U.S. biathlete gives up Olympic spot for ailing sister
Jan 18, 2014, 2:06 AM | Updated: 2:06 am
After missing out on the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, biathlete Tracy Barnes spent the last four years training to get back to Sochi.
Barnes clinched her spot on the U.S. Team last week, finishing fifth-best among Americans at the final qualifying events.
The only problem?
Her twin sister, Lanny, was ill throughout the qualifying events and failed to secure her spot for the Sochi Games.
While both sisters skied together at the 2006 Games in Turin, Tracy didn’t want her sister to miss out on another chance to compete on the Olympic stage. So, the 31-year-old did the most selfless thing a competitor could do: She gave her sister her spot.
“She’s having a great year, and I think when you care enough about someone you’re willing to make that kind of sacrifice,” Tracy told NBC’s “Today” Show. “I think right away when I heard she got sick because I knew that the likelihood of her making the team was pretty slim being sick.”
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For Lanny, Sochi will mark her third appearance in the Winter Olympics.
