Heights are Joanna Lohman’s greatest fear.
Yet, as she stood atop BC Place in Vancouver, preparing to bungee jump backward to catch a fish, Lohman believed she had earned her stripes. Her teammate, Ali Krieger, won the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup inside the same venue, so for the Silver Spring, Maryland, native, accomplishing the mission would boost her confidence.
“It was like ‘welcome to ‘The Amazing Race,'” Lohman said. “To hear Ali cheering for me, to know I caught the fish … It was a great start, I think, to ‘The Amazing Race.'”
Lohman and Kreger, two former Washington Spirit teammates and D.C.-area natives, competed in season 39 of “The Amazing Race,” CBS’ reality competition show in which teams of two race around the world, completing tasks to compete for $1 million. The two retired soccer stars filmed the show last year, with Lohman calling the experience unbelievable.
“It is so unpredictable, it is so high stress,” she said. “There is so much pressure, cameras in your face, and you’re competing against other great teams.”
Lohman originally auditioned for the show with a male friend to increase her odds of winning. However, producers asked if she knew a woman who would be a good teammate. Lohman, who had a 10-year pro soccer career, had several options, she said, but chose to reach out to Krieger, a former Spirit and Washington Freedom teammate.
Lohman recalled waiting about seven hours before sending a “Hail Mary” text to Krieger to see if she wanted to be teammates again.
Krieger, a Dumfries, Virginia, native who won two World Cups and an Olympic gold medal for the U.S. during a 16-year career and currently works at ESPN, said yes. The response shocked Lohman and her wife, who didn’t expect “a celebrity” to want to join her on the show.
“It was such a dream partnership between Ali and I,” Lohman said. “To think that she would take that much time out of her busy schedule to leave the country and film this with me, it’s pretty unbelievable to be able to do it with someone of her stature.”
The pair’s dynamic on the show is a perfect balance, Lohman said, with her as the social strategist and Krieger as the cerebral physical player.
While Krieger would be miles ahead during runs and dominate physical challenges, Lohman said she tried to tone down her teammate’s competitive side, remind her of the mental game, and build alliances with other teams.
“Ali wanted to just crush souls, and I would be like, ‘Ali, we have to make like a friend,'” Lohman said. “We have to be somewhat approachable.”
Yet, their professional soccer experience came in handy when dealing with the emotional aspects of the game, including when struggling to finish challenges.
“If you’ve watched the first four episodes, you’re not seeing us argue,” Lohman said. “You’re not seeing us scream at each other. You’re not seeing us get too elevated because we’re used to that kind of stress and pressure.”
Behind the scenes, they strengthened their personal relationship when teams were sequestered in hotels on off days. With no technology around them, they wrote letters to their families and got along well, Lohman said.
Once game day arrived, the pair used their soccer experience to mentally psych themselves up for what lay ahead.
“We just got super deep through the whole entire process of ‘The Amazing Race,'” she said. “It was just really fun to do it with her.”
Now, as the world watches the show, Lohman is stunned by the amount of support they have received. While walking through Audi Field during a recent Spirit match, she stopped multiple times to take photos and talk with fans rooting for the duo to win.
“It was absolutely unbelievable to think it was over a year ago that we filmed it, and now to see the support that we’re getting as female athletes, as queer racers, as moms, it is everything I expected and more,” she said.
Fans are invited to join her at future watch parties, including one being held at Westover Taco in Arlington, Virginia, on Nov. 18.
Lohman invites fans to follow her on social media to learn how to join her at future watch parties, including Nov. 18 at Arlington’s Westover Taco.
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