Veteran bobsledder Alysia Rissling disappointed she won't take a run at Beijing Olympic gold
Over the last couple of weeks we've heard who is going to be representing at the Winter Olympics in Beijing.
But there's another side to that story -- the story about who didn't make it.
Alysia Rissling is a veteran pilot on Canada's national bobsleigh team. The 33-year-old competed for Canada at the 2018 Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Rissling finished sixth and figured she would be a lock to make the 2022 Olympics.
Last week she was informed she didn't make the team. Rissling says she always felt she was behind the eight ball.
"I missed the 2019-20 season due to injury which went from one season off to two full seasons off," Rissling told CTV.
"It was 22 months in between my international competitions because of the pandemic. It was very little time for me to get back to that competition form."
SELECTIONS BASED ON PUSH RANK
Rissling was able to get into top shape and was looking forward to the selection races. She figured her driving would be enough to earn a spot on the team.
Then she was informed there wouldn't be a selection race and she believes that sealed her fate.
"Pilots were selected on push rank and I was fourth," Rissling said.
"If you told me that we were being selected on push rank I probably would've retired a while ago but we found out five days before our push testing."
HAS TO BE READY JUST IN CASE
Rissling loves the Olympics and really wanted to race for the gold one more time.
She's been a full-time pilot on the World Cup circuit since the 2016-17 season.
Despite all that experience she didn't even make it as an alternate. While her teammates are making their way to the Games, Rissling is left to train by herself at the ice house.
She says she has to be ready just in case.
"It's funny because not even being an alternate, it's like I was still told that I have to continue training and I'm not allowed to move on with my life or do anything until those guys land in Beijing and test negative."
TIME TO MOVE ON
This is not the way Rissling wanted to end her Bobsleigh career. And even though she would love a shot at one more Olympics she knows it's time to move on.
"I think for me and I've heard an interview with some other high level athletes and they were asked how t hey knew it was time to retire? The pretty common answer was that when you no longer have the energy to deal with the Politics you're probably done in your sport."
For the first time ever, Canada is sending three pilots to the Winter Olympics and Rissling says that shows just how strong the program is right now.
She says even though she won't be there, she'll be cheering on her teammates every step of the way to bring home some medals.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.