BARRHEAD - Although it wasn’t the result she was hoping for, Barrhead native Melissa Lotholz is proud of the perseverance she and her brakeman Sara Vilani showed to finish 12th at the two-woman bobsleigh event at the Bejing Olympics.
For Lotholz, the Beijing Games were her second Olympics, the first being in Pyeongchang, South Korea, where she finished seventh as a brakeman for pilot Christine de Bruin’s bobsleigh.
"In some ways, the Olympics do not tell the whole story about the four-year journey. It comes down to one race," she said.
However, Lotholz believes the Olympic competition in some ways mirrored her transition to a pilot.
Lotholz decided to switch seats shortly after attending a driver's school in Lake Placid, New York, upon returning home from South Korea.
The 2021-2022 season marks her third season since making the transition and her first full-season piloting on the World Cup circuit.
After the pair's first run on Feb. 18, they found themselves in 18th place after finishing with a time of 1:02.12. In their second run, Lotholz and Villani improved their time, finishing with a time of 1:02.09, good enough for 10th in the heat. Their combined time put them in 16th place.
The next day, Lotholz and Villani had their best run of the Olympics, finishing in eighth place in the third heat with a time of 1:01.85.
Unfortunately, the pair could not build on that momentum, finishing 15th in their final heat with a time of 1:02.31. Their four-heat combined time was good enough for 12th place.
Lotholz noted the weather during the competition was very "Alberta-like", meaning very dry and cold.
"Then racing at night, when it is even colder, means there is less grip as the ice is a little bit harder," she said.
This proved to be problematic, Lotholz said, as all their training sessions took place during the day when the ice conditions were different.
"It was challenging. I don't think I have ever driven on ice like that, except perhaps at last year's World Championships," she said.
Lotholz noted that she and fellow Canadian bobsledder Cynthia Appiah were among the least experienced drivers in the field, saying that inexperience showed in their first run.
"Our opening run wasn't very good. I skidded in a couple of spots where I did not have any troubles during training and because the track is so unforgiving, any mistakes you make higher up are going to cost you so much more time on the bottom," she said.
The reason, she said, is because the Beijing track is one of the slower tracks on the circuit, noting their top speed was about 130 kilometres and it is also much longer.
"Even if it is just a small mistake, the track just amplifies it because it impacts your speed," she said.
Lotholz said she had wished she had qualified for the monobob event as the drivers who did were able to identify the quirks of the track a week earlier. But having said that, she added she is very pleased with how they approached and prepared for the race.
"I was very happy with our process. It is the Olympic Games on a big stage and we were able to stay faithful and consistent with our preparation and handled things the best we could," she said. "It was a crazy year. We were away from home for five months, most of our team got COVID (including Lotholz) which impacted our ability to compete in Latvia and the standings, and yet we were still able to make the Olympics and put down our best effort."
Life at the Olympics
Although every Olympic games are unique, the Beijing Olympics were even more so because of the pandemic.
In a normal Olympic year, the Canadian sliding teams would have returned home after the World Cup circuit for a preparation camp, but due to the pandemic, Lotholz said they did not want to do any unnecessary travelling. Instead, they held a holding camp in Konigssee, Germany.
After landing at the airport, they immediately underwent COVID testing and went straight to one of three Olympic Villages where athletes had to isolate themselves until they received their test results. Some athletes had to test twice.
"It changes the team aspect. Instead of opening your Team Canada kit with everyone else, you were in your room, secluded," she said. "I did mine via a Zoom conference call with Sarah."
Lotholz noted that at times there seemed to be confusion from Olympic officials about the necessary COVID-19 protocols.
Accommodations were university dorm-style, with two athletes in a suite with two bedrooms and a common living area.
Lotholz, once the isolation period ended, roomed with her sleigh mate. Athletes received their meals in a common cafeteria.
Due to pandemic safety protocols, athletes did not have the same freedom they might have had otherwise.
When they were not competing, athletes were restricted to the athletes' village. For Lotholz, that meant hanging out with the rest of downhill sports such as Alpine and the other sliding athletes.
"Our village had about 40 Team Canada athletes, most of which was bobsled. It was interesting that while we were at the Olympics, we were very much in the same sports bubble that we've been in all year," she said. "Which in some ways is a good thing because it takes away some of the 'bigness' of the event making it closer to our normal, helping us keep to our routines."
However, Lotholz said she had the opportunity to mingle with the rest of Team Canada during the opening and closing ceremonies.
Bobsleigh athletes are fortunate to always take part in both, she said, even though bobsleigh events are usually scheduled near the end of the games. Often national teams decide to arrive closer to the event and opt not to take in the opening ceremony.
"It is such a special experience, getting to march into the stadium with the rest of the Canadian team," Lotholz said. "One of the things that makes the Olympics so memorable is how you get to come together as a team ... and there is this moment where you recognize what you are doing in your sport is part of something so much bigger."
Despite the restrictions, she did have the opportunity to take in a few events. Because she did not have to compete in the monobob, Lotholz was able to watch some of the other sliding sports.
"I was able to cheer on the skeleton girls for one run. I was there for the four-man (bobsleigh) for their bronze medal run, and I got to cheer on Christine (de Bruin), my former sled mate at the finish line when she won her bronze medal," Lotholz said, adding she also had the opportunity to take in a Canadian women's hockey game and a downhill alpine event.
She also credited the Beijing volunteers for making the Olympic experience as good as it could be.
"They were just wonderful and always so cheerful. They all went above and beyond."
Lotholz also thanked all the people from Barrhead who sent messages, pictures and videos of encouragement.
"They all meant so much, and it was just another reminder that I was part of something bigger than just myself or my sport," she said.
As for what is next for Lotholz, she said for the time being she is content with taking some much-needed time off before refocusing on next season, in which she hopes to continue her journey and improving her abilities as a pilot.
