“Short title goes here”
“Great things about my website (up to 65 characters)”
“Lorem ipsum consectetur pharetra elit varius”
Hello, I’m Olivia. I read an excerpt from my recent professional graphic design project.
I’m good at inserting placeholder text My ability to put together semi-coherent emails to colleagues, combined with my talent as an increasingly volatile political meme content creator, makes me a long way from being a writer.
when you do that nut hearts I was asked to take on the role of a ski gossip reporter. world cup in minneapolisI thought it was a joke.
I had no previous experience in journalism, so the role of ski gossip reporter seemed like a daunting task to me entering the scene for the first time. As a World Cup fanatic who could only offer an incomprehensible word salad during a brief exchange with Kikkan Randall, he flagged down Olympic gold medalist Victoria Carle about her race performance. I couldn’t imagine myself asking. The German racer was making her profile hinge for a trip to America.
But reporting opportunities aside, I was already making plans to attend a World Cup race. By the time I went to college, where Nat and I first met, I faithfully practiced Midwestern rituals like eating paste, pronouncing sauna the right way, and training in saunas. Michigan Technological University ski trails.I YooperBut the entire upper Midwest felt like home, and I was eager to reconnect with old ski friends and reminisce.
On the morning of Friday, February 16th, I gingerly walked to the media room at Theodore Wirth Park, the venue for last weekend’s World Cup races, to pick up my credentials.
The temperature was a balmy 10 degrees Fahrenheit, but I was sweating profusely as the World Cup players came into view. The rest of the day was a blur, during which I primarily performed as Nat’s shadow. The next morning, as we traveled together to the venue for the first sprint race in two days of World Cup competition, I wished Nat had left me here. maria’s cafe, the iconic Colombian diner where we had breakfast. I wondered. Is it so wrong to order corn pancake after corn pancake until closing time to avoid the embarrassment of asking irrelevant questions to the world’s best athletes?
When I finally stepped into the Mixed Zone, the strange liminal space where World Cup racers interact with reporters post-race, I really wished I didn’t have to eat corn pancakes. I felt nauseous thinking about introducing myself to athletes passing by. In retrospect, Nat’s confident suggestion that I call myself “Ski Gossip Reporter” should have been a red flag. Blinded by nervous energy, I accepted his invitation without question, but it was met with puzzled looks and evasive laughter. Perhaps unexpectedly, I received no gossip at all.
Later that night, when I rolled off my air mattress, I felt dejected and disoriented, like Jesse Diggins thrown into a decathlon. I was exhausted and felt like an impostor, but I was hoping that some professional rest would change my trajectory. After 10 hours of sleep, I watched the sun rise in the east, put on my headphones, and played. Force Aeolingus from the beggining to the end. I hitchhiked to Worth Park with his friend Jay, and when I got out of his car, I looked him straight in the eye and told him I was going to do 20 interviews. He looked confused and skeptical, but added seriously, “Good luck.” Something stirred inside me, and it wasn’t just the milk I drank at breakfast.
Shortly after dropping off my extra belongings at the media center, I found myself standing next to them. bill mckibbenabandoned by Nat who went to retrieve his things. camera. After a few minutes of chatting, Bill gave me some words of encouragement that set the tone for the rest of my day. All I remember clearly is the aftermath. There was a half-hearted screech and a fist bump, and then he hurried down into the crowd, his straps flapping in the wind.
Spoiler alert: I actually interviewed over 20 people. Once I accepted that there was no narrative arc to the gossip story I was building, I felt peace. Here are some excerpts from my short and varied conversations.
Like American players, European players were familiar with the Midwestern lifestyle.
“We visited downtown Minneapolis and the Mall of America,” Richard Jouve, a French athlete known as a sprinter, tells me with a serious look on his face.
Scott Patterson, American Veteran: “Some Norwegians were running and asked, ‘Where should we run?'” I don’t know! I’ll check it out. cherry and spoon”
“We had plane trouble coming here. But we’ve been to Target before,” said Swede Maja Dahlqvist, the reigning World Cup sprint champion.
“It’s a great place to start,” says Alaina Sonnesin, who grew up in the Midwest and is clearly a lover of the local cuisine. hard Last night we had dinner at the hotel. ”
“We’re running around the city,” said Lotta Udnes Wenn, who is half Norwegian. famous wen twins. “But I guess I should have explored more. So I have to come back.”
On the other hand, I noticed that the players often rush through the mixed zone, while the spectators do not have such an easy means of escape. And since many people were dressing to make a good impression, I started asking them questions about their attire, especially those wearing dresses.
Mia moved to Minnesota from California 10 years ago and started skiing as a way to enjoy the winter. When she was asked about her purple suit, she replied, “If you live in Minnesota, you better wear it stylishly.”
Scott lives a few miles from Worth. “We scoop up a little bit of snow and put it on a shelf. The energy and organization is amazing.”
Karen fell in love with the sport after her mother brought home skis when she was in high school. Her American flag onesie had been curled up in her closet ever since she received it as a gift a few years ago. She was excited to finally have the opportunity to put it to good use instead of being uncomfortable.
Mason, who competed in ski races throughout high school and college, wore a tiger costume to “bring the fun.”
When I saw some German racers drinking beer and walking through the spectator zone, I knew I was in for something tasty.Sadly, they actually drinking water And cola.
Speaking of Germans, I noticed Victoria Karl. He told me that his fan was “beautiful” and that she loved the song.
The feeling that Minneapolis had put together an event that would go down in history was clear to athletes and spectators alike. Other real reporters have already written about the deafening cheers from thousands of cheering fans that lasted from the first warm-up until the top skiers took to the podium. However, we would like to further assure those who could not be at the venue in person that this is absolutely true. I would be shocked if I had to wait another 23 years for a World Cup game to be held on the snow in my hometown.
After the mixing zone was cleared, I walked to the parking lot and reunited with my friend Tay (not to be confused with Jay), who served as my personal publicity man throughout the day. They agreed to wait for me near the stop sign on the corner while I retrieved my bag from the media room. I noticed that fans were starting to gather along the fence asking for autographs. Painful hot spots were starting to form on my feet as I warmed up my toes, but I picked up my pace and made a beeline for the designated stop sign. I didn’t want to be misunderstood by the anxious crowd.
“Hey, sweetie! Give me your autograph!”
I heard the request loud and clear, but I pulled out my phone, pretended to send a text message, and mumbled something about being a nobody.
“Don’t say that. You are someone to us!
I stopped walking and found myself facing a small group of teenage boys, who were holding out posters to me. Still not convinced, I laughed and said I didn’t have anything to write, but one of them pulled out a sharpie and handed it to me. After signing their posters, I told them that it had been a very productive day. It was serious. The two-minute exchange was incredibly perfect.
I may not have been able to fulfill the role of ski gossip reporter that I originally envisioned. Therefore, we would like to apologize to our readers who were expecting details about William Polomar’s relationship status. But I loved watching my favorite athletes on the planet race in one of the best places on the planet, the Midwest, surrounded by thousands of ski geeks just like me. is completed. And it turns out the Ski Gossip reporter’s real experience is the lessons he learned along the way. Or something like that.
Olivia Orr is a professional graphic designer, talented meme maker, and pot stirrer living in Portland, Maine. Email us all the World Cup and Super Tour gossip you missed.
