Had he not worked at a Calgary sushi bar, Jason Myslicki might not have competed in the Turin Olympics.
The Calgary Nordic combined athlete worked from April to June last year at Zipang Sushi Bar so he could save some money to train in the U.S. last summer and prepare for the Winter Games.
"Ski jumping gives me no money in Canada," said Myslicki. "I worked in the sushi bar in the spring after knee surgery.
"They gave me the time and the money, so I didn't have to go back to training immediately after the surgery."
Myslicki, the first Canadian in 18 years to qualify for the Olympics in his sport, finished 41st in the Nordic combined individual Gunderson event earlier this week, which involves cross-country skiing and ski jumping.
Shinya Tanaka, the owner of the bar, said he was pulling for his former employee and saw highlights of Myslicki in action.
"The TV doesn't show anything, just the digest version, kind of two or three minutes," said Tanaka, who also helped Myslicki do some fundraising before he went to the U.S.
"I saw just five seconds or something, so I was really disappointed."
