She is the founder of Fast and Female. A 5 time Olympian who has DOMINATED the field in womens’ cross country skiing. She is a mom, an Alaskan and by far and away one of the humblest, toughest, most genuine yet uniquely talented woman I have had the honor to meet. Ladies and Gentlemen, let’s get behind Kikkan Randall of Anchorage, Alaska and her possie of off-the-charts USA teammates as they lay it all on the line is Sochi South Korea in 28 short days!
You may not be a rabid fan of cross country skiing and that’s ok. But know this – cross country ski racing is exponentially harder than it looks, and requires herculean mental and physical fortitude. As a novice and former ok skier (I could get through a few loops without falling), I have nothing but huge respect for these athletes. They are so committed to their sport. They train year round. You see them on roller skis in the summer, biking, running and strength training. They never give up! Good days. Bad days. Great weather. Awful weather. For them, it’s a dream made real by hard work and checking off interim goals. Now, in 4 weeks, they will proudly represent the USA.
To have a group from Alaska, led by Kikkan who blazed the trail and leads the masses, our relatively small town has a lot to be proud of. This is the OLYMPICS folks!! It’s the big game. On the big stage. Don’t miss it! If you follow Alaska Premier Health on Facebook, you know that Kikkan has spread her message to all of us. Not just elite athletes. She wants everyone to be all they can be – your best, healthy, active self, so that you can get back to back great moments out of life. I know that in 28 days, when Kikkan lines up to race, I will be among the tens of thousands of Americans with chills running down my spine and adrenaline on overdrive, whooping it up and cheering for a Fast and Female athlete who is without match.