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Jasmine Jones became an overnight hero to Americans craving patriotism as they watched the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.
In an interview with Pak Gazette Digital this week, the first-time Olympic bobsledder and Air Force service member expressed how proud she is to represent her country, her military branch and her family in Italy.
The display of patriotism earned viral praise on social media from Americans hungry for an Olympic athlete to publicly bring pride to the country this winter.
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Jones said his journey to get to this point has been defined by overcoming adversity and devotion to family.
Olympian Jasmine Jones of Team USA poses for a photo on February 3, 2026, before the Milan 2026 Olympic Winter Games. (IOC via Getty Images)
Jones is a young mother who wants to set an honorable example for her daughter.
Jones gave birth to her daughter, Jade, in 2021. They will celebrate her fifth birthday at the end of the month.
Today, as she prepares to compete in her first Olympic Games, she is proud to “be able to be a mother and show my daughter exactly how to overcome different obstacles and what it means to overcome them.”
Jones hopes her daughter learns from her mother’s example by joining the Air Force to advance her athletic career.
“Being able to show him different ways to join the Air Force, you can have these different things besides being an athlete, continue, and it’s more meaningful, to say the least,” Jones said.
The daughter is currently in the care of Jones’ mother in the United States, while Jones competes in Italy.
“I’m glad I have my mom. She takes her in in the winter,” Jones said. “I’m grateful to my mom for taking her in and allowing her to be there in Pennsylvania.”
Jones wants to challenge the Germans
In Milan Cortina, Jones is highly motivated to face the elite German team.
“The Germans are always definitely a competitor in our team sport. They’re definitely great athletes, they’ve got the speed and everything, and I’m definitely excited to go toe-to-toe with them,” Jones said.
Team Germany is considered the most dominant force in international bobsledding. In 2024, they won 11 of 12 World Championship medals and had 28 World Cup medals by early 2026, while the rest of the world combined only won two.
“I’m definitely here to go up against the best athletes in the world and I consider myself one of the best athletes in the world, and I’m really excited to go out and make that comparison with them,” Jones added.
“It gives more of that fire inside of us.”
Jones had to overcome eight falls in a single year, but that helped define her role
In the 2024-25 season, Jones said he suffered eight accidents while competing and training for bobsled.
“On one specific track it was about five times,” Jones said.
Kaysha Love and Jasmine Jones of the United States compete during the Two-Women’s Bobsleigh Heat 2 on day five of the 2025 IBSF World Championships at Mt Van Hoevenberg on March 14, 2025, in Lake Placid, New York. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
“Any time you have a fall, it takes a toll on you physically and mentally, and going through those falls, I really felt down because I knew I really wanted to do a lot more and try to give it my all, right from the beginning. So going through that, I definitely wanted to rethink how I do everything with my training.”
For Jones, the experience helped define her goal of becoming a standout brakeman in the sport.
A sled brakeman is the rear athlete responsible for providing maximum acceleration during the initial push, traveling back to maintain aerodynamics, and pulling the brake lever to stop the sled. only after crossing the finish line. They are crucial for both explosive starting and safe deceleration.
“If I can become an outstanding brakeman, then I’ll be able to put myself in different positions to make sure I don’t get knocked down again, as well as being able to push myself as hard as I can,” he said.
BOBSLED ISRAELI CAPTAIN OPENS UP TO THE TEAM THAT OVERCOMED THEFT AND VANDALISM TO MAKE HISTORY AT THE WINTER OLYMPICS
Jones credits her Air Force training for helping her reach her first Olympics.
Jones nearly missed qualifying for the 2022 Beijing Winter Games. He then joined the Air Force in April 2023, allowing him to undergo a much more rigorous training routine, which he credits with his ability to qualify for this year’s games.
“I’m just grateful to be an airman,” he said. “Getting into the WCAP program, that allowed me to really have my offseason training, allowed me to get to this point…Having that offseason training to be able to really focus and work. That happened right now.”
Team USA fans can send Jones and fellow aviator Kelly Curtis, who is also competing in Italy, a personalized letter through a program involving a partnership between Team USA and Sandboxx.
After giving birth to her daughter in 2021, she was looking for stability as a means to achieve her goal of reaching the Olympic Games. The Air Force gave him that path.
“I wanted to do something that would give me more stability. There was a time when I was working my civilian job and trying to train at the same time, and it just wasn’t enough. I know I wanted to dedicate my time to bobsledding,” Jones said.
“The most important thing I’ve learned is to be resilient, and I feel like that plays a big role, when you go to the basics and get up early. You follow orders. You get the discipline you need and that applies to bobsledding… So, I feel like transitioning from basic training and having that discipline also translates to knowing exactly what I’m supposed to do.”
Jones follows a rigorous heavy weight training routine
US Olympian Jasmine Jones competes in bobsled (Getty Images)
Jones’ Air Force training includes extensive weight lifting.
“I rely a lot on power, I do a lot of squats, cleans and everything,” Jones said.
But the most difficult exercise he faces, and still struggles with, is snatches.
A snatch workout consists of an advanced Olympic lifting movement in which a chin is lifted from the floor to the head in one fluid, continuous motion. It is a high-intensity, full-body exercise that requires explosive power, strength, speed and coordination.
“Outbursts are something I personally struggle with,” Jones said. “Sometimes I struggle with that.”
In a sport like sledding, maintaining a certain weight is essential. So it also manifests itself in his diet, but not to the level of Tom Brady.
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“In our sport, we’re pretty strict with the rules when it comes to weight guidelines,” Jones said. “In a two-woman sled, both the pilot and the brakeman have to weigh a maximum of 80 kilos.[grams]. And throughout the season I make sure to stay under 80 kilos.
“I still eat pretty clean, but I don’t avoid sweet things either. So having that balance definitely works. I feel like when I focus too much on trying to eat clean that’s when I gain the most weight.”
