Sign up for our free newsletter:

Canadian speed skater Catriona LeMay Doan glides across the ice with smooth, graceful strokes as the stopwatch ticks. Rounding a corner, she touches the ice with her fingertips. Her husband, Bart, yells at her to stay low when she skates by him.

She lunges over the finish line only to learn that the time is not as fast as her first attempts. The 500m world record holder is disappointed, but Bart reminds her of the blistering pace of the first two laps. "You're tired. Don't put so much pressure on yourself."

"That's what I struggle with," the 1998 Olympic gold medalist admits, "because I know my ability, and I want to have that every minute. I guess I expect perfection from myself, and I am hard on myself. I have to work on giving myself a break."

Catriona, 31, entered the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah, ready to defend medals in the 500m and 1,000m long track events.

Her arduous training schedule—depending on the time of year—can include two intensive sessions a day. The morning begins with an off-ice warm-up and an on-ice warm-up, followed by her skating program and then a warm-down on the stationary bike. After lunch Catriona has a second program of bike work or weight training. "Usually we don't skate twice a day," she says.

As competition gets closer, the training regimen changes to include more rest and fine-tuning. "For sprinters, the more you rest, the better it is," she says.

The physical component of the training is the easy part, Catriona says. "The mental part is the part I don't like. That's where I'm the weakest. Whatever you're the weakest at is the thing you want to work on the least," she says.

The veteran athlete confesses it's tough to face the ice six days a week, especially when you're tired. "It's hard to get on the ice and know that in an hour you're going to want to throw up." What keeps her from hanging up her skates? "When I've done a good program, I love the feeling."

It has to be fun
Catriona says her faith in Christ gives her better perspective during those testing times. "It doesn't mean I don't get stressed about training or upset when it doesn't go well. But I think even if you have those reactions, you come off them and you come back to normal sooner because right away you think, 'I should pray about this.'"

Her commitment to training still amazes Bart, her husband of six years. "He reminds me that it's fun, when I forget about it," says Catriona with a laugh.

"I was going through a period in the summer of 2001 where I was stressed, and then I had a cold—I couldn't get over it. I was getting so frustrated." Bart told her that if she wasn't enjoying it, he wasn't going to let her continue. Catriona was able to refocus.

The speed skater realizes that her strong will has a lot to do with her success. "I'm very stubborn." That dermination has netted the Saskatoon, Saskatchewan native numerous World Cup medals, Canadian Female Athlete of the Year honors in 1998 after taking home the Olympic gold medal in the 500m and the bronze medal in the 1,000m from the Winter Games in Nagano, Japan. She is the defending World Cup champion and the only woman in the world to skate the 500m in under 38 seconds—twice. She recently broke her own world record at the 2001-02 World Cup with a time of 37.22 seconds.

Falling into Jesus' arms
Catriona became a Christian shortly after a disappointing fall while skating in the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. Seeking deeper fulfillment in her life when she returned to Calgary, she happened to notice a roadside sign advertising the Athletes in Action (AIA) sports camp for kids. Catriona called the number listed on the sign and got connected with AIA Canada's Steve Sellers who shared the gospel with her. Two weeks later Catriona committed her life to Christ.

Immediately her faith was tested in a year-long battle with an injury and other training challenges. The skater insists that being a Christian doesn't make her immune to difficulties.

Persevering through the challenges of that year after Lillehammer started Catriona on the road to her golden moment in Nagano. After the introduction of the clap skate (the blade is hinged at the toe, allowing the skater to raise the boot) her time improved dramatically. In Nagano she set both an Olympic and world record in the 500m. While it was her crowning achievement, she insists her bigger goal is to be used by God to reach people around her.

"There's been so much searching [by skaters] in the speed skating world," says Catriona. "When people come to me and ask, 'Why are you so happy?' I invite them to church."

"She's always looking for people to invite to Bible study or to invite to her church. Or just to talk one-on-one about how to have a relationship with God," says Sellers. "She has a positive, bubbly personality that enhances her witness for Christ because people are drawn to her." He still guides a weekly Bible study that she attends when her training or competition schedule allows.

"We've committed her sport and her athletic ability to the Lord. We trust Jesus with everything," Bart says.

Setting the example
Sellers says Catriona's faith and dynamic witness have inspired others. "Different individuals have looked to her as someone who's a model as a Christian athlete." He recalls a Dutch skater who was so inspired by LeMay Doan that she immediately sat down with another athlete from France and initiated a spiritual conversation with him. From that conversation, the French athlete turned his life around and began to seek God.

Catriona's off-ice time is spent with Bart in their new home in Calgary. They are active in their church and weekly Bible studies.

Bart sees his wife's graciousness when he travels with her. "Even at the level she's at, she's always congratulating other athletes. It's important to her how she comes across to other people and that she's someone who loves the Lord."

For now, Catriona feels she is right where God wants her to be. "I still have passion for what I want to do. And I think that if God did not want me to be doing this, he wouldn't be giving me that passion. He would definitely be giving me passion for something else."

She knows there will come a time when she steps off the ice for good. "I think there are things that you'll miss forever. I have to have faith that if that's the time for me to stop, I will have that in my heart. I think God will lead me to that."

A Christian Reader original article.

Copyright © 2002 by the author or Christianity Today International/Today's Christian magazine (formerly Christian Reader).
Click here for reprint information.

	What did you think of this story?
	Please to give us your feedback.

Home  |  People of Faith  |  Stories of Hope  |  Today's Culture
Build Your Faith  |  Laughing Matters  |  Archives  |  Contact Us

				Try an Issue of Today's Christian Free! Name Street Address City/State/Zip E-mail Address No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. Click here for International orders. If you decide you want to keep Today's Christian coming, honor your invoice for just $17.95 and receive five more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The trial issue is yours to keep, regardless. Give Today's Christian as a gift Buy 1 gift subscription, get 1 FREE!

FREE Newsletter Subscribe to the Today's Christian Newsletter    RSS Feed   RSS Help