Among the athletes competing in the Beijing Olympics is a native of Manchester.
At 44, Joanne Dow is the oldest member of the U.S. Olympic track and field team.
New Hampshire Public Radio’s Avishay Artsy reached her by phone at their training center in the coastal city of Dalian, where she’s preparing for her Olympic debut.
With gymnastics and swimming behind us, the excitement in Beijing has moved to track and field.
And between sprinting and hurdling is a lesser-known sport – racewalking.
“If you have never seen race-walking, think of a kid who’s running around the side of a pool deck, and the lifeguard blows the whistle and says, ‘no running, you need to walk.’ They automatically break into a racewalk.”
Joanne Dow discovered racewalking while teaching a fitness class 14 years ago.
She was a sprinter at Trinity High School in Manchester, and a swimmer at the University of New Hampshire.
Since 1996 she’s tried out for the Olympic team.
She placed fourth in the 2000 trials after undergoing knee surgery, and second in 2004.
But she persisted.
Last month she placed first in the trials, granting her a spot on the team and a chance to walk into Beijing’s National Stadium for the opening ceremony.
“It was very, sort of, surreal, being in this huge group of athletes, and the energy was just unbelievable. And as I was walking into the stadium I was very emotional, I was starting to cry, because I couldn’t believe that it had finally happened and I was going to be taking part in this thing that I had dreamed of for so long.”
Dow’s training in Dalian combines race-walking with yoga, swimming, weightlifting, and physical therapy.
It’s a lot different than training in Manchester.
For one, increased security means she has to be escorted by bus everywhere she goes.
The air is heavy with smog, and that, she says, can cause her throat to burn.
Another thing she noticed is that none of the athletes listen to music while they train.
“When I’m home, and I’m training on the road, everybody and their brother has an iPod on. You know, Joe Jogger always has an iPod. And, at this level, no one.”
Her friends and supporters in Manchester held two fundraisers last month to send Dow’s husband and their two teenagers to join her.
She says at this point, she wants to represent the U.S. team well.
But winning the gold medal, she says, is probably not in the cards.
“I’m 44 years old and I’m competing against people that, this is what they do 24-7. This is their life. And for some of these young girls and young women, this is all they’ve ever done. Winning a gold medal for them has been their entire life’s focus. And that has never been mine.”
This may be her last Olympic appearance, she says, but her competitive nature will probably keep her racewalking for years to come.
She competes in the women's 20k racewalk tonight at 9 p.m. eastern time.
TV coverage is scheduled for midnight.
For NHPR News, I’m Avishay Artsy.
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thank you for bringing attention to two things... the fabulous sport of racewalking and to another athlete typically considered in the sports world to be past their prime. Walk on!