An Olympic speedskater gave her teammate the ultimate gift

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January 11, 2022

Good morning, Broadsheet readers! The U.K. prepares to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the minor leagues get their first female manager, and an Olympic speedskater gave her friend and teammate the ultimate gift. Have a great Tuesday.
– The gift of the Games. The number of times I’ve seen friends share this story—”Omicron Means Parents Are Doing It All Again, Except This Time Dead Inside“—tells me we could all use some feel-good news, and, well, this certainly fits the bill:
At the U.S. speedskating trials last week, lead contender Erin Jackson slipped in the 500-meter race and came in third, meaning she missed the U.S. Olympic team, which only takes the No. 1 and No. 2 finishers. It was a huge disappointment for Jackson, the world’s top skater in the discipline.
But Jackson’s friend and teammate Brittany Bowe, who finished first in the 500-meter race, couldn’t stand the thought of Jackson missing the Winter Games. On Sunday, Bowe, who’d also qualified for the 1,000- and 1,500-meter races, gave Jackson her spot in the 500-meter event and a chance to compete in Beijing.
Bowe says Jackson’s No. 1 world ranking meant Jackson deserved a shot at Olympic glory despite her misstep at the trials.
“Erin has a shot to bring home a medal—hopefully a gold medal—and it’s my honor to give her that opportunity,” Bowe said, according to the Washington Post.
Erin Jackson (left) and Brittany Bowe speak to the media during the 2022 U.S. Speedskating Long Track Olympic Trials on Jan. 9, 2022 in Milwaukee, Wisc. Stacy Revere—Getty Images Jackson says “this gift from a very close friend of mine” will make the Olympic experience “so much sweeter.”
“[I]t would be awesome for both of us to be able to stand on the top of the podium in our races and just kind of share that moment,” Jackson said.
Bowe will still compete at the games, but forfeiting her spot in the 500-meter race means she’s sacrificing a chance at another medal and the perks and sponsorship opportunities that might accompany it. The Winter Olympics are (somehow!) right around the corner; they start Feb. 4. They will no doubt be clouded by COVID and geopolitical news, but the Bowe-Jackson friendship seems like one positive story that can cut through the noise.
Claire Zillman
claire.zillman@fortune.com
@clairezillman
The Broadsheet, Fortune’s newsletter for and about the world’s most powerful women, is coauthored by Kristen Bellstrom, Emma Hinchliffe, and Claire Zillman. Today’s edition was curated by Emma Hinchliffe.

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- Show time. Symone Sanders, the former chief spokeswoman for Vice President Kamala Harris, is heading to MSNBC. Sanders, who left the administration late last year, is joining the network as an anchor and will host a new weekend program. Her hiring is one of the first big programming moves by Rashida Jones, who became president of the channel in February. New York Times
- Home run. Rachel Balkovec is set to become manager of the New York Yankees' Low-A squad, the Tampa Tarpons. That position would make her the first female manager in the minor leagues. It's just Balkovec's latest glass ceiling-shattering move, following her 'firsts' as a strength coach and Yankees hitting coach. The Athletic
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CONTENT FROM MCKINSEY & COMPANY

A new lens on 2021.

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

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- Platinum party. The U.K. is preparing to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee, or her 70 years on the throne–the longest-ever reign for a British monarch. Buckingham Palace yesterday unveiled the jubilee plans, which include a four-day bank holiday in June, a baking competition to create the "platinum pudding," and 200,000 neighborhood street parties. WSJ
- Cross-country skiing. In even more sports news, this story looks at Eileen Gu, a freestyle skiier who is competing for China in the 2022 Beijing Olympics. The 18-year-old was born in the Bay Area and still lives in the U.S.; she switched affiliations in 2019 to represent China, where her mother was born. One of Gu's sponsors, Red Bull, wrote on its website that Gu "[gave] up her American passport and naturalize[d] as a Chinese citizen in order to compete for China," but scrubbed the line after media inquiries. The athlete declined to comment for this story and hasn't confirmed that she gave up her American citizenship. WSJ

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PARTING WORDS

"Everyone knows what the stakes are. ... We are bad-ass scientists."
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