nancy Jorgensen - Go, Gwen, Go: A Familys Journey to Olympic Gold

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Elizabeth Jorgensen | Nancy Jorgensen

A Familys Journey to Olympic Gold

Foreword by Bob Babbitt

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Go, Gwen, Go

Maidenhead: Meyer & Meyer Sport (UK) Ltd., 2020

9781782558279

All rights reserved, especially the right to copy and distribute, including translation rights. No part of this work may be producedincluding by photocopy, microfilm or any other meansprocessed, stored electronically, copied or distributed in any form whatsoever without the written permission of the publisher.

2020 by Meyer & Meyer Sport (UK) Ltd.

Aachen, Auckland, Beirut, Cairo, Cape Town, Dubai, Hgendorf, Hong Kong, Indianapolis, Maidenhead, Manila, New Delhi, Singapore, Sydney, Tehran, Vienna

Credits

Cover and interior design: Annika Naas

Layout: Amnet

Front cover photos: dpa

All other photos: Elizabeth Jorgensen and Nancy Jorgensen, unless otherwise noted

Graphics: AdobeStock

Managing editor: Elizabeth Evans

Copyeditor: Sarah Pursey

Member of the World Sports Publisher Association (WSPA), www.w-s-p-a.org

9781782558279

Email:

www.thesportspublisher.com

by Bob Babbitt

by Gwen Jorgensen

Imagine this. Your daughter or sister is finishing up her CPA and has already accepted a great job from Ernst & Young as a tax accountant. Then, out of nowhere, she receives a call from someone at USA Triathlon, the governing body for a small sport that was first showcased in the 2000 Olympics. That call will send her lifeand yourson an amazing journey into the unknown and, eventually, to Olympic glory.

Gwen Jorgensen swam for three years at the University of WisconsinMadison and ran for three years. During those last two years, while she was finishing up her CPA, she won the 2009 Big 10 Championships at both 3,000 and 5,000 meters.

In 2010, the folks at USA Triathlon asked Gwen if she had any interest in racing for the US and possibly going to the Olympics. The Olympics? Gwen had never ridden a high-performance bicycle before and was just beginning her career at one of the most prestigious accounting firms in the world.

Gwen wasnt willing to walk away from a career at Ernst & Young that was just beginning to take a flier on becoming a world-class triathlete, so she took baby steps. Tom Schuler, a former professional cyclist, was brought in to help Gwen learn how to ride a bike while she attempted to balance both her position at Ernst & Young and learning this new sport.

Early on, she would fall over at stoplights while trying to unclip from her pedals. But Gwen was tenacious and eventually she would learn to not only ride a bike, but also learn how to train for and race a triathlon.

While training on the bike, Tom Schuler introduced Gwen to a friend and professional cyclist who then helped coach and rode with this cyclist-come-lately. His name was Patrick Lemieux, and he and Gwen would eventually marry and become parents to their little boy, Stanley.

This memoir is written by her mother Nancy and her sister Elizabeth. In the pages of this book, youll be introduced to the Gwen they knew from when she was a little girl. The Jorgensen family was there to support her as she went from CPA to novice triathlete to racing her first professional event.

Less than two years after getting into the sport, Gwen Jorgensen was on the starting line at the 2012 Olympic Triathlon in London. During her triathlon career, she became the first American woman to win a World Triathlon Series event, the first person in history to win 12 consecutive races on the ITU circuit and the first American triathlete, male or female, to win an Olympic Gold Medal, which she did in Rio in 2016.

Gwen Jorgensen became the very best female Olympic-distance triathlete on the planet, and her family was there to cheer her on.

This is their story.

Get ready for one heckuva ride!

Bob Babbitt

USA Triathlon Hall of Fame Inductee

Ironman Triathlon Hall of Fame Inductee

Competitor Magazine Co-Founder

Challenged Athletes Foundation Co-Founder

I was born an introvert. Thankfully, my older sister Elizabeth was not. When I learned to talk, I rarely wanted to share with others, so my sister took over, answering questions I was asked. Elizabeth got to know me this way. She could speak my mind just by looking at my expressions. We spent hours together as children with our mom, Nancy, and dad, Joel. We didnt have cable television, cell phones, or PlayStation. Growing up, we talked to each other, played, and fought. Dad made wooden puzzles that we assembled at night; I always wanted to finish the fastest and pulled out a stopwatch as everyone solved Dads newest invention. Dad, EJ, and I played HORSE at the backyard basketball hoop while Mom cooked snacks inside. My most vivid memories are of my sister and me playing violin with Mom accompanying on piano. I didnt always enjoy the violin, but I did enjoy time with my family.

As the quiet one, I often observed my older sister and mom talk, work, play, and cook. It taught me about overcoming challenges, being in the moment, and expecting to better myself. In this book, my mom and sister give their accounts of what I was like as a child, and how I developed into an Olympic champion. They accurately capture my struggles, aspirations and joys. They include excerpts from my perspective as well, but often my sister and mom capture my thoughts better than I, the introvert, could convey.

My experiences taught me you dont have to be anything special to become successful. I was born into a middle-class family, and no one pushed me to do sports. My sister and I each played at least one instrument and one sport from the age of eight. Our parents allowed us to make choices for ourselves. From an early age, I was taught to take responsibility for my choices. If I decided on basketball camp, I couldnt quit halfway through the season. I learned to make well thought-out decisions and follow through, no matter the outcome.

I am now starting a family of my own and wonder how my children will grow and mature. I hope I will know my child as well as my family knows me. I love going home as an adult because it is like nothing has changed. Mom still spoils me. She turns my laundry right-side out, cooks amazing meals, and shares whats going on in her life, while my sister injects energy and emotion into our family. Elizabeth brings games, knows what she wants (like Moms homemade pretzels and Dads choices of cheese presented on his hand-crafted cheese board) and isnt afraid to tell us. Our family is perfectly abnormal. We get along because we are a family based in love, and I hope the same for Patrick and me. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I do. It tells my story, while also showing the emotions and struggles a family goes through when an average daughter goes from CPA to Olympic gold medalist.