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1 week agoMeet Yolanda the wax truck, Team USA's unsung cross-country ski hero
U.S. cross-country skiers' Olympic podiums owe heavily to ski technicians who expertly wax, scrape, brush, and test skis before every race.
The crowds have disappeared and so has the sun, dipping behind the frigid Dolomites as another day of Olympic racing is in the books. This is the golden hour for the hidden heroes of the sport. You can find them in metal storage containers and dimly-lit concrete garages, warmed by space heaters and hunkered over skis that will carry their clients down harrowing hills, places where 80 mph is routine and a seemingly miniscule mistake can spell disaster.