Skier Picabo Street talks about her career & encourages student-athletes to form relationships with others who can be honest about their efforts.
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Former United States Olympic gold-medal skier Picabo Street spoke to Elon University student-athletes on April 20 inside Alumni Field House.
Street made a special visit to campus to speak about dealing with the ups and downs of injuries, both physically and mentally, as well as body awareness and finding proper balances in life.
“You’re not going to do it on your own,” Street said. “You’re going to need somebody to create a relationship with who knows your body well. If you think you’re bringing your ‘A’ game, and the rest of the team thinks you’re bringing your ‘B’ game, you’re going to need to sit down and talk about it.”
Street battled injuries throughout her career, including several concussions and a broken femur in her final race of the 1998 season. Following two years of rehabilitation after the injury, Street returned to racing in 2000 and retired from international competition after the 2002 Winter Olympics in Utah.
“It’s all about getting fired up and going,” Street added. “You’ll learn so much more about yourself and what you’re capable of in the rough times and the losses than in the good times and the wins.”
Street joined the United State Ski Team in 1989 at the age of 17. After earning the silver medal in the downhill at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lilliehammer, Norway, Street went on to earn the gold in the super G at the 1998 Olympics in Nagano, Japan.
Street became the first American woman to win the World Cup season title in the downhill in 1995 and did so again a year later. In all, Street won a total of nine World Cup downhill races during her career. She was inducted into the National Ski Hall of Fame in 2004.