Olympics: Skeleton star Matt Weston grapples with his new golden status

By Mitch Phillips

CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Double Olympic skeleton champion Matt Weston is one of the most articulate athletes you could ever meet but, even five days on from becoming the only Briton to win two medals at the same Winter Olympics, he says he is still lost for words.

Interview Setting in Cortina

"I feel like I've had a lifetime since kitting out four weeks ago, everything's gone so crazy," he told Reuters in an interview at the adidas HQ in the mountains above Cortina on Friday.

"There has been so much that's happened to me and the team, it's just been absolutely mental. The fact that I'm sat here with two gold medals around my neck - I'm just lost for words."

Weston’s Double Gold and Aftermath

Weston followed Amy Williams (2010) and Lizzy Yarnold (2014 and 2018) as British skeleton singles gold medallists then teamed up with Tabby Stoecker to win a dramatic gold in the first running of the Mixed Team event.

Inspiration and Public Response

That cemented Britain's place as the dominant force in the skeleton at the Olympics, despite the country not boasting a track, and has created a huge buzz at home with thousands of people enquiring about trying the 80mph sport.

"The fact that people have watched me and been inspired to actually go and apply is very surreal, but I'm so proud to be a part of that," said Weston, who discovered the sport through a British Olympic Association talent ID programme.

The team gold came hours after Huw Nightingale and Charlotte Bankes won Snowboard Cross Mixed Team gold to make it the first time Britain had won two Winter Olympic golds on the same day.

"I like the fact that it's similar to Super Saturday at London 2012," he said. "That was a massive inspiration for me and watching some of those amazing athletes do some of those amazing things was part of the reason why I'm here today.

From 'Super Saturday' to 'Slippery Sunday'

"So, Slippery Sunday – I've not heard that, but let's go with it - I wanted to have my name up with those guys and hopefully win medals so it's a massive honour and I'm so proud to be here."

SUCCESSIVE TRACK RECORDS

Singles Dominance: Four Track Records

Weston, who came into the Games on the back of three World Cup overall titles in a row, was peerless in the singles as he racked up four successive track records.

Mixed Team Relay: Late Surge for Gold

It was not so straightforward in the relay though as he began the second leg in fourth place, only to deliver another silky performance to clinch gold.

Weston, however, said he had no idea of the team's position as he waited to start his run. "I deliberately kept myself away from all that," he said. "I got to the line and deliberately tilted my helmet down just enough that I couldn't see the times and all I had to focus on was me."

Calm Mindset and Psychology

That calmness has been one of the products of starting work with a sports psychologist after the disappointment of his 15th-placed finish at the Beijing Olympics, and Weston, 28, said ahead of these Games that he had learned to embrace the pressure that comes with being world number one.

"I definitely approached the race with way more calmness and way more collectiveness than I ever thought I would," he said. "I obviously still had the nerves and a bit of excitement because it's the Olympics, but the mental side of things massively helped."

Teammates’ Near Miss in Relay

Someone else who might need some psychological support is Weston's friend and long-time rival Marcus Wyatt, who finished an agonising fourth in the relay alongside Freya Tarbit.

"I'm super-gutted for those guys," Weston said. "They are amazing athletes and we are such a tight squad as well, so to just miss a medal by 12 hundredths, and 13 hundredths to silver... they can all hold their heads so high.

"Just because I've got the medals around my neck doesn't mean it's all down to me. It's a massive team behind me and also my teammates are part of that and I think the whole nation back home is so proud of every single one of us."

(Reporting by Mitch Phillips, editing by Christian Radnedge)