A Q&A With Rider Alum/Bobsledder Jazmine Fenlator

By Nicole Malczan



2007 Rider alum Jazmine Fenlator might have graduated with a degree in journalism and a promised job at Johnson & Johnson, but she soon found herself shooting for Olympic gold. At the advice of her coaches, Fenlator began pursuing her Olympic dream, training and preparing as a bobsled breakman for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. However, with not enough time on her side for the 2010 games, Fenlator has firmly set her sights on the 2014 Winter Olympics, this time as a bobsled driver. Nicole Malczan spoke to Fenlator regarding her career shift and what it means to train for the Olympic games.

NM: First of all, the jump from journalism to bobsledding is quite a big one. Did you ever envision yourself pursuing bobsledding as a career path?

JF: No, I didn’t. I did track and field at Rider. I was successful at it but never intended to pursue it as a career. My coach told me that I should try bobsledding. I thought it’d be a good idea, so I jumped on board with bobsledding, and now my goal is to get to the Olympics.

NM: What got you interested in bobsledding?

JF: It was really my coach that mentioned it. I didn’t take him too seriously at the time, but my coach did some research and forwarded my athletic resume to some people. By April I was being contacted for tryouts from NCAA until the summer or fall. In August I got an invite from the NCAA to attend a rookie camp for five days, right before I started at Johnson & Johnson in September. I told myself, ‘if it doesn’t work out, then I’m going to work tomorrow.’

NM: How did you wind up joining the US national bobsled team?

JF: It involved taking a pushing test, and then I was asked to a camp where I was invited to slide on the bobsled. It’s hard to say if you’ll like it; you can slide and not like it or be great and love it. I got on the bobsled and loved it and said I’m in to stay. I had to go through the test to discover my weaknesses and strengths and to test better until I made the national team.

NM: Have you always been interested in competing in the Olympics?

JF: Well I grew up watching it, and although I didn’t prefer any team, I admired people with that much athleticism.

NM: What was the most significant experience you had in preparing for the 2010 Winter Games?

JF: During my residency at the Olympic Training Center at Lake Placid I was spending time with previous Olympians. That pushed me to want to do better. The US team really worked on development a lot. Being competitive really helps you to do better. I was training with the elite as one of the elite.

NM: What preparations do you believe need to be made for the 2014 Olympics?

JF: I changed my position from breakman to driver, and so I need to focus more on driving skills, learn the tracks, and find sponsorship for the equipment. Bobsledding is actually the second priciest sport behind equestrian sports. Then there’s help with the budget, travel, and keeping up to par to be bigger and stronger.