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Last Updated: Mar 5, 2010 - 8:52 AM |
Shelby takes pride in hometown athlete
It wasn't just the win that made the Shelby fans proud.
It was all about the athlete.
Curtis Tomasevicz.
Shelby supporters, nearly all 690 of them, gathered in the streets of town last Saturday evening to show their support and watch their hometown favorite, Curtis Tomasevicz win the gold in the 4-man bobsled race at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
"In the final run, we knew we needed a decent trip down the track to save us," Curt commented Tuesday morning as he was back home in Shelby, visiting at Pinnacle Bank and sharing his gold medal with his friends. "We also knew we had to be aggressive. By the time we hit the 50/50 curve, I just knew we had it!"
Curt was talking about none other than the run that earned Tomasevicz and USA Team 1 a Gold medal in the 4-man bobsled race, a feat the United States hadn't captured since 1948 in Switzerland.
Amid the crowd of thousands of Olympic fans stood a remote few from the village of Shelby to cheer on their native son. Along with Curt's mother, Amy and his brother, Jon, other Shelbyites Jeff and Julie Kuhnel and Makenzi, Monte and Brandon Selden and Bob and Linda Hegi waited at the finish line to be the first to congratulate Curt and the team on their gold medal victory.
Curt helped push Steve Holcomb, pilot of the USA Team 1 bobsled "Night Train", Steve Mesler and Justin Olsen to an amazing finish with a time of 3:24.46. After crossing the finish line, Curt hit the brakes, leaned back, looked up and let out a scream of sweet victory.
"When the time actually comes, it's just hard to believe," Curt added. "This was reality! We really did it! We won gold!"
While on his travels, Curt mentions that he's from "Shelby, Nebraska" every chance he gets. He is quite proud of the small town in which he grew up in, and credits his family and the people of Shelby for where he is today.
"Nobody can believe it when I tell them about Shelby and the awesome people there who support me in every way possible," Curt said. "Every person in Shelby owns a piece of this gold medal and I plan on thanking each and every one of them while I'm home for the next couple of weeks."
When asked what he'd like to say to the citizens of Shelby, Curt chuckled and responded with, "I'm just sorry I missed the party!!! It sounded like a great time!!"
Looking ahead, Curt says he and his teammates will have to make a number of media appearances, and then it's start training for another four years.
"I 'might possibly' try driving this time," Curt disclosed, "This would present me with a different challenge and give me a new way to compete."
Curt will be speaking on his gold medal bobsledding experience next Monday, March 8th at Shelby High School at 9:00 a.m. Everyone is invited.
© Copyright 2010 by polkcountynewspaper.com
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