The most beautiful story of ZOI comes from monobob! A mother (41) who drives for her sons wrote history

Drama in Cortina for historic gold

At the start of the last, fourth run, Meyers Taylor was in second place, 0.15 seconds behind the leader, German Laura Nolte. She drove straight and fast, crossed the finish line and took the lead with a total time of 3:57.93. The pressure was on Nolte, who in her last drive made a few minor mistakes at the top of the track, which cost her precious hundredths.

When the scoreboard showed that the German was only four hundredths of a second behind (3:57.97), Elana Meyers Taylor fell to her knees in tears of joy, surrounded by her husband Nic and their sons, Nic and Noah. Her compatriot and great rival Kaillie Humphries, who won bronze, completed the picture of mothers on the victory podium.

​- I still can’t believe it. It’s surreal – she said visibly emotional after the race.

Older and faster than ever

Elana Meyers Taylor’s victory pushed the boundaries in the world of winter sports. At the age of 41, she became the oldest athlete to win an individual Olympic gold medal. Her nickname among her colleagues is “E-Money”, because she is known for being at her best when the pressure is greatest, which she proved in Cortina.

​- No one in their right mind would say, ‘Hey, a 41-year-old woman has a shot at another Olympic medal in a sport of speed and strength.’ I want my children to know that people told their mom it couldn’t happen, and she tried anyway.

This was her sixth Olympic medal overall (one gold, three silver and two bronze), and she tied with skating icon Bonnie Blair as the most decorated American athlete in the history of the Winter Olympics.

What is a monobob anyway?

Monobob is a relatively new discipline in the world of bobsleigh, and it made its Olympic debut in 2022 in Beijing. It was introduced to increase gender equality, and to give women another chance to win medals, along with the two-seater race. In monobob, as the name suggests, only one person competes, who must perform all the tasks: pushing the bob at the start, steering during the ride and stopping after crossing the finish line.

A key characteristic of this discipline is the standardization of equipment, which eliminates the technological advantage that richer alliances may have. All competitors use identical bobs that are produced and delivered exclusively by the German company iXent. Bobsleds are approximately 2.8 meters long, with an aluminum frame and fiberglass hull.

The weight rules are extremely strict to ensure equality. The minimum weight of the bobsleigh alone is 163 kg, while the maximum total weight of the bobsleigh and the athlete with equipment must not exceed 248.5 kg. Lighter female athletes may add ballast (metal weights) in order to reach the maximum allowed weight, because greater mass means greater speed on the track. Steering is done using a system with two handles connected by ropes to the front skates, and the brakes are pulled by pulling a toothed metal lever. Because of all this, only the skill, strength and precision of the athlete come to the fore.

Children as the greatest motivation

Behind Elana Meyers Taylor’s sports story is an even stronger personal one. She is married to Nic Taylor, also a former Olympic bobsledder and coach, who is her biggest supporter. The couple has two sons, Nica (rođen 2020.) i Noah (born in 2022), who became the center of her world. The path to motherhood was filled with challenges. The older son Nico was born with Down syndrome, and later it was determined that both boys are deaf due to a rare genetic mutation.

Elana learned American Sign Language to communicate with her sons and became a vocal advocate for the rights of children with developmental disabilities. The whole family travels together during the six-month competition season.

​- Being a mom is much harder than being an Olympian. But the reward is so much greater – and many times the same.

​- This is everything, but nothing at the same time. Because at the end of the day, I have to pick up my kids at school in the middle of Texas in six days. My boys are my motivation, they are the reason why I continued. I’m still just a mom to them.