In a calculated decision, Owen Sound skier Larisa Yurkiw passed on the Super Combined yesterday at the Olympic Games in Sochi.
You might think that anyone who is at the Olympics would be driven to compete in whatever event they were registered in, maybe especially so when you factor in the obstacles Yurkiw overcame to get there.
But her bypass of the Super Combined yesterday, like skipping some training sessions over the weekend, came as no surprise here since we’d be advised in advance this might be the case.
To get to Sochi, Larisa Yurkiw relied on her own resources, and among those resources is a trusted coach, maybe more of a mentor, in Kurt Mayr.
Between them, they’ve mapped out a successful path to the Olympics and now that they’re there, they’re not about to jeopardize Yurkiw’s best opportunities.
While an elite athlete, Yurkiw’s limbs are vulnerable to the wear and tear of alpine skiing. She’s really not that far removed from major reconstruction on her leg and knee, and as such the pounding of the slalom course in the combined posed a potential risk.
So Larisa Yurkiw skipped it, she might lament that later, but for now her schedule of activities illustrates she’s purely focused on the Olympic downhill tomorrow and the Super G on Saturday.
I’m Fred Wallace