Mariama Zamanka resigns: ballerina in bobsled

Mariam Zamanka was almost never late, neither in life nor in sports. Even when he decided to become a bobsled pilot again at the age of 24, it was still on time. Only three years, then, she had won Olympic gold.

However, Jamanka’s appearance in Pyeongchang, South Korea in 2018 showed everything that traditional bobsledders who have been trained for over the years can do. With her breakwoman Lisa Buckwitz, she generated enough momentum at the start, improving with four each, and eventually finished first with a seven-hundredth lead. He was close, but in time.

Ballet, horseback riding, bobsledding: Jamaica has always been curious

Now, four years later, after another Olympic silver medal in Beijing 2022, Jamanka has turned a corner again – and ended her career. It was time to throw himself into real life, to educate himself for a job that would feed him, that he could practice for longer. Because Bob Steering is engaging and varied, it requires training concentration and technical understanding, but only a few make money as association employees afterward. But curious people like Zamanka always find other temptations for their future.

Maybe it was because she had always been enthusiastic, maybe because of Reinckendorff as well. She comes from the Berlin district, as one of the few athletes who have made it from the flat metropolis to the great art in winter discipline that deals with the mountains.

But sports and exercise have always been a pleasure for Jamanka. As a teenager she switched from one class to another, trying ballet dancing, later horse riding, even as a cheerleader, before turning to a serious sport, the highest discipline in In which strict measurement is taken and time is stopped, that is, athletics. Jamanka threw discus and hammers, but somehow she got stuck, so a coach suggested she try the bobsled.

He hadn’t won the World Cup yet, but now has Olympic gold

Because Zamanka was not only curious and enthusiastic, but also wanted to take on the responsibility, she soon moved into the pilot’s seat. And maybe it was the goal of continued further development, maybe his previous subjects made a holistic understanding. Ballet helps with coordination and balance; riding with a sensitive posture and, yes, cheerleader? Of course: synchronicity and team spirit. After all, everything in bobsleigh relies on fairly muscular pushers who brace themselves quickly, cleanly and without wasting time in a narrow box to set a quick start time.

Then all you need is a good driver. And he was Jamaican almost from the beginning. Otherwise, the Berlin career changer would not have so suddenly achieved the biggest victory of his discipline. When she won Olympic gold in 2018, she had not won the World Cup. Jamanka was still able to strike excellent balance on the ideal line, most recently, in winter 2022, she also finished second at the Olympics, and before that she was the individual world champion 2019 in Whistler, Canada. And yes, six World Cup victories were added to it.

What seems so easy now, as always, was the result of hard work, which is why Zamanka’s farewell note also refers to tough times: “In my career as an athlete, I’ve had many great moments, After all, it was also the result of hard work, teamwork and great sacrifices.”

In any case – Jamaica has changed in time now. She is 31 years old, no age for a bobsled pilot, she can still ride great track, such as the world championships next winter in St. Moritz, across the natural ice channel. But the large collection of titles may not be Jamanka’s goal, but rather the exploration of new challenges, such as reading in a big city. Before it is too late, she moves on again.