Jakob Ellingson: Sochi!

Unbelievable - if I had to describe my experience in Sochi with just one word, that would be it. I had the privilege of going as a spectator to the Olympic Games in Sochi as part of TD Ameritrade’s Olympic Hopeful program. Along with six other up and coming athletes (really cool people too) I flew thru JFK, then Moscow, to get to Sochi, Russia. We flew in with just a few hours to spare before the opening ceremony. This was the first Olympics I have been to, so I was really looking forward to the Opening Ceremony, and, wow, it did not disappoint! Three hours of lights, music, and fireworks, all before we watched the different teams walk up thru the floor of the stadium. It was crazy how loud that stadium got when the Russian team was introduced. No home sound system can recreate the pounding on the seats that welcomed the home team.

Day 2 we rode a gondola up to the Laura Biathlon and Ski Complex to watch my first World Class biathlon race in person. Being in that stadium with thousands of other people watching a biathlon race was unbelievable! The Americans had rough races in the sprint, but it was still really cool to watch the best in the world compete right in front of me. Bjoerndalen (NOR) out skated Martin Fourcade (FRA) to win; Fourcade is the best biathlete in the world right now, he won the next two Sochi golds by quite a bit.

The rest of the week was unlike any trip overseas I’ve ever been on. In Sochi, because we weren’t competing, we were constantly moving from one thing to the next. True, we got to sleep in a little later than Vlad Cervenka lets us when I’m with the Junior National team, but the days were packed. Transportation between events was by bus or gondola, and as soon as an event was over we would be on our way to the next one. In addition to events, TD Ameritrade had a segment on the Today show (I got to talk in addition to looking good!,) and information sessions with media and promotional experts. Three meals day, and hanging out at USA House kept us busy all day and into the night.

Going into this trip there was a lot of talk about hotels not being finished, and security being a nightmare. Apart from the cops at JFK taking my deodorant and Chap Stick away, and getting searched twice a day, I thought the security wasn’t too tough to deal with. We did see one hotel that looked like it was still under construction, but everything in the Olympic Park and Rosa Khutor (the village in the mountains) was beautiful and finished.

The idea behind the trip was to help prepare me for the 2018 Olympic Games in PyeongChang, South Korea. Many top athletes have said that competing in the Olympics is an overwhelming experience; hopefully having this exposure to the big show will help take the edge off the overwhelming part. It also fanned the flame in me to get out there and work toward making my dream come true. Knowing that if I work hard enough I can be there in four years… I really want to stop writing this right now and get outside and ski some more!

The next great adventure starts Friday, when I fly out to Maine for one last week of training before my biggest races of the year. It is unbelievable how fast this season is flying by! Hopefully I won’t be too caught up in it to take a little time and write another update from Maine during World Juniors.

But until then, Jake.

About the author... Jakob Ellingson, who has been training with Loppet Nordic Racing and the US Junior National Biathlon Team, is entering his first PG year. His trip to Biathlon World Juniors last year fueled him to put in even more time training and chase after another shot at World Juniors, and the World Cup Circuit in the future. Following him on Facebook and Twitter.