Knitting, dancing and SpongeBob are all part of the show for US medalists at skiing worlds

SpongeBob, dance, knitting

Photo: The Canadian Press

SAALBACH-HINTERGLEMM, Austria (AP) — Two gold medals and one very special headband.

American skier Breezy Johnson is leaving the world championships with more hardware than she expected — and with a headband dedicated to host Austria.

Johnson, who enjoys knitting, started making a headband in the red-and-white colors of the host country’s flag before her downhill victory and finished it in time to wear on the podium for her team combined win with Mikaela Shiffrin.

“I’m kind of superstitious, so I have a thing where I have to have a new headband at the finish of every race or hat,” Johnson said. “So I whipped this thing out in two days. … Austrian colors, trying to be a little bit fun for Saalbach.”

Knitting keeps Johnson relaxed.

“I like making things. It’s fun and it gives your hands something to do," she said. "I like to listen to books while I do it. And then you’re kind of reading and making something. I can be kind of like ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder). So I always have to have something to do with my hands.”

Johnson is pretty good on her skis, too.

So is younger teammate Lauren Macuga, who won a bronze in super-G in her worlds debut and led the downhill portion of the combined on Tuesday before finishing fourth with teammate Paula Moltzan.

Like in super-G, Macuga celebrated her downhill run with a little dance, rocking her arms up and down before going all loose and rubbery.

It wasn’t a tribute to Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, who performed a “snow samba” when he earned Brazil’s first World Cup podium in December.

Macuga said her moves were a mix between a tribute to SpongeBob and “the inflatable things that are at a car dealership.

“So it’s not the salsa,” she said. “But it’s something funny.”

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AP skiing: https://apnews.com/hub/alpine-skiing