As a part of WTMJ's coverage of the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, we are featuring athletes with ties to Wisconsin.
For the second time, Prairie du Chien's Matt Antoine will suit up for Team USA and ride a skeleton up to 90 miles per hour in pursuit of an Olympic medal.
He already has bronze in his satchel from Sochi in 2014. Now, in Pyeongchang, he aims to raise that spot on the platform to the gold medalist's perch.
"To be able to go to two Olympics, to represent my country there twice, have family members over there watching me, because I know it means as much to them as it does to myself, I know it's something I'll really cherish," Antoine told TODAY'S TMJ4's Delaney Brey. (You can hear much of their discussion above.)
He first took part in the sport after watching the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City after first being a snowboarder.
"It really caught my attention. I love winter sports, racing, anything that went fast. Skeleton put those two together. I decided I had to contact the U.S. team and figure out how to try out," he said.
Wisconsin Winter Olympic Athletes
12 years later came a medal, though there is a chance Antoine's 2014 bronze could be lifted to a silver. Gold medalist Aleksandr Tretiyakov has been banned from the Olympics for life, but has appealed.
Either way, his journey could lead him at a 90 mile per hour speed to gold...but has also led him to realizations of the special journey he has taken just to get to this point.
"It's come a long way over the last 15 years. There are times when I sit back and think 'That's pretty incredible what's happened.' "
WTMJ's coverage of the Winter Games is presented by Steinhafels and the Wisconsin Center District.
