Canmore, Alta. — Canada’s most decorated Olympic cross-country ski athlete, Beckie Scott, has a new heir to the family home, Cross Country Canada announced on Tuesday.
The Olympic gold and silver medalist, along with husband Justin Wadsworth, a three-time Olympic cross-country skier for the United States team, welcomed the addition of Teo Jacob Wadsworth to their family on Sunday, September 16, 2007. Weighing in at 8 lbs 5 ounces, baby Teo (pronounced Tay-o) arrived healthy at Banff’s Mineral Springs Hospital.
“Standing on the Olympic podium is an incredible experience that I will never forget, but the day Justin and I finally got to meet and hold Teo for the first time was absolutely hands down, the best day of our lives,†said Scott, who traveled the world as a member of the IOC Evaluation Commission and WADA while pregnant with Teo.
While Scott will remain in North America, her husband, Wadsworth, will hit the road in early October to continue his responsibilities as a coach with the United States Cross-Country Ski Team.
“Being a ski coach and a father won’t be the easiest combination, but the current coaching structure of the U.S. Ski Team allows us to have good quality home time between trips which I’m really excited for,†said Wadsworth. “The first week of being a Daddy has been absolutely awesome and I know it is only going to get better. We are both so excited.â€
Prior to officially announcing her retirement nearly two years ago from competitive skiing, Scott has spent the last two decades traveling around the world’s Nordic highways with Olympic teammates, Sara Renner and Milaine Theriault. Now, Scott follows her teammates into the world of motherhood. Renner, who teamed up with Scott to win an Olympic silver medal in the team sprint relay in 2006, welcomed a baby girl into the world in February, while Theriault competed for two years on the international circuit after having a boy in 2004. After taking a year off, Renner is now back training to compete on the World Cup circuit with the goal of skiing at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver/Whistler.
“Sara and I ended up delivering the babies with the same doctor, in the same hospital, only eight months apart, so it is getting more difficult to convince people we don’t do everything together,†joked Scott, who also added they were trying for Canada’s future sprint relay team, but that now won’t be the case unless they create a co-ed race. “Sara’s baby, Aria, was one of Teo’s first visitors. It has been great to have Sara around to turn to, and ask questions about being a mom. It really has been a special experience to both become mothers in the same year.â€
Scott skied into retirement having rewritten the Canadian record books in the sport, which also firmly established her as one of the world’s best all-round cross-country ski racers. The remarkable trail for the Vermilion, Alta. native concluded with: 15 World Cup medals; four World Cup victories; two Olympic medals — including a gold in the 10-kilometer pursuit race at the 2002 Games, and her silver medal in 2006.
Despite retiring from competitive skiing, Scott continues to blaze her trail around the world as a member of the IOC Athletes’ Commission. Scott was elected to the position, which holds an eight-year term, by her peers at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games. Since the 2006 Olympics, and in addition to various public speaking engagements, Beckie holds positions on a number of commissions and committees including; WADA, Right to Play, VANOC, the CCES, and COC.
Source: Cross-Country Canada
