Team USA’s Erin Jackson is elated by the support she has received since clinching the gold medal in women’s short track speed skating.
The No. 1-ranked speed skater in the world decided to go through tweets after her historic, medal-winning sprint in the women’s 500m finals Sunday.
Check out these tweets followed by her reactions:
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“Yeah, that’s awesome. It’s cool to see things like that,” said Jackson. “And uh, strong legs?” she laughed. “I definitely felt some pain at the end of that 500. The distance athletes on our team are always joking about how I get tired in a 500, but that’s just how it is.”
“Yeah, it’s cool to be included in someone’s list of highlights,” said Jackson.
“I’m glad there are some people who tuned in for that moment even if they weren’t really planning to watch much else,” said Jackson.
Jackson made history by becoming the first Black woman to earn a medal in speed skating. She also ended a 28-year drought for the U.S. in speed skating. Team USA has not won a gold in speed skating since Bonnie Blair did so in the 1988, 1992 and 1994 Games.
Jackson’s gold medal is the first medal in speed skating earned by Team USA at the 2022 Games. This is also the first time an individual has medaled in speed skating since the Vancouver Games in 2010.
She finished with a time of 37.04 seconds, beating both Japan’s Miho Takagi and the ROC’s Angelina Golikova.