Congested Culture
By now much has been made of what seems to be an on going feud between American skiers Lindsey Vonn and Julia Mancuso. Vonn, who has been portrayed as America’s sweetheart skier, drew the ire of Mancuso earlier this week in a Sports Illustrated interview where Mancuso said “You come to meetings after races and it’s like it’s a bad day if Lindsey didn’t do well.”. Vonn, who was hurt by the remarks made by her teammate replied by saying:
“I try to support Julia as much as I support all the other teammates. I have been racing with Julia since I was a little kid and yes we are competitors but I always support her and it has definitely hurt me that she has said some negative things about me. All I can do is continue to support her like I always have done and hope that she reciprocates that.
If there was ever a time for Mancuso to be frustrated with Vonn, that occurred yesterday on the Giant Slalom, which in 2006, Mancuso won a gold medal at the Winter Olympics in Torino. With the weather conditions yesterday making for a rugged course and very little visibility, Vonn crashed coming down the slope during her first run. The problem with that is that since the conditions were so bad, each skier was leaving a minute and a half after one another. Meaning that when Vonn crashed, Mancusco was already on her way down the slope. Realizing that this could create a bad situation, the officials threw up the yellow flag and ordered Mancuso to re-do her run, and it’s been repeated so many times since yesterday that making a competitor do that really just takes the life out of them. After Mancuso’s restart she finished with the 18th best time, essentially ending her medal hopes. Mancuso was later seen crying uncontrollably just off of the course. You wait four years for this moment and I guess it can get a little emotional.
After the first run yesterday, Mancuso tweeted that the yellow flag was “such b.s” and that she “just wanted to scream.” Someone in Mancuso’s circle must have told her to delete that tweet because it is no longer available. However she did have to this say later on in the night (via her Twitter account)
been hearing lots of people thinking I’m mad at Lindsey for crashing… thats just ridiculous! bummed about the situation…not Lindsey
At this point it’s hard to believe Mancuso isn’t the slightest bit ticked by Vonn’s flare for the dramatics. This is just another case of everyone paying attention to Lindsey Vonn and not caring enough about anyone else. While it’s understood that Vonn being on the course could of spelled disaster had Mancuso crashed as well, I don’t think the yellow flag had to go up necessarily.
Later on in the night, Mancuso updated her Facebook status to say this:
I just want to share with everyone a little insight on the story about mine and Lindsey’s relationship. Here is a profile where Lindsey says “We’re friendly, but not friends” and you know what?? I don’t really care, Lindsey doesn’t really care.. I know I can speak for us both when I say we are both stoked when there is an American on the podium, no matter who that is. Of course we both want to win.. but the truth is, everyone else seems to be more concerned about how we get along than we even think about it. We are all out there to ski fast and have fun. So save the drama for your mama!
That basically answers any questions you in regards to these two being friends.
The attention for Lindsey Vonn has gotten pretty ridiculous, especially since after winning her first gold medal she’s done her best Ricky Bobby impression and crashed twice in three events, For those expecting a Michael Phelps-esque performance from Vonn, you have been slightly disappointed. However, Mancuso seems to be a bit of a prima donna in her own right. The fact that she wore a princess tiara when collecting her silver medal for the women’s downhill at the medal ceremony only makes that more evident..
Sitting in the shadows of Lindsey Vonn doesn’t sit well with Julia Mancuso and quite frankly, who really wants to be known as the “other skier”, but the envy shows through Mancuso’s words and actions. I enjoy myself an Italian girl and I think that Mancuso is a beautiful girl, but jealousy is not a good color on her.
Filed under: Olympics Tagged: | 2010 Winter Olympics, Julia Mancuso, Lindsey Vonn
