When wagering on Olympic sports through any betting application or sportsbook, some sports are often overlooked and the best stories are missed. The recent story of windsurfer Bryony Shaw is one worth sharing, whether or not the event is a hot commodity in the coming days.
Shaw made her Olympic debut all the way back at the Games that were held in Beijing during the year of 2008. The windsurfer ended up walking away with a bronze medal from the event, but admitted that she felt as though she was being carried by the rest of her team with superstar athletes like Sir Ben Ainslie, a gold medallist four times.
The tide shifted at the 2012 London Olympic Games. With her friends and family watching along the Weymouth shoreline, Shaw was only able to place seventh in her event. This was due in part to her contraction of an illness after she had been in Spain, sailing in contaminated waters. The illness kept Shaw out of training for half a year, significantly hindering her ability to prepare for the Olympics at London.
As if that was not enough, the options seen on a betting application or sportsbooks that follow the Olympic Games were missing something very important for Shaw. Rio had dropped the windsurfing event to instead accommodate kitesurfing in its place. This tragic turn of events seemed to be the nail in the coffin for a terrible end to Shaw’s Olympic career as a windsurfer.
Shaw recalls the London games and states that she felt very detached from the entire experience because of the surrounding circumstances. She goes to add that “everyone was smiling and there was such a buzz and that reminded me what it was like in Beijing but I was just disappointed about my performance and everything that happened in the build-up.”
Because kitesurfing has a few similarities to windsurfing, Shaw decided to try out the sport since some of her skillset and knowledge could transfer and give her a head start. However, her lifelong dedication to windsurfing left her feeling unmotivated as she trained in a new sport.
Now 33 years old, Shaw has found new drive and inspiration because the Olympic Games at Rio decided to reinstate the windsurfing event. She explained that when the announcement was made, “I knew immediately where I was going again – it was back to business and onto Rio. This feels like another chance now, especially after all the setbacks.”
Shaw is currently ranked as the number one windsurfer in the world. Her toughest challenges as the event in Rio will come from Spanish windsurfer Marina Alabau, posing a dangerous threat to the achievement of a gold medal. Alabau was the gold medal winner in the 2012 London Olympics. The sailor Lilian De Geus from Denmark is the only individual to have knocked Shaw off of the top ranking in recent months, so her presence is bound to shape the competition as well.
Though first place is the ultimate goal, Shaw is able to keep it all in perspective. “A gold medal is everything I want, but firstly I want to feel that I’ve competed the best I can. Let’s see where that takes me.”
It’s no question where that same drive has taken Shaw already; through life’s choppy waters and to the next chance for Olympic gold.