A Pechstein’s octuple: German speed skater on track for eighth appearance at Winter Olympics

Claudia Pechstein of Germany crossed the finish line 11th during the women’s mass start held as part of the International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup last Sunday. While an 11th place finish would generally be a decent, but rather inconspicuous, result on the international stage, the placement heralded a much larger achievement for Pechstein.

It landed Pechstein 17th on the final ISU World Cup ranking for the mass start, likely guaranteeing her qualification for the 2022 Winter Olympics. Pechstein’s participation in the 2022 Winter Olympics would be historic, as she would become the first female Winter Olympian to appear at eight editions of the Games.

She would also tie the overall Winter Olympic participation record currently held by Japanese ski jumper Noriaki Kasai. While both athletes remain active, Kasai is unlikely to extend that record after being left off Japan’s ski jumping team earlier this season.

His potential absence would give Pechstein a chance to catch up, and to shine in the limelight as an octuple Olympian herself. Should she make it to the starting line for the women’s mass start in Beijing, she would become the oldest female Olympian at age 49.

Competing just days before her 50th birthday on February 22, Pechstein would surpass Anne Abernathy as the oldest female athlete to compete at a Winter Olympics. Abernathy set the record as a 48-year-old at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, where she competed in luge.

Abernathy qualified for the 2006 Winter Olympics as well, but suffered a broken wrist during a training crash before the competition began. She was officially recorded as “did not start” (DNS) following a ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), leaving a question mark around the quandary of whether or not her Olympic participation could be counted. She was 52-years-old at the time.

Abernathy was affectionately deemed “Grandma Luge,” so perhaps Pechstein could borrow her moniker and become “Grandma Speed Skate” in Beijing. Should her skate break the starting plane at the 2022 Winter Olympics, she will likely be seen as the oldest female Winter Olympian in history.

It would be a remarkable achievement for an athlete whose career has included both the highest of highs and the lowest of lows.

Pechstein was born in East Berlin, East Germany, but competed at the 1992 Winter Olympics as a member of the newly reunified German delegation. It was her first Winter Olympics, and she achieved immediate success, winning a bronze medal in the 5000 meters event.

She would go on to have a successful run of Winter Olympics, winning gold medals in various events at four consecutive Winter Olympics from 1994 to 2006. In 2009, her achievements were questioned after she was convicted of blood doping when samples taken at the 2009 World Championships in Hamar, Norway, revealed a high level of immature red blood cells.

She would fight and attempt to appeal her eventual suspension by the ISU at both CAS and the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland to no avail. According to her ISU profile, she was the first athlete from any sport to be banned over screenings in her biological passport.

Her doctors later diagnosed the high level of immature red blood cells present in her samples as a genetic defect according to the ISU.

Following her doping ban, she attempted a switch to track cycling and sought qualification for the 2012 Summer Olympics. She failed to make the German team for London 2012, but refocused her efforts on qualification for the 2014 Winter Olympics.

She would go on to participate at both the 2014 and 2018 Winter Olympics, failing short of earning a medal at both editions.

Earlier this year, she turned her attention to domestic politics, standing for election as member of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany during the German federal elections. She failed to secure election, but perhaps that loss has left her hungry for a medal in Beijing.

She reacted to her qualification for the 2022 Winter Olympics on Facebook, posting, “It really is finally done. As the first woman in the world I managed to qualify for the 8th time!! for the OWS!”

Addressing her followers she said, “I thank you in tears for your great support on this so incredibly difficult path! At almost 50 years ... unbelievable ... unbelievable ... but also a lot of mental reward for the hardships of the past years. Feel hugs to you all!!!”

The ISU is expected to confirm the countries and number of athletes qualified for the 2022 Winter Olympics sometime on December 24. It is highly likely Pechstein will be chosen to represent Germany at Beijing 2022 should her qualification be confirmed.

The 2022 Winter Olympics are set to begin on February 4, 2022. The women’s mass start is scheduled for February 19.