Triplets Gunning for a Spot at the Winter Olympics

It's been a whirlwind winter for triplets Helaina, Henri IV, and Henniyah Rivers in their quest to represent their mother's native Jamaica, a Caribbean island nation associated more with sprinting than skiing, at the Winter Olympics next month. As Black ski racers in a predominantly white sport, the AP reports that the triplets see making this team as a way to open doors for more racers of color. The 18-year-olds born minutes apart in Brooklyn have been all over the globe competing in lower-tier races in an effort to qualify for the technical events, slalom and giant slalom. Henri already has a spot, in the slalom, and his sisters are close. The deadline is Jan. 18. "It would just be groundbreaking for three 18-year-old Black triplets to represent Jamaica, a non-snow sport country, on the global stage," Helaina says. "I think about that every time I go to bed."

Helaina was born at 9:58am on Aug. 24, 2007. Henri arrived at 9:59am, and Henniyah followed at 10. They're close. Very close. The siblings were on skis around 18 months old, learning the basics on the slopes near home in Windham, New York. They went to ski academies for high school. It's been an expensive endeavor to get to the cusp of the Olympics. A recent training block from July to December cost the family roughly $80,000. They rely on the generosity of friends for places to stay and support from the Jamaica Ski Federation. They also receive contributions from National Brotherhood of Snowsports, an organization that assists athletes of color in winter sports and counts Henri as president. "In my heart, I believe (the triplets) are going to be a huge catalyst in opening up" the sport for Black athletes, he says.

The triplets hear all the time how their story compares to the 1993 Disney movie Cool Runnings, which is based loosely on the Jamaican bobsled team at the 1988 Games. "This," Henri says, "will be just like Cool Runnings—but bigger." Should all three make the Olympics, it would take coordination to see them all race. Henri's events are in Bormio, while his sisters would compete in Cortina, which is a five-hour drive in the best of conditions. They will find a way to make it work. They always have. "It's just really great," Helaina says, "that we get to do this whole journey, together."