Nordic combined not all about the medals
Last Updated: Monday, March 1, 2010 | 4:55 AM ET
By Justin Piercy, CBC Sports
Canada's Jason Myslicki falls less than 100 metres before the finish of the Nordic combined individual large-hill, 10-km event on Thursday in Whistler, B.C. Myslicki placed 44th. (Jacques Boissinot/Canadian Press)If you want to focus on medals, the story of the Nordic combined event in these Winter Games was the United States roaring past the usual Scandinavian suspects, capturing four medals.
Johnny Spillane's silver in the 10-kilometre normal hill event was an American first. He added a second silver to his resume in the 4x5-km team event with countrymen Brett Camerota, Bill Demong and Todd Lodwick.
In the individual large hill competition, Spillane captured his third silver, placing second only to Demong's gold.
You will see all of those names, with the familiar red, white and blue flag next to them at the top of the results sheet. But if you are looking for the Canadian flag icon, be prepared to scroll down to find that maple leaf. Way down.
The Canadian story wasn't about medals. The lone Canuck participant, Jason Myslicki, narrowly avoided finishing dead last in both events.
The mere fact Myslicki was there, representing his country, was a feat in itself.
For those unfamiliar with the sport (and considering Canada has never cracked the podium, there's no shame you if you haven't), the Nordic combined involves a mix of cross-country skiing and ski jumping.
All things considered, Myslicki's 44th- and 45th-place finishes out of a possible 45 skiers can be accurately described as a victory for the 33-year-old, and can be no less a triumph for both his country and the Olympic spirit itself.
Following his 41st-place finish in 2006, Myslicki was worn out. He was weary from spending his career in the service of his country, which — when it came time to dole out funding — seemed to overlook the sport and its lone representative.
And with that, the Thunder Bay, Ont., native packed it in.
After swapping his skis for a tool belt (Myslicki paid the bills following the Turin Games by doing home renovations), he retired from the sport to Calgary, but decided to keep active and passed along his Nordic knowledge to youngsters just starting out.
Myslicki even tried his hand, or feet, at competitive speedskating for eight months. But with the Vancouver Games looming, he was lured back to the Nordic in March 2008. He simply couldn't resist breaking out the wax and hitting the World Cup circuit one more time if only for the chance to represent his nation on home soil, or snow, if you will.
It would not be an easy task.
After his first jump in the competition portion of the large-hill event, Myslicki's 60-metre result (the leader, Bernhard Gruber of Austria, jumped 127 metres) reduced the Canadian to tears. But thanks to both worsening weather wiping out the first jump, and maybe taking a page from his personal motto of "Work hard, play hard, rest hard. A setback is a setup for a comeback," he rallied for a much-improved second jump of 99.5.
More tough times befell Myslicki in the following 10-km cross-country race, falling in the final 100 metres. But he did not stay down long.
Myslicki got up and finished the race as a true competitor.
And that's what the Olympics are all about.
