There are so many incredible women who competed in the 2022 Olympics, it's hard to know where to start!This year's games featured amazing athletes from all over the world, each with their own unique story. What's one thing that all these women have in common? It's their unbridled determination and dedication to their sport. I'm quite a sportsman myself, and I feel I can confidently say that training for an olympic sport is one of the toughest things you can do as an athlete. Years, decades, of preparation to simply qualify for the Olympics. Then, you get your few minutes to create history for yourself and your country. Wild. I have tons of respect for all Olympic athletes. 

From seasoned competitors or newcomers to the scene, these ladies are sure to impress anyone who watches them excel in their sport. Get ready for some truly awe-inspiring performances from some very special athletes!

In this blog post, we'll take a look at some of these athletes and their inspiring stories. Whether they're overcoming obstacles or breaking boundaries, these women are sure to amaze us all! 

Erin Jackson

Erin Jackson is a figure skater who just made history as the first black woman to win a Winter Olympic gold medal for an individual sport. She took home the gold medal for Women’s 500m speed skating event at Beijing 2022. 

Born in Ocala, Florida, Erin first tried figure skating at age 8. Also a competitive speed skater and roller derby player, Erin won the Pan American Championships and was named United States Olympic Committee Female Athlete of the Year for Roller Sports in 2012 and 2013 and was the MVP at the 2014 WFTDA (Women’s Flat Track Derby Association) Division 1 playoff in 2015 and 2016.

In 2016, Erin started transitioning to speed skating on ice and qualified for the 2018 Winter olympics and finished 24th out of 31 in Pyeongchang.

She was also included in Sports Illustrated’s Fittest 50, landing at number 24. Way to go, Erin!

Ireen Wüst

Considered one of the greatest speed skaters of all time, Ireen not only won numerous world championships but dominated the Olympics as well. Undoubtedly the most successful speed skating Olympian ever, she achieved one gold medal in each of five consecutive Winter Olympic appearances and is the only athlete to win an individual gold medal in five Olympics, Summer or Winter.

Interestingly, Wüst is the youngest Dutch Olympic medalist when she won the gold medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics Games 3000-meter event in February of the same year. She was only 19 at the time. She was also the oldest speed skating gold medalist when she won at the recently concluded Beijing 2022 at 35 years old.

Ireen has a total of 12 Olympic medals, six of which are gold since her first Olympic appearance in 2006. 

Speed skating is an incredibly fast and dangerous sport, but Ireen makes it look easy with her natural talent and skill. True champion!

Suzanne Schulting

Suzanne Schulting is a short-track speed skater hailing from the Netherlands. She won the gold medal in short-track speed skating at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang and became one of the youngest ever Dutch Winter Olympic champions at just 20 years old! In the same year, she was named the Dutch Sportswoman of the Year.

In February 2022 Beijing Olympic, she won the gold medal in the 1000 meters as well as the 3000 meters relay, even setting a new world record for the 1000 meters during the quarterfinal. She won the race in 1 minute, 26.514 seconds, overtaking South Korea’s Shim Suk-Hee’s record by 0.147 seconds. 

Aside from her amazing Olympic stint, Schulting is also a two-time overall World champion and three-time overall European champion.

Natalie Geisenberger

Natalie Geisenberger is a German luge racer who is considered to be one of the best in the world.  She is a nine-time world champion and six-time Olympic champion!

Geisenberger won her first Luge World Cup title in the 2012-13 season, after finishing second for four consecutive seasons.

She also has 7 gold, 6 silver, and 1 bronze medal at the FIL European Luge Championships and achieved 16 medals at the FIL World Luge Championships. She is the most decorated and most successful female luger in championship history.

The most successful female Olympic luger, Geisenberger won the gold medal in both the single’s event as well as the team relay at the 2014 Sochi and 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics respectively. She also won individual gold at the 2022 Winter Olympics, making her the only woman luger to win three individual Olympic gold medals.

Irene Schouten

Irene Schouten is a Dutch speed skater who is also competing in all-around marathon and inline skating events. She led by the nose at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, having won the 3000m, 5000m, and mass start events.

She won the women’s 5000m event with a record-breaking time of 6:43.51, shattering the previous record held by Germany’s Claudia Pechstein at 6:46.91. In the same competition, she also won the 3000m with 3:56.93, overthrowing the 3:57.70 time of Pechstein in 2002. Schouten is the fifth woman to win the 3000m and 5000m events at the same Winter Olympics. 

Irene is an up-and-coming athlete who has a bright future ahead of her.

Claudia Pechstein

Claudia Pechstein is a German speed skater who is the oldest to compete at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics at 49 years old! She has a total of nine Olympic medals--five golds, two silver, and two bronze--under her belt.

She is the first female Winter Olympian to win medals in five consecutive Olympics from 1992-2006.

Pechstein is considered the most successful Olympic speed skater, both in male and female category, and also the most successful German Winter Olympian of all time. Phenomenal!

Chloe Kim

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Chloe hails from Long Beach, California. She became the youngest woman to win an Olympic snowboarding gold medal at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. She was only 17 at the time. 

In February 2022, she became the first woman to win two gold medals in halfpipe.

In July 2018, ESPY’s awarded Kim the Best Female Athlete, Best Female Olympian, and Best Female Action Sports Athlete title. She was also included in Time’s 100 Most Influential People of 2018.

Conclusion

The Olympics are a time of international camaraderie and intense competition. But they’re also a time when some pretty amazing women make their mark on the world stage.

These inspiring women are sure to make us proud at every Olympics, and we can’t wait to see what they will achieve in the future.

Here are just a few of the incredible athletes who competed in the 2022 games. We hope you enjoyed getting to know them as much as we did!