The British speed skater who tripped, bust her ankle, and was disqualified in pursuit of 3 gold medals admits 'it wasn't meant to be'

• A British speed skater has been dumped out of the 2018 Winter Olympics.
• Elise Christie was disqualified in her 1,000-metre short track heat on Tuesday. She crashed out of her two previous events, injuring her ankle on Saturday.
• Her Sochi games followed a similar pattern of disappointment four years ago.
• But the athlete is determined to compete at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

A British speed skater has admitted "it just wasn't meant to be" after suffering misery in pursuit of gold.

Elise Christie was one of Great Britain's medal hopes heading into the 2018 Winter Olympics. As a reigning world champion in the 1,500- and 1,000-metre short track events, it was hoped she could claim multiple medals in South Korea.

But her dreams are in tatters after she was disqualified in her 1,000-metre short track heat on Tuesday. Carrying a nasty ankle injury from her last event, she finished her heat in second, but was handed a yellow card after the judges deemed that she was guilty of two infringements.

It follows the dramatic crash in her 1,500-metre semi-final on Saturday, during which she damaged her ankle ligaments. Christie also skidded out of the 500-metre final on Tuesday last week, when she was thrown off balance by Yara van Kerkhof, her Dutch rival.

Speed skating is sometimes described as a brutal sport and Christie is certainly evidence of this. It is the second Winter Olympics in a row that has ended in disaster for the British athlete after she failed to land a medal in similar circumstances in Sochi four years ago.

Christie has competed at six Winter Olympic events across the Pyeongchang games in 2018 and the Sochi games in 2014. She has been disqualified from four and crashed out of the other two.

"I have so much belief in the programme and in myself. It wasn't through a lack of capability, it was just short track," Christie told the BBC on Tuesday. "It just wasn't meant to be this time."

But Christie vowed to return: "I promise Britain I will fight back from this and I will come back in Beijing [in 2022] and hopefully I can do Britain proud then."