The Dark Horse

Adelina Sotnikova gave Russia its first gold medal in women’s Olympic figure skating. And there’s already talk of controversy, primarily because this 17 year old was considered a dark horse.  It seems like an unfair knee-jerk to me.

I was a dark horse once.

In 2001 the Varsity basketball team I was on was picked as a dark horse at the district level. No one really expected an average skill, relatively short, primarily white team to win out in district, easily win the Area playoff game, and make it to the regional quarter-finals (especially since it had been ~30 years since the last time a Friendswood team went that far).

And though we carried the cloud of the dark horse, we advanced.  It didn’t mean we cheated the system. It meant we rose to the occasion when the time called for it.

So did Sotnikova. Let her have her moment. She’s just a kid.