Thursday, February 21, 2002
Klassen praises 'Peg push
Super support from hometown high-schoolers not enough to put speed skater onto 1,500m medal podium
By ERIC FRANCIS -- Calgary Sun
KEARNS, Utah -- All the e-mails and screams of encouragement from the kids at Cindy Klassen's former high school couldn't help the Winnipeg native make up the gap that left her just out of the medals in the 1,500m yesterday.
Skating with eventual bronze medallist Jennifer Rodriguez of the U.S. in the final pairing of the event, Klassen's late charge fell just 27/100ths of a second short of making her Canada's first double medallist of these Games.
"I could see I was getting a little bit closer but she was too far ahead," said Klassen, 22, who added a fourth-place finish to her surprising third in the 3,000m last week.
"When I saw the lap times I was putting up, I didn't think I would come that close to getting a medal. So after the race I was actually surprised I got fourth. I was pretty happy."
Meanwhile, back at Winnipeg's Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute, where Klassen attended junior and senior high, the students gathered in front of a large-screen TV to watch their new hero.
"I was told about that -- that's really cool," said the humble Klassen, who wanted to publicly thank the kids for the support she credits with helping calm her nerves.
"I've got so much support from them. I got an e-mail today from all of them and they sent me some little quotes and notes of encouragement, which really helped. I hope when I get back to Winnipeg, I can go and maybe talk to them and meet them. That would be really neat."
Klassen fell a half-second short of recording her personal best, clocking 1:55.59, which was a full second behind race winner Anni Friesinger -- who lowered her own world record, set at the Calgary Oval, to 1:54.02. German compatriot Sabine Voelker was second at 1:54.97.
Ottawa's Kristina Groves was 20th and East York, Ont., native Cindy Overland was 25th.
Like most skaters, neither beat their personal best due in large part to rain outside that made the Utah Olympic Oval unusually humid.
"I think (the humidity) affected the ice," said Klassen, ranked second on the World Cup 1,500m circuit.
"I don't think I could have gone any faster."
A former hockey player who was cut from the national junior squad almost five years ago, Klassen said she'll watch today's women's gold medal hockey game before turning her focus to Saturday's 5,000m.
Friesinger has won all five World Cup 1,500m races this season and was the sixth skater to lower the world record of the eight speed skating events here so far.
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2002 Games Long Track Speed Skating Coverage
