweden, each
with goals and dreams fueling our excitement as the racing
drew near. Tara Risling, Kristina Groves, Cindy Klassen,
Catherine Raney ('Raney' is our token American-an irreplaceable
training partner who dons the stars and stripes come race
day, but in our hearts in 'one of us,' as without her
we are not complete as a team) and myself had been opening
eyes all season with consistent World Cup results. After
rounding out second through fifth, and fourteenth place,
in the 3000 m, people really began to ask questions. We
went from the suspect Canadians whom many thought would
not last the season after a successful debut in the fall,
winning world cups in the 1500 and 3000 m, as well as
medals and personal best placings in all other races,
to being the 'team to watch.' Each of us were having the
seasons of our lives and had worked even harder to prepare
for the second, and most important, half of the season.
Coaches,
team leaders, skaters, therapists all began to ask 'What
are you girls doing in Calgary?' while trying to figure
out our 'secret.' Well, there is no secret. There is hard
work and the strength of a team that makes us good. Without
our coach, Xiuli Wang, and her ability to bring people
together we would be like most of the female skaters in
our sport, individuals. Because we respect one another
and truly BELIEVE that when one of us succeeds it makes
each of us better, we are able to support one another
from our hearts. This is a rare thing with females, and
I admit I have never wanted to train with a group of women
for fear of dealing with hormones and emotion. You see
girls have a different way of dealing with issues-usually
it involves a knife and a back. It is rare to see a group
of women up front with each other. Not that we are 100%
successful of this, but we try to be. By being open and
honest with each other we have built a foundation of trust.
Throu!
gh that trust comes support. This combination equals a
unity each of us feeds off. It's beautiful, it's fun and
it is our weapon.
First pair
in the 5000 m I found myself on the line with Catherine.
Though we were tired I think both of us felt a certain
sense of relief to 'get it over with.' It's a funny thing,
racing, as much motivation there is inside it always feels
better when it is over and one can reflect on one's performance.
Yes, there is the moment to immerse oneself in, but it
is usually filled with pain! I enjoy the struggle but
think the feeling of overcoming the struggle is what I
love most.
There was
only one thing to do in the situation of not knowing how
fast to go, what the winning time was going to be-and
that's to try and set the bar so high that no other could
overtake you. It had been my goal coming into these championships
to win the 5000 m and there I was with my chance. The
ice was slow it took a hockey-like style to keep the pressure
in each stride so as not to slow down. When the gun went
off I focused on that crude rhythm and fought each and
every step not to give in to the burning pain building
in my legs.
The stands
were almost full with sections of orange, red and blue,
yellow and blue (Dutch, Norwegian, Swedish fans). Being
the first pair there was not much cheering going on because,
well, we were going so slow. It was everything I had and
the results were lap times I had not skated since over
a decade ago on non-clap skates. The voice I heard every
lap was that of Tara, my teammate, telling me I was strong,
I could do it, 'this is your race!' Tara is small in stature
but there lies strength of character and tenacity within
that little girl that would frighten the toughest guy.
Gregor, our Quebecois coach, calls her a 'mean little
beast.' Anyone who knows Tara will laugh at that name.
She gave me strength every time around, just past the
start finish line, and as the race went on I began to
look forward to hearing her voice again and again.
Looking
up to the scoreboard after crossing the line was a bit
of a shock. 7'25" was the time, and though it was
slow I knew I had done all I could. I was exhausted and
frozen. My hands were like blocks of ice and burning.
I thought a lot about my hands in the race they hurt so
much and that, too, pushed me to go faster. I reasoned
the faster I skated, the sooner I finished, the closer
to my gloves I was. A hockey stop later I had all the
warm I could find wrapped around my body and was off the
ice as fast as possible.
Opening
the dressing room door I saw Cindy in the corner preparing.
Kristina did the same in the other. I kept the relief,
the joy, of being finished, to myself, as I did not want
to interfere with the other girl's focus. Cindy looked
pretty nervous and everyone was trying to calm her down.
We all wanted her to win but not to give her anymore pressure.
Just tried to be friends, laugh a little, ease the tension.
I shared everything I could with her and Kristina about
the ice conditions, how it felt, trying to give them strength
and confidence.
Those of
us not racing returned to the cold track, exactly where
Tara had sat and screamed for me, and prepared to damage
our vocal cords. First up was Kristina who skated one
of the best races of her career. Not only did she hold
her sixth position in the overall, she bettered it to
fourth. Poor thing had the same frozen hands that I had
suffered from. Cold but ecstatic she made her way over
to our cheering section and we all sat nervous awaiting
the showdown between Cindy, who sat in first place overall,
and Claudia Pechtein of Germany, in second.
The race
was tight because Cindy had only a 7.88 second buffer
on Claudia. This seems like a lot but with Claudia, who
is the Olympic Champion and world record holder in the
5000 m, we knew anything was possible. We gave Cindy all
the strength we had screaming louder than all the Dutch,
Norwegian and Swedish fans together. We knew she could
do it but would she have the confidence to fight? One
moment of doubt during the race and it would have been
over. As the duo came down the finishing stretch it was
evident Cindy was going to be the new World Champion and
we jumped with joy. It's like that when your teammate
wins, you feel like you win as well. It wasn't until Catherine
looked over and said 'Clara, you won the 5000 m!' that
I realized I had won the distance. It seemed secondary
compared to the triumph of Cindy, and took a few moments
to sink in. When it did I jumped some more, recognizing
the significance of winning over Claudia.
Though we
had broken through the stranglehold the German women have
had on distance skating in the autumn World Cups, they
still, in ways, had seemed untouchable to us. Even after
winning a 3000 m world cup earlier in the season it wasn't
enough. I needed to know that Claudia was beatable, was
human, in my favorite distance: the 5000 m. With Cindy's
overall success and the depth of our TEAM we had really
done it, shown ourselves that we could be, in fact are,
some of the finest women skaters in the world at this
moment in time. I hope that others can follow, become
better and push us to improve as well. Until then, we
have our Team, through victory and defeat. We've worked
so hard. I have confidence that as long as we continue
to challenge each other and not settle for where we are
now, the best is still yet to come.
EKWA!!!
CLARA,
March, 19, 2003
Glen Sutton, Quebec
ONE CARELESS
MOMENT
March, 4, 2003
Drachtan, The Netherlands
MEMORY
OF A TRAGIC MOMENT
March, 13, 2003
BERLIN, Germany
From Skater to
Tourist to Cyclist
June 16, 2003
Glen Sutton, Quebec
A Beginner's Mind
September, 22, 2003
Calgary, AB
Solitude
October, 5, 2003
Calgary, AB
