Why Ester Ledecka Absolutely Deserves the Status of the Snow Queen?
Ester Ledecka made a real sensation at 2018 Winter Olympics, becoming the first person to win 2 Olympic gold medals with 2 different types of equipment (skis and a snowboard). After that, many people started to call her a “Snow Queen” and we can’t deny that as Ester is amazing. Let’s find out more about this Czech athlete.
Early Career
Ester Ledecka print
Ester Ledecka was born on March 23, 1995, in Prague, Czech Republic, in the family of a figure skater and musician. Her grandfather is former ice hockey player Jan Klapac, who is the winner of two Olympic Games and 7 World Championships.
Being a child, Ledecka started to practice ice hockey. At 4, she got engaged into alpine skiing and later snowboarding. Starting to compete internationally in 2011, in 2013, she was called “Junior Sportsperson of the year” in the Czech Republic.
Snowboarding Career Highlights
Ester Ledecka poster
Ester debuted at the snowboarding World Cup in 2012/13 season, finishing 13th in the parallel slalom. She rose to her first podium in January 2014, being second in parallel slalom in Bad Gastein. She gained her first victory the same year in Rogla, being the best in parallel giant slalom. In total, the athlete won 15 races and rose to the snowboarding podiums at the World Cup 22 times.
She won the overall World Cup titles for three years in a row from 2016 to 2018, being also silver medalist in 2014 and bronze medalist in 2015. Moreover, Ester is 2-time silver medalist in parallel slalom, 2-time gold, 1-time silver and 2-time bronze medalist in parallel giant slalom.
In 2013, she took part in Junior World Championships and gained 2 gold medals in parallel slalom and parallel giant slalom. At 2015 World Championships, she claimed gold in parallel slalom. And in 2017, the snowboarder became the World Champion in parallel giant slalom and a silver medalist in parallel slalom.
Ledecka competed in snowboarding at 2014 and 2018 Winter Olympics. In 2014, she was 6th in parallel slalom and 7th in parallel giant slalom. In 2018 PyeongChang, she earned a gold medal in parallel giant slalom.
Alpine Skiing Achievements
Ester Ledecka poster
Ledecka debuted at the Alpine Ski World Cup in 2016, where she finished on the overall 93rd place. Her best overall World Cup result is the 61st place in 2018. She has only one top 10 finish. In December 2017, she finished 7th in downhill in Lake Louise.
Competing at 2017 Alpine World Ski Championships, the skier finished 21st in downhill, 29th in Super-G, 37th in giant slalom and 20th in combined.
At 2018 Winter Olympics, Ledecka claimed gold in Super-G. She completed the race in 1:21.11, just 0.01 milliseconds earlier than silver medalist Anna Veith. She also participated in giant slalom race and finished on the 23rd place.
Though Ester Ledecka has much more titles and awards in snowboarding, this year the athlete proved that she can be great at both snowboarding and alpine skiing. She is a real “Snow Queen”, who shows her best no matter what equipment she uses.
