BEIJING, Feb. 20 (BUS): Ilana Myers-Taylor boosted her Olympic record, taking bronze in the women’s figure skating competition to win the fifth medal of her Olympic career.
That’s more than any black athlete in Winter Olympic history, the most any women’s skater has won at the Olympics, and more than any other Olympic skater, male or female, ever won for the United States, The Associated Press reports.
“It’s overwhelming,” Myers-Taylor said. “It’s so crazy hearing this statistic and knowing that I’m part of a legacy bigger than me.”
Gold was Myers-Taylor’s dream, but he took a fifth medal – she was clearly not disappointed at all.
Myers Taylor shocked the top of her sled in celebration when she crossed the line knowing the medal had been snatched, jumped and gave Hoffman a hug before throwing her fist into the air.
What you’ve done in the past four Olympics is historic.
She is now one of only four skaters to have competed in at least five Olympic races and medals in all of them. She became the fifth American skater to win two medals in one Olympic Games – pilot Stan Benham and propeller Pat Martin did so in 1952, and pilot Stephen Holcomb and propellant Steve Langton in 2014. With women winning two Olympic events for the first time this year, she will forever remain the first woman Figure skating wins two medals in the same games.
Myers-Taylor totals, including her Olympic debut as a push-up athlete: three silvers, two bronzes. Beijing’s medals were silver behind Humphreys in monobob, and now these are bronze.
“She really is a legend in the sport,” said Carlo Valdes, a US men’s push-up athlete. “Another medal that just adds to all the trophies, really. … It’s in a league of its own and it’s great to watch.”