End-to-End with Jen Rodriguez
By Meredith Gusa // usolympicteam.com // November 29, 2004
U.S. speedster Jen Rodriguez stunned the speedskating world when she finished fourth in the 1998 Olympic Games. To some, it may not sound like a big deal, but take into consideration the fact that Jen had only been skating on ice for less than 18 months before she earned that achievement.
Already considered one of America’s leading medal contenders for the 2006 Games, Jen took a break from competing on the 2004-05 World Cup circuit to go end-to-end with usolympicteam.com
A is for Accomplishments. Some of Jen’s greatest accomplishments are of course winning medals, but her performance in the 1998 Games in the 3,000-meter race was probably the best of her life. “I still have yet to skate another race like that,” stated Rodriguez, “it brought me to the elite level and that’s when I started to believe.”
B is for Bronze. Jen has two of these beauties to her name, both earned at the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City in the 1,000-meter and 1,500-meter races.
C is for Cuban-American. Jen is to be said the only Cuban-American Winter Olympic athlete ever to compete in the Games. “It is very important to me to be a good representative of the Cuban-American community,” said Jen. “Winning medals in 2002 was something very special for the Cuban-American population because it gave them someone to cheer for in a winter sport.”
D is for Diet. During the season, cutting back her food intake is important because speedskaters aren’t burning as many calories, but while they are training, Jen eats anything and everything in sight … especially chocolate chip cookies.
E is for Explosion. Being explosive at the start of a race is important but it all depends on the race. For example, the 500m, 1000m and the 1500m all need an explosive start, but like Jen says, “not everyone has that capability of being explosive.” What it all boils down to is technique. “You can be super explosive and have quick feet, but if the technique is not right, you will not be fast,” stated Rodriguez.
F is for Finish Line. One line Jen won’t be crossing over first would be on the asphalt track. “I’m the world’s worst runner, no joke,” Jen said. “I am also not very good at hand-eye coordination sports. To tell you the truth, I’m not that good at anything outside of skating and maybe cycling,” she continued.
G is for Gwen Stefani. Jen’s favorite bands are No Doubt (hence the band’s leading lady Gwen) and Linkin Park.
H is for Hard Rock. Whenever Jen or her family and friends travel to a place that has a Hard Rock Café, they pick up a Hard Rock pin. The furthest she’s gotten one of these mementos is “probably somewhere in Asia.”
I is for Interests. In her downtime, Jen likes to snowboard, jet ski, go cycling, play paintball, watch movies and learn about WWII.
J is for J-Rod. Jen shares the same nickname, well sort of, with the American League’s best shortstop for 2004, Alex Rodriguez, a.k.a. A-Rod. How cute!
K is for KC. Jen began speedskating in the fall of 1996 when her boyfriend (now husband) KC Boutiette thought she might be able to convert well from inline skating. Boutiette is also a former U.S. Speedskater who competed in the 1994, 1998 and 2002 Games.
L is for Laurels. Throughout her speedskating career, Jen has earned an impressive 45 medals including 15 gold in World Cup Championships and her two bronze medals in the Olympics.
M is for Miami. Jen was born and raised in Miami, Fla. – pretty much as far away from ice as you can get. And for the daily double, I’ll let you guess what her two favorite professional sports are. The answer: What are the Miami Dolphins and Miami Heat.
N is for Noel. “The first Noel, the Angels did say….” Jen loves Christmas. “It’s a holiday where I have a little training break and I can spend it with my family.”
O is for Olympian. A 1998 and 2002 Olympian, Jen became the first American woman in history to earn a spot on the Olympic Team in all five events (500m, 1000m, 1500m, 3000m, and 5000m) and the first Cuban-American to win an Olympic medal twice (bronze in both the 1000m and 1500m).
P is for Pump it up. To get fired up for a race, Jen states that watching her competitors skate gets her motivated.
Q is for Quidditch. C’mon, we all know the national sport played by wizards on broomsticks in the box office blowout, Harry Potter. And something tells me that if Jen weren’t an outstanding candidate for the 2006 Olympic Games in Torino, she’d be qualifying for this sport hands down. Jen enjoys reading Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter of course, and Anne Rice books.
R is for Roller skating. Believe it or not, Jen was a multi-time national champion in artistic roller skating placing 2nd and 3rd at world championships and in inline
speedskating she was the World Champion in 1993 and a medalist in 1992.
S is for Salt Lake City. One of the things that Jen is looking forward to this season are the sprints in Salt Lake City, Utah. “I would like to try and get some personal times there,” stated Rodriguez. “If I can do that, I think I will be able to finish high in the standings.”
T is for Take a break. Jen recently declined a spot in the 1000m for the 2004 World Cup team. Why? “I did not want to race as much this year,” she said. “By the end of the season, I am exhausted both mentally and physically and I want to try and not let that happen this year.”
U is for Understatement. In less than 18 months, Jen made the transition from never skating on ice to a fourth place finish at the 1998 Games. Any word to describe that feat would be an understatement.
V is for Variety. Jen likes to mix it up a bit in the type of movies she watches. “I’ll watch pretty much anything that will entertain me – drama, fantasy, action, comedy, whatever,” she said.
W is for World Cup. For the 2003-04 season, Jen was positioned 1st overall in the 1000m and 2nd overall in the 1500m in the World Cup rankings.
X is for eXcellence. Jen also holds five American records and two track records.
Y? Why not? In addition to her previous accomplishments, Jen is the only woman in history to medal in both disciplines (figure and speed roller skating) at the World Championships in the same year.
Z is for Zone. No, I’m not talking about the Zone Diet, I’m talking about the zone Jen gets in mentally for the different races she competes in. “The only thing I really do different for each race is focus on the different strategies for each of them,” Jen stated. “Each one has a different strategy, and that’s what I think about and I try not to think about a certain time or placement.”
