Kirstin Holum - now Sister Catarina said: "The feeling of competing and doing well, with individual effort, is a great joy. But it's always a fleeting joy.. I think people basically want to be great and do something great.It's only when you really have a connection with God's plan for you that you find peace. to do the best, whatever it is.”
Hong Shui - Vatican
One day earlier this year (2018), at a community skating rink in the northern English city of Bradfort, ice rink guards were a bit flustered when they saw a person, who had previously blamed teenagers for skating too fast and could be dangerous for other tourists, but now someone is skating very fast around the ice rink and that person is wearing the clothes of a nun. Finally, this person was also asked by the guards to stop. This person didn't complain at all but simply said, "Even after all these years, I still like to skate really fast." That person is Kirstin Holum, a former American speed skater and now Sister Catarina, a renewed Franciscan order, who lives and prays in the convent of Saint Clare in Leeds, England.
From the records to the chapel
Kristin earns the trust of her mother, who is also a figure skater and skating coach. When Kristin was 16 years old, her mother sent her on a pilgrimage to Fatima with a cousin. And Fatima completely changed Kristin's life. She still participates in competitions but with a focus on "King of Kings".
During the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, America's long-distance speed skaters rejoiced with the arrival of potential star, Kirstin Holum. At the age of 17, Kristin has shown remarkable strength in the 3,000 and 5,000 meter events, which are usually reserved for older, fully grown performers. At this Olympics, Kirstin set a new world record in the women's 5,000 meter speed skating race. At that time, she was only 17 years old, and a great sports future awaited her ahead. In her short career, she has set eight records in speed skating competitions in the US and six world records for young people. But God has a plan that man cannot comprehend.
After the World Congress in Nagano, Kristin attended art school but then pursued the path of faith and has since dedicated her life to it. Kirstin surprised those who knew her as well as those who only knew her name. After completing her university studies, Kristin decided to "hang up her shoes" and became a postulator in the renewed Franciscan Sisters of the Bronx, New York, and took her vows under the name Catarina.
Six years later, Sister Catarina was one of a group of six Franciscan nuns sent to England with the mission of founding a new convent at the invitation of the Bishop of Leeds. Instead of practicing four hours a day, she now spends the same amount, if not more, in prayer. Sister Catarina has no regrets about giving up the sport of speed skating to dedicate her life to God.
The past is a blessing
At first, Sister Catarina spoke little about her former figure skater life, and many of her sisters did not know she had participated in the Olympic Games. But when an article about her was published, her story went viral in the Catholic community and she received invitations to speak, including speaking in front of 10,000 people at a religious convention. in London. She told USA Today: “What has happened in particular over the past eight years has been an opportunity to look back on so many beautiful things about skating and the Olympics… I don't have an ordinary convent story like that. other sisters. It's been a blessing to have the opportunity to look back on the past and give thanks and share with the people I have contact with."
She also shared that the skating lessons helped her in her religious life. “The life of a nun is disciplined and difficult and long times and unexpected things are happening,” she said. I can see that training for the Olympics has helped me to focus a lot on my religious life.
A bigger emotion
The girl Kirstin Holum and Sister Catarina are the same person, but they do not have the same entertainment. Sister Catarina has chosen to live a life of prayer with simple amenities, not as modern as the girl Kristin once lived. Kristin's choice to become a nun is a choice that is both "radical" and "counter-cultural" in light of the fact that the lives of the monks in the monastery do not have an Internet connection or television.
Sister Catarina chose a different path and sought out what was much more valuable to her. She said: "The feeling of competing and doing well, with personal effort, is a great joy. But it's always a fleeting joy... I think that's basically it. Everyone wants to be great and do something great.Only when you are truly connected to God's plan for you will you find the peace to do your best, no matter what. what is it."