Sports
Olympic skier returns to Daniel Island and offers an inside look at the Olympic experience
By Andrew Hart
Mar 11, 2010 - 10:49:41 AM

Fresh off a successful Olympic appearance, 16-year old U.S. Aerial freestyle skier Ashley Caldwell returned to Daniel Island last week to spend time with family, which included a visit to her sister’s class at the Daniel Island School.

"I did much better than I expected," said Caldwell. After not even being on the U.S. Olympic squad at the beginning of the year, Caldwell made the Olympic finals and finished in 10^th place among 23 competitors.

But Caldwell was able to have fun outside of competition as well. Olympians entered their names in a drawing for tickets for other Olympic events, and Caldwell was especially lucky. "I couldn’t believe it when I drew tickets for the US-Canada gold medal hockey game," said Caldwell. While she also had the chance to attend speed skating and figure skating events, the highlight for Caldwell was the hockey game. "The crowd was crazy. I’m lucky Canada won, because I don’t think I could have safely walked out of the arena with my U.S. gear on if they hadn’t."

Speaking of gear, trading for and acquiring clothing from competitors of other countries was a favorite activity of the Olympians. "I have about 6 boxes of stuff that I had to send back from Vancouver," said Caldwell. "I got so much stuff I forget what’s in there." Much of the exchanging of gear occurred after the Closing Ceremonies. "Everyone was down on the field trying to trade for stuff they had seen during the Olympics. I ended up with pretty much everything I wanted, except for a Swedish ski cap."

Caldwell and other Aerial competitors split their time between the Olympic Village in Vancouver and housing closer to the event on Cypress Mountain. With her fellow competitors hailing from countries like Belarus, Ukraine and China, communication was difficult. "It’s hard talking with everyone when they’re from so many different places," said Caldwell, "but I’m learning Russian so I’ll be ready for the next Olympics when they’re in Russia."

While she’s focused on competing in the 2014 games in Sochi, Russia, Caldwell’s goals run beyond that. "I think I could compete in at least three more Olympics," said Caldwell. "My mom always tells me that I’m four years ahead of where I’m supposed to be. Since I got here so quickly, I’ll have more time to compete."