The Jamaican bobsled team hasn’t made an appearance at the Winter Olympics in 12 years, and even after qualifying for the 2014 games in Sochi, finances held two-man team Winston Wyatts and Marvin Dixon back.
Wyatts and Dixon qualified for Sochi on Saturday in St. Moritz, Switzerland, but because of drastic funding cuts within the Jamaican bobsled organization, the pair didn’t know how they would foot the bill for the trip and equipment. Then, the Internet stepped in.
Crowdfunding efforts and virtual currency have combined to raise more than $56,300 of the necessary $80,000 to send the Jamaican bobsled team to Sochi, according to Mashable. The team set up accounts on the websites Indiegogo and Crowdtilt to raise money, but the majority of the funds have come from efforts coordinated on Reddit.
Reddit users got together and pledged to donate to the team in dogecoins, a form of virtual currency like Bitcoin. The dogecoins were converted into Bitcoin then exchanged for dollars, amassing more than $30,000. According to the crowdfunding sites, the team has eight more days to raise money.
Photo via Facebook/Jamaica Olympics
