On Sunday, Bode Miller took home his U.S. record 6th olympic medal getting the Bronze in the Men's Super G. Miller's teammate, Andrew Weibrecht took home the Silver medal. Miller became the most decorated U.S. alpine skier and the oldest alpine skier to medal. A great story for the papers, but unfortunately not the one told.
Miller was brought to tears post race by an interviewer asking whether this run was for his deceased brother. Miller was choked up and attempted to finish the interview. Christin Cooper, the interviewer did her job in asking more leading questions as Miller displayed emotion. After Miller walked away, the outcry on social media was she was excessive. Nonsense. Miller showed how dedicated and passionate he is about alpine skiing (something that has been continuously questioned in the past). I applaud Miller for being real and honest. I credit Ms. Cooper for doing her job.
To show you how unfair it is to judge Miller for his 3rd place finish, let us take a look at Weibrecht's career. Weibrecht has finished on the podium in his skiing career a grand total of two times. Once in 2010 at the Vancouver Olympics and yesterday in Sochi. He has never been ranked above #50 in the past six years. In the last 11 years (minus 2013 injured), Bode Miller has been ranked in the #20 and ranked in the top #4 seven consecutive years. He has finished on the podium 78 times!
Imagine if you were evaluated once every four years for your job. Would you be comfortable with how it reflects your performance? Of course not. Thank you, Bode for always being true to yourself. Your brash, unedited self will be missed.
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