Former Olympic Cyclist Now Living Homeless In Seattle: Report

Triathlon Forum
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Hello All,

https://patch.com/img/cdn20/users/22906546/20190415/112859/styles/T800x600/public/twigg-20190415110709-55219300.jpg?width=705

https://patch.com/washington/seattle/former-olympic-cyclist-now-living-homeless-seattle-report

Excerpt:

SEATTLE, WA — A world champion cyclist and Olympic silver medalist is sharing her story of homelessness with the Seattle Times to push back on stereotypes about people living unsheltered.

Rebecca Twigg, 56, competed in the Olympics and set world records for cycling. But after leaving the sport, Twigg struggled find her footing in the non-cycling world, she told the Times. The Seattle native worked in IT jobs, but at age 50, found herself unemployed. She lost her housing, lived in her car, and spent time living on Seattle’s streets.

Twigg’s story comes a few weeks after a controversial KOMO News special, “Seattle Is Dying,” dramatized people living in crisis outdoors in Seattle. The reporter who produced the special, Eric Johnson, said it was about the drug crisis, but a lot of the focus was on Seattle’s highly-visible homeless encampments, feeding stereotypes about why people end up homeless.

King County’s 2018 Count Us In census counted 12,112 people living homeless in the county. In that report, about 44 percent reported some kind of economic reason for becoming homeless — a job loss, rent increase, or foreclosure, for example. About 21 percent reported that they were homeless due to alcohol or drug addiction.

Twigg “agreed to share her story to convince the public that not all homeless people are addicted to drugs or alcohol; that there are many like her, who have struggled with employment and are ‘confused,’ as she said she is, about what to do next with their lives. She did not want to discuss mental health but feels it should be treated more seriously in Washington,” the Times reported.

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Thank you for sharing.

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thanks for sharing

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/homeless/olympic-medal-winning-cyclist-rebecca-twigg-is-homeless-in-seattle/
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Very sad story.

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Quite sad - I’m surprised she could not get involved with coaching / cycling shops / US Cycling, etc. to keep herself afloat…certainly enough credibility to do so.

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Ok I will be the realist here like a poster alluded too………

7.1 million jobs available in the US and she is confused about what to do? Unless she has some kind of mental health problem, which may be the case, at age 56 she can find a job. Maybe its time to leave Seattle.

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Ok I will be the realist here like a poster alluded too………

7.1 million jobs available in the US and she is confused about what to do? Unless she has some kind of mental health problem, which may be the case, at age 56 she can find a job. Maybe its time to leave Seattle.

from the article, it’s pretty clear there are some mental health issues

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If only it were so easy to get a job when you’re entering the 55+ age bracket. Particularly in IT, and double that for for women. And trying for a job you’ve never held (just change careers) is even harder. And once you slide down that slope, getting to interviews gets problematic, as does arriving not looking like a homeless person. Oh, and if you’re homeless, how in hell do you “leave Seattle”?

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They’re absolutely are some mental health issues, just look at all the help she has been offered over the years, the jobs she has gotten, and each time she sabotages them. And now when there are lots of people willing to help, she won’t accept it, because she feels everyone should get the help( I agree with that too, but one needs to look out for themselves when help is offered)

I was at those 84 games and had a front row seat to her accomplishments. I was also a bike racer(to get better in my new career of pro triathlete). It is funny that I just assumed that people like her, Connie, Phinney, Alexi Grewal, etc. were living the high life, and making tons of money. This was the games that turned the corner and made a ton of $$ for LA and surrounding areas, but it makes sense now that it did not really trickle down to the athletes. It was also the very beginning time when pros from some sports could actually compete in the games, but now as I recall, cycling was not there yet.

It saddens me to see this, I had no idea about how her life ended up. But good news is that it seems she is physically healthy, has a lot of people that want to help, and a happy ending to her story is still possible. I really hope so…

I see they eliminated the comment section of the article, wonder if it blew up like a bad thread here…

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If only it were so easy to get a job when you’re entering the 55+ age bracket. Particularly in IT, and double that for for women. And trying for a job you’ve never held (just change careers) is even harder. And once you slide down that slope, getting to interviews gets problematic, as does arriving not looking like a homeless person. Oh, and if you’re homeless, how in hell do you “leave Seattle”?

And your solution? People are hard to help… even when mental health is not an issue.

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I have an ex-pro friend and the realities of being a pro cyclist aren’t that great. You make decent money and you’re good at riding a bike… if that ends suddenly and/or you age out, then what? Especially in the US where people could care less about people that ride bikes… outside of an hour of coverage in some evening recap of the Olympics… maybe. There are homeless people of all sorts, pro cyclist is not surprising to me as someone that ‘might be’… I picked up one of my brothers from a homeless shelter one time and got to talking with a friend he’d made there… guy was a pro boxer at one time and had fought Tyson.

Summary, you never know how life may end up for people that might look like they’ve got it on a string…

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Considering the fact that she was an intellectual prodigy, and one of the best US female cyclists of all time on both road and track, and was inducted into the US bicycling hall of fame, of course this is super sad to hear. And that somehow our society can’t seem to offer useful help/housing/a career? to someone like this.

There is little doubt that mental health and anxiety are factors for Rebecca. It is not a problem with her work ethic, I think her time on bikes proved that beyond any doubt. I am sure her home life as a child was not great, heck, being kicked out of her home at age 15 probably didn’t help either.

But reading about this is probably good for all.

Knowledge is power.

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Sorry to see this as I recall her as one of the most talented and accomplished cyclists when the sport started becoming more popular in US in the 1980s. She also has some brain power based on academic work and IT jobs. Hope she gets some help and accepts some help. The advice to “get a job” seems pretty harsh.

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Monty and Mikison hit the nail on the head. I was so saddened by the article and immediately thought I would like to help her. But like most things it is a very complicated story. Grewal also had a very hard time of life and there have been a couple high profile triathletes in the same boat. Mental health issues are a huge part of, but not the total picture in homelessness. When I worked ER duties, we had the same couple dozen homeless dudes coming in the ER over and over again. I got to know about some of them a lot more than I really wanted to.
There is always a hook…abusive or absent childhood, abusive relationships, alcohol or drug abuse, undiagnosed mental health issues, schizophrenia, family tragedy, increasing depression, or major event change (like losing ones job) that starts a downward spiral. Some times like Monty mentioned all kinds of help just isn’t enough to mend the cycle. We all need to thank our lucky stars that we have homes, families, jobs and food on our tables and avoided this tragic situation. Homelessness and mental health are becoming huge social issues in this country and abroad as well. Technology is a wonderful thing but life seems to have speeded up and has proven hard on the folks not able to grow and change with the times.

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I see they eliminated the comment section of the article, wonder if it blew up like a bad thread here…
Note at end of article: “Editor’s note: Out of concern for those involved in this story and their loved ones, the comment thread has been removed.”

I’m thankful to the reporter who wrote this story and to the Seattle Times for publishing the story. The story reveals that there aren’t easy answers for Rebecca Twigg’s current situation, but I think most of us can relate to her issues. She has survived and I hope she gets the assistance that will help her find a home and also help others find homes.

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Certainly… as I mentioned my brother in an early post has been in and out of homelessness for years. Mental health probably at the root as he’s not a big drug user although the women he falls in love with (for about a month) tend to be alcoholics or heroine addicts… he had some years of stability, had wife, two kids… that went up in flames, they lost the kids, par for him. He’s been in and out of jail since them, homeless and from a recent piece I saw in the newspaper back in jail for some serious charges.

It really is sad and this thread suddenly made me think about my brother that I love but honestly I don’t know how I could help him… we’ve talked over the years, I’ve given him money, a car at one point, etc. Smart guy, can be charming, very loving… but that person almost seems dead or buried underneath the crazy and so self destructive… think at one point he was diagnosed paranoia schitzo.

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Note at end of article: “Editor’s note: Out of concern for those involved in this story and their loved ones, the comment thread has been removed.” //

Ya, I saw that, just ****wasn’t sure if it was removed pre or post some comments….
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Considering the fact that she was an intellectual prodigy, and one of the best US female cyclists of all time on both road and track, and was inducted into the US bicycling hall of fame, of course this is super sad to hear. And that somehow our society can’t seem to offer useful help/housing/a career? to someone like this.

There is little doubt that mental health and anxiety are factors for Rebecca. It is not a problem with her work ethic, I think her time on bikes proved that beyond any doubt. I am sure her home life as a child was not great, heck, being kicked out of her home at age 15 probably didn’t help either.

But reading about this is probably good for all.

Knowledge is power.

Yes it is. For instance SAP has a good program to integrate autistic people that kind of struggle in a normal work environment but have skills that can be very useful for the company.

I would think that miss twigg in the right environment would be a great asset for a company. As you say she was academically gifted and certainly not afraid of hard work either.

The thing is I guess she points out that it’s not so much about her but many people.

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I am sure her home life as a child was not great, heck, being kicked out of her home at age 15 probably didn’t help either. //

It may or may not have been great, but from what I read, I wouldn’t put it on her mother just yet. If you are now known to have a mental illness, might not you have had it all along? Seems like mom may have given her an ultimatum about so issue at the time, and she choose to go out on her own. Had she not been a world beating cyclist, she might have just ended up in this same or worst place, but without all the accolades along the way. I have found that a lot of folks at the top of their piles, often have something quirky in their personalities. And I think it is often that peculiar ness that got them there in the first place, driven by demons and desire, and a whole host of things many don’t understand, or look past because of what they accomplish.

And I have no knowledge if mom was the bad guy or not, or something in-between. Just how I read the piece, she said she was given a choice in the matter at 16.

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Agreed that it is not entirely clear, but her sister says that she was “kicked out” in the article.

In any case, in my opinion, it IS incumbent on the parent to take the lead to help their kids at that age (age 15), irrelevant of what the source of the problem is, whether it is illness or whatever. The bucks stops somewhere, and it stops with the parent when the child is that young.

Greg