I’LL BE BACK
Disqualification agony for Christie adds to her pain in PyeongChang but the brave Livingston speed skater is already eyeing Beijing glory in four years’ time...
Livingston speed skater Elise Christie suffered more Olympic misery — but vowed to be back in four years to compete at the Beijing Games.
The 27-year-old’s heartache on the big stage continued as she battled injury to compete in the 1000m heats on Tuesday, only to be disqualified.
The three- time world champion has raced six times across two Winter Olympic Games and seen all six end in disqualification or crashes. She bravely defied ankle ligament damage sustained when she crashed in the 1500m at the weekend to take her place at the start line of the 1000m, her favourite event.
However, she tumbled at the first corner and hobbled back for the restart.
She finished second, which would have seen her progress to Thursday’s quarter-finals but was shown a yellow card and disqualified for pushing a rival.
Given her experience in PyeongChang — and Sochi four years ago — she could have been forgiven for to walking away from the sport but she vowed to carry on and target that elusive Olympic medal in China.
She said: “I’ll be back in Beijing. For all the success I’ve had, I can’t let this define me. I can promise Britain I’ll fight back from this. I have so much belief. There has been such massive support.
“I’m going to get myself so strong that I’ll get out in front and get away from everyone, so that’ll be the focus now. I’m world champion and worldrecord holder and I’ve proved myself. I wanted to bring it home for Britain, I could sense the support of the nation all the way from here.
“It would’ve meant the world to me. I’m devastated that I couldn’t but I know this is short track.”
She added: “I crashed on the first start. Someone actually hit my ankle when that happened. I was in a lot of pain. I thought maybe I can’t do this now. I thought about the adrenaline and how that might take over. And it didn’t. I was in a lot of pain.
“I thought I made some really good moves and was quite happy that I’d managed to qualify with such a bad ankle. I got my first ever yellow card, which I’m not really sure why. It’s not my decision, it’s not in my control. I have to take whatever the referee gives me. That’s that.
“It’s nothing to do with the Olympics, it’s just the way short track goes sometimes. I’ve had three races that were rubbish in the last four years and unfortunately they were all here.
“It’s just unlucky, it’s not fate or a curse, that this has happened at both Games. You couldn’t have written this in a book.”