Team USA cross-country skiers Jessie Diggins, Gus Schumacher and Julia Kern share the early Olympians who inspired them

The Mysterious Olympian by Jessie Diggins: “I remember just running around the trails and thinking I had magic poles.”

I grew up somewhat isolated in Afton, Minnesota, Diggins remembers a small but crucial moment of inspiration: receiving a hand-me-down pair of ski poles from a mysterious Olympian. She doesn’t know who they belonged to, but the gesture left a lasting impression.

“I remember just running around on the trails and thinking I had magic poles, and that was one of the closest points of contact I had,” she recalls.

Diggins later met a real Olympian, Lindsey Weier. “I was very proud to see someone from Minnesota going to the Olympics,” she explains. “It helped connect the dots for me: ‘I’m from Minnesota. I want to go to the Olympics.'”

Opportunities to interact with Olympians were rare in her hometown, unlike more well-traveled locations hosting World Cup matches or training camps.

She recalls one memorable attempt to gain access: “I literally drove 28 hours to Lake Placid to ski behind Liz Stephen for three hours. I did it because I really wanted the opportunity to ski behind people I really looked up to.

Looking back on that experience, Diggins adds, “That’s why it’s so important to do it now – because I’m trying to give this generation something that I really wanted and that I didn’t always have access to.”

Diggins recently announced her plans to retire after the 2025-26 season, saying one of her post-career goals is to coach youth cross-country skiing and “make sure it’s fun.”