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Meet the Knitters of Team USA

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I actually haven’t watched any of the Olympics because I don’t have the right streaming services (it’s the rare time I actually miss cable!) but I know there are a lot of gorgeous knits there and a few knitters, too. 

Ben Ogden broke the Americans’ 50-year medal drought in the men’s sprint classic (that’s a cross country skiing event), getting a silver medal and coming in just a second shy of gold. 

He says that knitting helps him decompress, and in a press conference he said he packed a lot of yarn for the Games and that he was working on a pair of mittens featuring Joan of Arc. You can see him working on the project in a recent Instagram post. 

“I have gotten really into knitting recently. So far, I’ve knit a hat and a sweater this season. I’m really fired about it,” he said. And he’s not the only one. 

Teammates Jessie Diggins and Julia Kern also knit, with Jessie reporting a recent sweater finish and Julia reporting she was knitting a hat. 

Jaelin Kauf, American freestyle skier, won her second silver in moguls with about 50 supporters looking on, all in custom knit hats that she made. She said each hat took about 90 minutes so she spent 75 hours knitting them. You can see a few in this clip from the Today Show on her Instagram. 

She said she introduced knitting to the whole team and they like to knit together when traveling to competitions and during downtime. Jesse Andringa, who skis moguls on the men’s side, also knit hats and headbands for girlfriend and fellow skier Tess Johnson’s family and friends who attended the games. The pair also knit Christmas stockings for themselves and family members this year. 

And then there’s Breezy Johnson, another Olympic champ and knitter, who is actually a little superstitious about knitting before races. She told The Athletic she was up past her bedtime before the women’s downhill Alpine race because she was knitting her race headband. 

It’s a tradition that started for the Val d’Isere World Cup meet in December of 2020. She knit her race headband and made her first career podium at that event. After another podium the same season that also featured a handknit headband, it’s become a ritual. 

The extra knitting time didn’t seem to be a problem, as she won gold in that event. She had another event later in the week she knit another headband for. 

She said she likes the sense of accomplishment from making things and the distraction that knitting brings when waiting a long time for her race to start. 

I’m sure we’ll be seeing dupes of all her creations soon! Best of luck to all the knitting Olympians. 

[Photo via Breezy Johnson’s Instagram post]

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Comments

  1. You don’t need a streaming service to watch the Olympics LOL SMH, NBC broadcasts them digitally for free over the air. All you need is a ~$20 antenna, they make them for your TV.

Have you read?

Patriotic Knitting Patterns to Celebrate America’s Birthday

As I’m writing this the United States is about to celebrate a pretty big birthday, and while some of us have complicated feelings about that country right now, I think most of us would agree both that it’s a place worth fighting for and that it’s a good time to remember what got us into this nation in the first place. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some patriotic knitting patterns. 

I thought there might be more knitting patterns produced specific to America’s big celebration this year, but I only found one (so far, there are probably more as you read this). The Semiquincentennial Scarf by Kristen Rettig is a bias knit scarf using DK weight yarn. It has one solid blue side and one red and white striped side. The pattern is available for free on Ravelry. 

Sara’s Patriotic Shawl by Mitsziko is another great project for the Fourth of July or whenever else you want to show some patriotic pride. This one has a wide lace border, stripes and a blue section that includes white bobbles to imply stars. It’s worked in DK weight yarn. You can find this one on Ravelry. 

If there were prizes for the punniest pattern names, Stars & Socks Forever from Katie Franceschi would definitely win something. These socks feature stripes on the body and stars at the top of the leg and the toe, as well as on the heel. The pattern comes in three widths and you can knit to your desired length. This pattern uses a chart for the stars and you can find it on Ravelry. 

This little patriotic doll from Nadia Perepelitsa is styled like a boy, but you could give it longer hair if you like. It uses fingering weight yarn and is worked on two straight needles in such a way that you’ll only have to sew side seams when it’s done. So cute! You can find it on Ravelry. 

This American flag sweater knitting pattern from SC Pattern is giving big Ralph Lauren vibes. It’s a drop shoulder crewneck with unisex styling that comes in five sizes. The flag is worked in intarsia, so the pieces are worked flat and seamed. 

The Patriotic Tam from Judy Lamb is a little more subtle, though it does have red, white and blue colorwork, and a bunch of golden eagles around the base of the tam. It’s worked in worsted weight yarn from the bottom up and the colorwork is charted. This pattern is available on Ravelry. 

If you’re looking for a big project to work for the fourth that you can use all summer every summer and you’ll want to, because it’s a big project) check out the American flag blanket pattern from Dr. Josie’s Joys. This is a vintage pattern, so the yarn doesn’t exist anymore, but it would still be lots of sun to make. It is worked with the stripes and block of blue, and the stars are added with duplicate stitch.