CORTINA d’AMPEZZO, Italy – Danny Casper never cries.
He’s not the emotional type. He’s actually somewhat aloof. He and his curling teammates joke that he’s never focused enough to really be thrown off in-game. But looking back on the last two years from atop the Italian Dolomites at his first Winter Olympics, Casper can’t help but choke on his words. Can’t stop the tears from welling in his eyes. Can’t not feel all the feelings.
"I don't want to say I never thought I'd be here, because that's all I thought about every day,” Casper told USA Today. “... But at the same time, it's like, I did mean it when I said, 'I guess I'll just have to watch my friends there and cheer them on.'"
Curling is Casper’s life. He’s been doing it for 13 years, since he was one of very few juniors at the Ardsley Curling Club in New York hanging around on the ice with adults gracious enough to let him tag along. Ask him what he does outside of the sport, and he won’t really have an answer for you. ("Yeah, maybe not the healthiest thing," he conceded sarcastically. "Not sure.")
But two years ago, he had to give it up. Had to "forget curling" for a little while. A decision his body made for him, because he could no longer walk. "Could not do anything really." That included operating his cell phone, which meant it definitely included picking up and throwing a forty-something-pound curling stone.
