The extraordinary story of Erin Jackson and Brittany Bowe

The story of Erin Jackson, who won the gold medal in Beijing in 2022, co-written by her longtime friend and teammate Brittany Bowe, is as inspiring as it gets. Or not… but for Bowe’s selfless gesture after the U.S. trials, the world’s No. 1 500m skater might not have even competed in the women’s 500m Olympics. But Jackson was there and eventually became the first black Olympic speed skating champion. She placed only third in the US trials after an unusual slip. As a result, Bowe won the race but decided to give her seat to her friend of almost twenty years as she had already qualified in the 1000 m and 1500 m. The two stars tell us how they experienced this extraordinary story.