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Archive Record
Images
Metadata
Object ID |
2013.55.101 |
Object Name |
Video Recording |
Title |
Jeremy Wotherspoon Interview |
Scope & Content |
Jeremy Wotherspoon interview, 17 October 2012. Digital MP4. Two videos with a total viewing time of 00:37:41. 1 of 2; 00:14Childhood: started skating at age 4 or 5 on hockey skates; learned about speed skating from a friend when in Grade 2 00:54Why speed skating: the thing that appealed the most was the social aspect, his club in Red Deer had about 70 members and had ice time with kids of the same age and level, stayed with them unlike hockey clubs which constantly changed team members, got to know them really well, learned how to skate fast and started to win some competitions, what kept him in was wanting to see his friends and getting better at skating 02:12When he realized he was good: didn't realize it himself, wasn't aiming at the Olympics, other people gave him the idea that he should move to Calgary and train at the Oval and attend University, after he made the move he started to see how he improved by training full time with a training programme; it became what he wanted to pursue at that stage in his life 03:02On the adjustment moving to Calgary: the school adjustment was the bigger one, training and skating not a problem, not a question on what he wanted to do, he just wanted to get better 04:02On the legacy of Canadian speed skaters: as a kid he was asked if he intended to be the next Gaetan Boucher, people knew about the sport from the Olympics and it was something that connected him with people who weren't in the sport, impact of the legacy on his career came after living in Calgary 2-3 years and understanding that if this facility [Olympic Oval] wasn't here from the Olympics he did not know how he could be training full time, he would have had to move to Europe or elsewhere where he would not have got enough ice time or be able to attend University at the same time, the biggest impact on his career was having the facility to train 05:23On world class competition: first international competition was World Juniors, he qualified for them in his first year of training and the next year qualified for the senior level, he was able to watch the best skaters from outside of Calgary prepare, train and race, could understand what it takes and could see himself being capable of doing the same, was the first step in building his way up to the top 06:47Describe your mind-set before a race: difficult to describe as it is not always the same, sometimes physical, sometimes mental, mind-set changed from when he was 18 when his thoughts were basic competitive thoughts - go fast, win; when he was older he was more focused on the process he was following, on making sure he was not concentrating on the same things as he had at 18 because at that stage you can't help but improve but when older it is harder to improve, when older need to concentrate on the right things, remember what things helped him and what didn't; normal to feel a healthy amount of nervousness but not out of control, got his energy levels up and motivated him to race; "the way you feel inside is much more important than what you show on the outside"; what is in your head is the most important 09:01On his statistics, including 67 World Cup wins: can't remember all the races, the first race he won stands out, the races that were world records stand out, some races on slow tracks where he set the track record stand out, also races where things did not go well or when he did not expect to do well and won 10:14Who stands out as having been there as support to get you to the next level: so many, his family/parents who supported him as a youngster to his moving to Calgary, his team mates and coaches, each had some level of impact although each was different there was something he learned and gained from each one, became a skill that helped him develop in his sport; talks about first coach in Red Deer who helped him develop good technical habits and his provincial coach who placed the emphasis on working hard, training and having fun which directed him in the right way at that point in his life 13:03Were you ever distracted in training: some of course, "I go and train because that is what I do", didn't think about winning the Olympic Gold medal but this is what he did, it was an easy lifestyle to maintain 13:58On the 1998 Nagano Olympics: mixed feelings, previous year he had won his first world cup race, he was not well known to the media but in the Olympic year they started to build up athletes who were potential medallists, it was a new experience for him; his first Olympics but one he remembers the most because of it was the first time he experienced it, felt he did not race his best race but still would have come second to the Gold medalist Hiroyasu Shimizu, he felt Shimizu was the best; these are good memories 2 of 2; 00:39On his competitors: there is little media coverage between the Olympics so people have the illusion that they only saw each other at the Olympics but in reality they are racing against each other all the time, you know who your competitors are; talks about Shimizu, racing against him when he (Jeremy) was slower, then in 1998 was at his level, feels he made Shimizu a little afraid because he had more challenge, "he was the one to beat", that helped Jeremy in motivation and reason to skate 02:33World record in the 500m: it was the first international race after taking a year off skating (03:21 - restarts) came back to skate and felt he could do better that in the past, thinking "I feel great and I don't know how it can't be a world record, because I came close in training"; nice feeling to have to know he could be that good that day 05:22On the 2002 Olympics: went in at the top level, training his best times, won many world cup races previously, felt some pressure but nothing new to him, felt his normal race and shocked when he fell - "it's done", tough rest of race but skating it out, afterwards disappointed, avoided the press area, looking back now he would have collected himself but at the time could not even think straight about it, tough but got over it; coming back 7 years later he didn't even think about because he had raced at this track so many times, set the world record 09:30Anything can happen in any race, just not as much attention as at the Olympics, people wouldn't watch sport if the expected result always happened 10:01Strengths as a speed skater: "When I think about my strengths and the things that made me good at skating, it's definitely a combination of a lot of things because I don't think you can be at the top of any sport based on one strength"; talks about the whole package - being good physically, physiologically, having power, endurance, coordination, great feeling for what you are doing, also great command over your mind, control what you are doing, train it the same way you train your body, train the way you think, be conscious that everything is going to affect you and be sure it is going to affect you in a good way, came naturally to him to think right things in training so the race it came naturally 12:08How do you impart that mental aspect: tough to teach people to change mentally, he learned it is really easy to push too hard in training and work through the pain but that changing the way you move is more difficult because it takes constant focus and concentration, the combination of working hard with your body and focussing to do really well when you are dead is really tiring for some people; the difference between the really top skaters and the skaters who could be there is the mental toughness to fight through the pain and the mental toughness to focus on the right things all the time 13:50On training with other Canadians: each person is totally different and different from me, he learned a lot from them (14:34 restarts) learned you can be totally different and still be at the top for a long time, one of the things he specifically learned from Catriona Le May Doan and Susan Auch, who were senior members of the team when he started, was how to manage himself as a skater and as an athlete, they knew the importance of rest, eating properly, how to prepare for a competition; he learned from observation 16:09Advice to young people: have fun, it is not always easy to have fun, sometimes competitions make you scared and nervous, themore that you embrace that fear or that nervousness the more fun you have in a competition because you start to enjoy that feeling of lack of control or being pushed out of your comfort zone; he like to have pressure and deal with it, this helped him after skating 17:29On being inducted: huge honour, not something he set out to do, nice to get recognition for his career as a whole, a unique and special experience to be part of 20:25Exit message |
Date |
2012/10/17 |
People |
Wotherspoon, Jeremy Le May Doan, Catriona Auch, Susan |
Search Terms |
Interview Skating Speed skating Jeremy Wotherspoon 1998 Olympic Winter Games Nagano World Championships 2002 Olympic Winter Games Salt Lake City |