Gone In A Puff Of Snow

Gone in a Puff of Snow

Winning gold is the dream of every Olympic athlete. But during the 2006 Winter Olympics, American Lindsey Jacobellis saw a surefire gold medal turn into silver.

In the finals of the first Olympic women’s snowboard cross, Lindsey had built a commanding fifty-yard lead. She’d stayed out of the fray—which is key in snowboard cross, where four competitors fly over jumps and around high-banked curves in a race to the finish line. She was just seconds away from taking gold. On the second-to-last jump, Lindsey peeked over her shoulder, saw her huge lead, and pulled a backside method grab in the air. There was just one problem: she styled too long and wrecked on her landing. Switzerland’s Tanja Frieden saw the spill and flew past Lindsey to earn the gold medal. Lindsey quickly popped up on her snowboard and finished second.

After the race, sports reporters bashed Lindsey for showing off. They said her pride had gotten the best of her. Lindsey had a different explanation: “I was having fun,” she told reporters. “Snowboarding is fun. I was ahead. I wanted to share my enthusiasm with the crowd.” Whether it was enthusiasm or showing off, one thing is certain: Lindsey will always be remembered for her Olympic blunder.

Would Lindsey have won gold if she had kept her eyes on the finish line and not tried to pull a fancy jump? Probably. The Bible tells us that “pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom” (Proverbs 11:2). Lindsey’s coaches said the twenty-year-old made a youthful mistake. It didn’t matter that she was the reigning world champion and had breezed through earlier rounds. Lindsey had to settle for second.

What are you really good at? If you’re the best at something at your school or in your family, it’s easy to get prideful and start showing off. However, God wants you to stay humble. If you show off, you can make your opponents feel bad and even make fans root against you instead of for you. Nobody likes a show-off, but everybody likes a humble winner.

Daddy-Daughter Time

Watch Lindsey Jacobellis in the gold medal race by searching for “Winter Olympics 2006 Torino Snowboard Cross Finals.” How did watching Lindsey fall make you feel? It’s never fun to watch someone’s Olympic dreams go up in a puff of snow. After watching the race, talk about how you can stay humble as you try your best at school, at work, and on sports teams.

What’s The Word?

Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.   Proverbs 11:2