Several years ago, as University of Wisconsin-Madison faced treacherous weather conditions not unlike last week’s “polar vortex,” a few lucky Badgers got a surprise lift from Wisconsin Badgers Women’s Hockey player Hilary Knight. Likely, few realized they were catching a ride with a future Olympian.
Knight, a UW-Madison alumna and member of the 2014 U.S. Women’s Hockey team, recalled picking up various students and driving them around after seeing “people trying to trudge their way through snow” that winter.
“We had no idea who half of these people were, but a couple of my teammates and I thought it was great to just help out. It’s miserable in the cold,” Knight said.
Still, the cold could not keep her off the ice when she started playing at age five, and it will certainly not keep her from Sochi. She said she hopes to bring home a gold medal and is excited “just to be able to wear the U.S.A. sweater.”
“To be able to represent your country and compete on a world stage, let alone in the Olympic Games, is something [every athlete] dreams of,” Knight explained.
Furthermore, Knight said hockey will remain her primary focus in the coming months, and she is eager to compete despite government safety warnings. She added she looks forward to experiencing the “fraternity and community” of Olympic village life.
Likewise, community is what Knight said she remembers most vividly about her time in Madison.
“There’s so many young and healthy people and so much going on so it’s hard not to have anything to do or [not to] be attached to anyone there,” she said about the campus and city.
Knight, who cited earning her UW-Madison diploma as her biggest accomplishment off the ice, said she will likely return to business or law school later in life and believes her liberal arts degree will be “instrumental” in whatever path she decides to pursue.
She has stayed connected with many friends and coaches at UW-Madison, to whom she credits much of her success.
“We’re part of something bigger than ourselves,” Knight added. “That rings true and I think [it was] instilled especially at the University of Wisconsin. You’ve got great talent and great people there and they’re the ones that really help.”
