Erin Jackson, Brittany Bowe and the heroic gesture that led to Winter Olympics gold – Best of Beijing

BEST MOMENTS OF DAY 9 Bessies for life Ad/> We all need a friend like Brittany Bowe. Beijing 2022Could ‘Dr Ice’ save British skeleton after medal famine? — Beijing diary4 HOURS AGO Erin Jackson’s dream of reaching the Beijing Olympics looked over after she stumbled in the 500m to finish outside the qualification spots at the American trials. Bowe won the race but after realising the plight of her childhood friend, gave up her spot to allow Jackson a shot at glory.

/> The heroic gesture paid off. Jackson ripped to the 500m title in the Chinese capital, beating Japan’s Miho Takagi by eight hundredths of a second, for her first Olympic medal. She qualified for the last Games in South Korea after just four months on the ice, having transitioned from inline skating.

In the end, Bowe was also able to compete in Beijing after a late withdrawal. The 2018 bronze relay medallist didn’t have a narrative-busting run in her, however, as she finished off the pace in 16th. It seems only right that both athletes are given gold medals – or, failing that, the Olympic hacksaw (we assume one exists) slices the medal in two during the ceremony.

Any Team GB athletes who want to give us their spot in Milan-Cortina 2026, just let us know. Odermatt conquers blizzard It’s hard to have too much sympathy for skiers who struggle because it’s snowing. Then again, after an Olympics dominated by talk of China’s artificial white snow, the Beijing weather gods decided to turn on the tap to the real stuff – and it looked brutal.