
U.S. speedskater Brittany Bowe.
Brittany Bowe, 33, couldn’t bear to go to the Beijing Winter Olympics without her “skatesister” Erin Jackson, 29, so she did one of the most generous things an athlete could ever imagine. She gave up her spot in the Olympics and gave it to her.
Jackson had an unfortunate bumble in the U.S. Olympic Speed Skating Trials in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Friday in the 500-meter race. The misstep caused her to drop to third place on Team USA behind Bowe and second-place finisher Kimi Goetz.
Before the slip, Jackson was the No. 1 ranked skater in the event.
Only two U.S. women are guaranteed Olympic berths. Although there is a small chance that a third spot could be reallocated from another nation.
Bowe, who already qualified for the Olympics in the 1,000-meter and 1,500-meter thought Jackson deserved the spot more than she, so she relinquished it to her teammate.
“I didn’t want to have this moment without Erin out there,” Bowe said according to HuffPost. “I called her late this morning and said that I wanted to officially give her her spot. In my heart, there was never a question.”
“It’s the right thing to do,” Bowe told NBC Sports. “There’s not a doubt in my mind that she wouldn’t do the same thing for me.”
"Erin has a shot to bring home a medal \u2013 hopefully a gold medal \u2013 and it\u2019s my honor to give her that opportunity. She\u2019s earned it and she deserves it."\n\n@BrittanyBowe on her decision to give up her Olympic spot in the 500m to her friend @ErinJackson480. @USSpeedskating @OnHerTurfpic.twitter.com/JaT58YCQ3s— NBC Olympics (@NBC Olympics) 1641772688
Jackson was moved by the selfless gesture. “I’m just incredibly grateful. Really humbled,” she said. Before she was given a spot on the team she was distraught over the misstep. “I couldn’t turn my brain off,” Jackson said. “It’s been really stressful, being in limbo for so long and just disappointed because I was really excited to show a good race.”
The Beijing Olympics will be the third for Bowe and second for Jackson, who became the first Black woman to make the U.S. Olympic long track speed skating team.
History in Milwaukee! Erin Jackson has become the first African-American female long track Olympic speedskater! #WinterOlympics #BestOfUSpic.twitter.com/ngt0aSes5l— NBC Olympics (@NBC Olympics) 1515204708
The two skaters are both from Ocala, Florida, and have forged a close bond over the years. They both started inline skating alongside three-time Olympian Joey Mantia.
“We have a photo of Erin standing between myself and Joey,” Bowe said, “and she comes up to maybe our chest. We go back very far.”
Bowe believes that her display of generosity is what the games are all about. “This is bigger than just me. This is the Olympic Games and it’s about Team USA and giving everybody the opportunity to showcase what they got,” she said.
Ultimately, Jackson hopes that this saga will end with the two of them winning medals together.
“I was kind of given this gift from a very close friend of mine,” Jackson said according to USA Today. “And it would be awesome for both of us to be able to stand on the top of the podium in our races and just kind of share that moment.”
The 2022 Winter Olympics will take place from February 4 to 20 in Beijing and venues near Yanqing and Chongli in the People's Republic of China.
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."
This article originally appeared in May.