KEARNS — When Brittany Bowe lines up on the ice to race, it doesn’t matter if it’s an Olympic medal or team bragging rights on the line. She skates to win every single time.
“For me, I’m a racer,” said Bowe, who hopes to defend her world speedskating title in 1,000-meter long track this weekend at the ISU World Single Distance Championships at the Utah Olympic Oval. “I am a competitor. Every year means the same thing. I want to be able to defend my title.”
Some winter sports athletes struggle to stay motivated in nonOlympic years, especially those two and three seasons away from an Olympics — which is the pinnacle for their sports.
The two-time Olympian and bronze medalist is not one of them. In fact, each season brings new challenges and new reasons to continue giving everything she has to a sport she’s dedicated her life to for the last decade.
“For me, I’m a racer. I am a competitor. Every year means the same thing. I want to be able to defend my title.” — Brittany Bowe
This is the first season since she suffered a concussion during training before the 2017 season that Bowe’s been able to train and race “without any setbacks.”
She is enjoying an outstanding season as she attempts to defend her 1,000-meter championship title on the ice where she trains. She finished sixth in the race last weekend, but before that, Bowe had a seven-race winning streak going — the longest U.S. victory streak at that distance.
“What we do all year is essentially preparing us to be able to compete at our best at the World Single Distance Championships,” she said. “Once every year, it turns into (being about) the Olympics, but this is our world championship and what we’re working for all year.”
Bowe said it’s an advantage to U.S. athletes that last weekend’s World Cup in Calgary and the championships this weekend in Kearns allow them a rare back-to-back North American stretch of training, traveling and competing.
“That is definitely something in our favor,” she said. “Last year at our final World Cup, almost every world record was broken. So it’s pretty exciting to think about what will be possible (this weekend).”
One of those world records was hers, as she won the 1,000-meter gold with a time of 1:11.610. Bowe doesn’t set time goals, but she said she knows she will have to skate her fastest times of the season if she wants to successfully defend her title.
One of her teammates will be defending his world championship as Joey Mantia tries to win his third gold medal in the mass start race Sunday. The former inline champion said the mass start, which made its debut at the 2018 Olympics, “is my best chance to medal at the Games.”
“Starting in long track is something I’ve really struggled with,” he said. “Mass start is a race, pack style, and I get to react to other people.”
Mantia won a bronze medal in the 1,500-meter race in Calgary, but prefers the pack racing to time trials as it allows him to use his strengths and his experience in competition.
“It just gives you a chance to settle into the race, and feel the ice a bit more,” he said. “I’ve been training very specifically for the mass start since that race came out, and I hope it will pay big dividends.”
The races begin Thursday with the women’s 3,000-meter event at 12:30 p.m. Races begin at 2 p.m. on Friday and 12:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. In addition to seeing the world’s best speedskaters compete in the most important race of the season, fans will enjoy festivities and entertainment at the home of the “Fastest Ice on Earth.”
For tickets, go to UtahOlympicLegacy.org.