At the Winter Olympics, bobsleigh and Jamaica immediately refer to “Cool Runnings” in the collective imagination. the American comedy directed in 1993 by Jon Turteltaub. The current team from the Caribbean island would like to write a ‘sequel’ to their performance in Beijing-2022.
“They inspired us and we’re going to inspire the next generation,” said Ashley Watson after Thursday’s doubles practice, where she finished 24th and 25th successively.
The 1993 film was known by different names in the world (“Jamaica below zero” mainly in Latin America, “Chosen for triumph” in Spain) and echoes a story that went around the world in 1988, when Jamaicans Dudley Stokes, Michael White, Devon Harris and Chris Stokes achieved the feat of qualifying for the Calgary Winter Games (Canada) in the quad category.
It was a source of national pride for an island with no winter sports tradition and much better known for sprinters in athletics.
The Jamaicans caused a sensation in Calgary, finishing in 30th place in the doubles event and having to retire in the quadruple after a crash in the third of four heats.
The epic and its story of overcoming led Disney to prepare its film adaptation.
homemade weights
The film was released in 1993 in the United States and then in the rest of the countries. It was a box office success and relaunched the career of reggae legend Jimmy Cliff, singer of the song ‘I can see clearly now’.
This year at the Beijing Games, Jamaica will have a quad team for the first time since the 1998 edition. Its pilot Shanwayne Stephens will also be at the controls of the double, which enters the fray on Monday.
Jazmine Fenlator-Victorian will compete, meanwhile, in monobob, a discipline that debuts at the Olympic Games on Sunday. The Yanqing track is a complete unknown to them.
“It was only our fifth and sixth time on the track, we weren’t in the October test competition,” says Stephens.
“We still have four practices and then it will be the race. It is one of the many challenges for a small country like ours. We don’t have the means to travel and do the test competition, the full season and the Games”, he adds.
Stephens, 31, lives in Peterborough, UK, where his family moved in 2002.
During the 2020 lockdown, at the onset of the covid-19 pandemic, he tried to stay in shape with homemade weights and pushing his girlfriend’s Mini car in the parking lot as gyms and sports facilities closed .
“Everything we have done has helped us qualify for the Games. It is fantastic to have been able to qualify for these Games having met again for the first time in September”, he pointed out.
In his day to day he is an elite marksman for the Royal Air Force (RAF) and tries to bring his “precision” and “sense of organization” to the team.
“Messages from all over the world”
“Guys will tell you that I’m sometimes a bit obsessive,” he smiles. In the Games, your goal is limited. “Four solid motos would be a good springboard for whatever comes next,” he says.
Jamaicans want to bring a note of color and atmosphere to the Beijing Games, as they did at the opening ceremony, where they danced “to train people,” according to Stephens.
“We have received messages from all over the world, not just from Jamaica. People tell us that they are going to cheer us on, as much as their own country,” she celebrates.
“We can’t wait for Jamaica and the Cool Runnings fans to be proud of us,” he said. (D)
Source: Eluniverso
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
