Publications
Partners
Cape Town - A whirlwind Winter Olympics under his belt, South Africa's Connor Wilson is back at his United States base and already looking ahead.
The 21-year-old Wilson failed to finish either of his two events, the giant slalom and the slalom in his debut Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea.
According to Team SA website, Wilson remarks that there was pressure after he crashed in his first event, the giant slalom, which impacted on his Games.
"I was expecting to finish reasonably in the slalom as it is my stronger event and I'm able to train slalom more often," he told Team SA.
"I was actually halfway down the run when I noticed a gate missing, which threw me off slightly. I lost focus for a second and crashed out of the course. When I noticed that I was able to get back into the course, I quickly hiked back up to where I had skied out.
"Once back in the course, I only made it two more gates before straddling a gate (getting the gate between my legs), which caused my ski to come off and me to crash.
"All I remember was my ski coming off and face planting into the slope. When I finally came to a stop, I just remember feeling pain in my hip, but luckily I was later told in the emergency room that nothing was broken."
Reflecting on PyeongChang, he's still hugely grateful for the experience.
"I've never skied in a competition as difficult as the Olympics. It was an experience I learned a lot from and will remember for the rest of my life. I now know what it takes to compete successfully in the Olympics and I'll work as hard as I can in preparation for the next one in Beijing, Japan in 2022."
