Jesse Diggins made history as the first non-European woman to win a medal in the women's 30-kilometer mass start cross-country skiing event, and the skier said she did so while battling food poisoning.
On the final day of the Beijing Olympics, an apparently exhausted Diggins required medical attention after falling over the finish line in a dramatic scene.
Later, in her post-race interview, the 30-year-old revealed that she had food poisoning over the weekend and didn't know if she would be able to compete.
The moment that @jessdiggs became the first woman to win a distance medal in cross-country skiing history for @TeamUSA. #WinterOlympics pic.twitter.com/oijv0uq3a1
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) February 20, 2022
"It's really emotional," Diggins told NBC. "It was one of the hardest things I've ever done in my entire life, especially because I had food poisoning 30 hours ago, which is why I thought I was going to die at the finish line.
"But it was very special to see my family and my fiancée right after the video. My legs were cramping the whole last 17 [kilometers]. I don't know how I got it done but it was amazing. Biathlon, like U.S. Skis, we were so excited there. It felt like everyone was out there. When it got really tough, everyone was breathing with me."
An emotional Jessie Diggins revealed she had food poisoning 30 hours prior to winning SILVER in the women's 30K cross-country race. 😱
— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) February 20, 2022
"I don't know how I made it to the finish... that was so hard, but so special." #WinterOlympics pic.twitter.com/4CovprM4Yh
Diggins had previously won bronze in the women's sprint at the Winter Games, but her silver in the 30 km made history as the first American woman to do so in a long-distance cross-country race at the Olympics. She also won a gold medal in the team sprint at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games.