Lizzy Yarnold: Difference between revisions

| name = Elizabeth Anne Yarnold<br /><small>[[Order of the British Empire|OBE]]</small>

| weight = {{convert|70|kg|stlb lb|order=flip|sigfig=3}}<ref name="bskeleton" />

'''Elizabeth Anne Yarnold''', [[Order of the British Empire|OBE]]<ref>{{cite webnews |title=OBE, Birthday list 2018 |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-44397682 |date=9 June 2018 |access-date=9 June 2018}}</ref> (born 31 October 1988) is a British former [[Skeleton (sport)|skeleton]] racer who joined the Great Britain national squad in 2010. With consecutive Olympic gold medals in 2014 and 2018, she is the most successful British Winter Olympian and the most successful Olympic skeleton athlete of all time from any nation.<ref>{{cite web |author=[[UK Sport]] |title=GOLD for Lizzy Yarnold pic.twitter.com/3e4vSStWvC |url=https://twitter.com/uk_sport/status/964853881401434112 |publisher=Twitter |date=17 February 2018 |access-date=17 February 2018}}</ref> She won the [[2013–14 Skeleton World Cup]] (only once finishing off the podium the whole season), followed by a gold in the [[2014 Winter Olympics]] in [[Sochi]].<ref name="fibt_2014_results"/><ref name="bbc_sochi_gold"/><ref>{{cite web |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Lizzy Yarnold crowned European skeleton champion in Austria |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/winter-sports/31241226 |publisher=BBC Sport |date=8 February 2015 |access-date=8 February 2015}}</ref> Yarnold was selected to be one of the two women skeleton drivers representing [[Team GB]] at the [[Skeleton at the 2018 Winter Olympics|2018 Winter Olympics]] in [[Pyeongchang]],<ref>{{cite press release |title=Quartet earn Olympic Skeleton spots |url=http://www.thebbsa.co.uk/2016/quartet-earn-olympic-skeleton-spots/ |publisher=[[British Bobsleigh and Skeleton Association]] |date=22 January 2018 |access-date=22 January 2018}}</ref> and went on to become the first person to defend an Olympic gold in skeleton and the first British athlete to defend a Winter Olympic title.<ref>{{cite web |title=Winter Olympics: Lizzy Yarnold defends skeleton gold as Laura Deas takes bronze |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/winter-olympics/42981272 |publisher=BBC Sport |date=17 February 2018 |access-date=17 February 2018}}</ref> Yarnold set the track record for women's skeleton at the [[Alpensia Sliding Centre|Olympic venue]] in the final heat of the race with a time of 51.46 seconds, beating [[Jacqueline Lölling]]'s pre-Olympic record by nearly 1.3 seconds and her own first-heat record by 0.2 second.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Guerrero |first1=Jorge |last2=Grande |first2=César |title=Official results book, 2018 Olympic Winter Games (Skeleton) |url=https://www.pyeongchang2018.com/en/game-time/results/OWG2018/resOWG2018/pdf/OWG2018/SKN/OWG2018_SKN_C00_SKN-------------------------------.pdf |url-status=dead |publisher=PyeongChang Organising Committee for the Olympic Games |page=88 |date=17 February 2018 |access-date=17 February 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180228113612/https://www.pyeongchang2018.com/en/game-time/results/OWG2018/resOWG2018/pdf/OWG2018/SKN/OWG2018_SKN_C00_SKN-------------------------------.pdf |archive-date=28 February 2018}}</ref> Yarnold was also the flag bearer for [[Great Britain at the 2018 Winter Olympics|Great Britain]] at the [[2018 Winter Olympics Parade of Nations|Pyeongchang opening ceremony]].<ref>{{cite news |author=Telegraph Sport |title=Lizzy Yarnold named Team GB flagbearer at Winter Olympics opening ceremony |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/winter-olympics/2018/02/08/lizzy-yarnold-named-team-gb-flagbearer-winter-olympics-organisers/ |work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |location=London |date=8 February 2018 |access-date=8 February 2018}}</ref>

Born in [[Sevenoaks]], [[Kent]], Yarnold was educated at [[St Michael's Preparatory School, Otford|St Michael's Preparatory School]], an [[independent school]] in the village of [[Otford, Kent]],<ref>[http://www.stmichaels.kent.sch.uk/current-parents-students/55/news-items/article/201/lizzy-yarnold St. Michael's Preparatory School - Lizzy Yarnold] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140314180003/http://www.stmichaels.kent.sch.uk/current-parents-students/55/news-items/article/201/lizzy-yarnold |date=14 March 2014}}. Publisher: ''St. Michael's School, Otford, Kent''. Retrieved: 14 March 2014.</ref> followed by [[Maidstone Grammar School for Girls]] in the Kent [[county town]] of [[Maidstone, Kent|Maidstone]], where she became Head Girl.<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/winter-olympics/10639725/Follow-your-dreams-says-champion-Yarnold.html Lizzy Yarnold wins Winter Olympics skeleton gold and urges fans to follow their dreams]. Claire Carter. ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]''. 14 February 2014. Retrieved: 14 March 2014.</ref> After undertaking [[UCAS#Clearing|UCAS clearing]] following her [[A Levels]], Yarnold chose to study geography and sport and exercise science at the [[University of Gloucestershire]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.glos.ac.uk/news/Pages/olympic-gold-medallist-gives-clearing-advice.aspx|title=Olympic Gold Medallist gives advice on clearing|date=10 August 2015 }}</ref><ref>[http://lizzyyarnold.com/about/ Lizzy Yarnold - Great Britain Skeleton Athlete] lizzyyarnold.com. Retrieved: 14 March 2014.</ref>

In subsequent seasons Yarnold honed her skeleton-racing skills, learned courses, and achieved the athletic performance required to compete at World Cup level. She finished the 20112012/1213 season in 9th position<ref name=fournews>{{cite web|url=http://www.channel4.com/news/lizzy-yarnold-skeleton-sochi-winter-olympics-gold-medal-hope |title=Sliding for gold: skeleton Athlete Lizzy Yarnold |website=www.channel4.com |date=13 February 2014 |access-date=14 February 2014}}</ref> and became junior World Champion and a bronze medallist in the senior World Championships in 2012.<ref name="bskeleton" />

Having suffered from dizzy spells for several years, in September 2017 Yarnold disclosed that she had been diagnosed with a [[vestibular disorder]] affecting the inner ear.<ref>{{cite web |last=McDaid |first=David |title=Lizzy Yarnold: Olympic skeleton champion diagnosed with vestibular disorder |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/winter-sports/41286135 |publisher=BBC Sport |date=15 September 2017 |access-date=27 October 2018}}</ref> After a relatively poor season,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://inews.co.uk/sport/olympics/lizzy-yarnold-interview-winter-olympics/ |title=Lizzy Yarnold interview: ‘After'After winning everything I had to take time off’off' |last=Rich |first=Tim |date=8 February 2018 |website=[[inews.co.uk]] |access-date=27 October 2018}}</ref> she successfully defended her Olympic title at the 2018 Games in Pyongchang, despite suffering from a number of health problems: upon arriving in South Korea for the Games she developed a chest infection, which worsened to the point that she was having trouble speaking and breathing, and on the first day of competition she suffered from dizziness due to a flare-up of her vestibular condition.<ref name=kelner>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/jul/31/lizzy-yarnold-i-wanted-to-scream-winter-olympic-double-gold-medallist |title=Lizzy Yarnold: I wanted to scream ‘I'I wish people knew the truth’truth' |last=Kelner |first=Martha |author-link=Martha Kelner |date=31 July 2018 |website=The Guardian |access-date=27 October 2018}}</ref> She took the lead with a new track record on the first run: despite this she subsequently admitted that she was on the verge of pulling out of the competition due to her health problems.<ref name=bens>{{cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/winter-olympics/2018/02/17/lizzy-yarnold-laura-deas-winter-olympics-womens-skeleton-final/ |title=Lizzy Yarnold takes gold to retain Olympic title as Laura Deas wins bronze |last1=Bloom |first1=Ben |last2=Coles |first2=Ben |date=17 February 2018|website=The Telegraph |access-date=17 October 2018}}</ref> Dropping down to third place after the second run, albeit just a tenth of a second behind overnight leader [[Jacqueline Lölling]], her health improved for the second day, and she subsequently moved up to second after the third run, two hundredths of a second behind new leader [[Janine Flock]].<ref name=bens /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/feb/17/lizzy-yarnold-wins-winter-olympics-gold-laura-deas-bronze-record-britain-day |title=Lizzy Yarnold takes skeleton gold to make Winter Olympics history for Britain |last=Ingle |first=Sean |author-link=Sean Ingle |date=17 February 2018 |website=The Guardian |access-date=27 October 2018}}</ref> On the final run she set another track record to clinch the gold by almost half a second.<ref name=bens /> She subsequently stated that she considers her second Olympic gold to be her greatest achievement.<ref name=retire />

* {{IOCOlympics.com profile|elizabeth-yarnold|Elizabeth Yarnold}}

[[Category:Olympic skeleton racers offor Great Britain]]

[[Category:PeopleSportspeople from Sevenoaks]]