Ormerod injured her heel hours before she was due to compete in 2014. She required seven surgeries to fix the injury.
Katie Ormerod Success is all relative.
She was a top-ranked medal hope for Team GB, and the first British snowboarder ever to win an overall World Cup title. In 2020, she won the slopestyle Crystal Globe. Ormerod competes on snow and not paper, it is obvious.
The 24-year-old was a highly-touted contender and arrived in PyeongChang four years ago. She fractured her wrist and then broke her heel while watching the Olympics from Seoul.
She spent 18 months in rehabilitation, admitting to dark times and her only goal being to walk again without pain.
Although her 18th place in qualifying, which meant she was only seven points short of reaching the final, might seem disappointing, it is important to understand her background.
She said, “I’ve waited a long time for this moment to drop in and compete at an Olympic Games.”
“I stood at the top of my first run, just as I was about to drop in, and I thought, “Wow, this is my moment. I’m finally an Olympian.”
It was truly special. I have never experienced a feeling quite like it. It was pure joy and I am so proud of myself for all the things I have done to get there.
It’s been amazing being here. It’s easy to tell you’re at the Olympics. The Olympic vibe is strong. It’s amazing to finally be able to drop in and realize that I am an Olympian now.
They are made of different materials in this sport, so the simple metric of success is not always what they use. If you look at things from the binary perspective of “win” or “lose”, it can be difficult to grasp.
Jenny Jones won the first Olympicmedal in Britain on snow eight years ago. Ormerod, a former gymnast, believes Jones should be proud.
She said, “When you think back on all she’s gone through, it’s remarkable that she’s here and competing without injury.”
She was in a hospital four years ago. Now she is an Olympian, and she is only 24. She is able to hold her head high.
Ormerod could be a three-time Olympian, but she was just 14 when she missed out on the team and suffered an injury four years later. Jones was 34 years old when she won her Sochi medal. Ormerod can now look forward to Milano Cortina and beyond.
Ormerod competes in the Big Air again on February 14th. The broadcast will be live on Discovery+ and Eurosport. Ormerod did seem cautious on both runs and admitted that she found the artificial snow conditions, intimidating course and more challenging than she anticipated.
She said, “The conditions were OK but it was very difficult in the training days. Which meant that I had to spend the hour of training today to try to piece together a run.”
“It was very hard, but I’m proud that I made it happen, made the process work, and got a rundown.
“I have big air next. I’m going to just rest in between and focus all my attention on that.”