a really breathtaking experience for me because
I didn’t really understand what that feeling was
like. Honestly, watching it on TV this year...it’s like,
nothing compares to being there. So, that was like a
really big moment for me.
MADE: What was the vibe leading up to your
competition?
AE: With the way the Winter Olympics work for us,
we didn’t really get to compete ‘til the second week.
So you have that first week of pretty much watching other sports. And that was really fun because
I’m a Black kid from Chicago and I don’t get to see
snowboarding, ski moguls, ski jumps live, let alone
ever. So like, I was going to all the different events
I could to experience as much as I could. But towards the end of that
week it started to get
me amped up because
I was excited to compete and perform for
everybody and kind of
get my own thing going on. I went through
tons of emotions at the
Olympics.
MADE: What advice
would you give
someone - especially
professional athletes that are in the midst of
a challenge?
AE: I think one of
the biggest things I’ve
learned as a person
(let alone as an athlete) was to trust the process.
I didn’t just wake up and get there. I worked my
butt off to get up to that point. So it doesn’t mean
that I’m just going to get there and be scared and
then let all the hard work I put in go to waste. I
really had to fall back on the work. When I got to
moments where I’m like, “Oh my gosh, I’m about
to really race at the Olympics” or “Oh my gosh, I’m
about to go for this and that” the nerves start getting
you. I just remember all the work, all the tears that I
cried when I was like “Mom, I’m done, I don’t want
to do this” and my mom was like “Girl, you better
go back up to the top of that hill and go back down
and sled” or knowing that my niece is looking up
to me and my city. I got so much genuine love and
support from the city of Chicago - let alone people
all over the world - that it kind of cushions you so
you don’t get nervous and you don’t let the butter-
flies get to you to where you don’t perform well.
MADE: So that mental and physical preparation.
Was there anything in particular that your coach
told you while you were preparing and building
before?
AE: I think the most influential advice I got came
from my brother and my uncle who are successful
athletes who have competed on a world stage.
They were excited for me and to see them have
that love and support and be like, “Listen, you’re
gonna get to this point and it’s gonna get you….
don’t let these other countries fool you.” To get that
type of comfort from people I look up to, not even
on an athletic level, was huge. These are the two
most influential men in my life. So to hear that from
them and to hear this
advice and how they’re
cheering me on and
to get my medal and
have my family down
there that really helped
motivate me and to
push me. I think the
best advice I got came
from my family and just
reassuring me through
the process. It wasn’t
even one simple word
or one thing that they
said, just to know that
they really got me and
they were really supportive and they knew.
Sometimes your family
knows without you really having to say it, they
know the right things to say and the right thing to
do to keep you on track. So that’s the type of stuff I
like in my life and that’s what I need.
MADE: With that type of experience under you
belt, how are you helping young women or young
girls reach for the stars like you did?
AE: One thing that I’ve been doing a lot of (and
that I’m working on right now) is working with a lot
of foundations and a lot of events. I do a lot of public speaking, so I got the chance to speak with Chicago Public School athletes. I did an Olympic day
event with a sports camp for girls. So just reassuring
them that it’s okay to have adversities and that’s it’s
okay to push through and have goals is key. It’s not
going to sound logical to everybody. Everybody
will not get your goals and visions. But as long as
you get it, as long as you trust it then you’re good.