THE SECRETS OF THEIR SUCCESS

Fast Facts:

Pursuit: Four time Winter Olympian, Right To Play Ambassador and TV presenter

Definition of success: “Knowing you have done your personal best – tried as hard as you could and ticked every box.”

She’s a four time Winter Olympian, the first British woman to qualify for the World Cup finals, and at her peak was ranked eighth in the world. She has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, hosted her own spot on Channel 4’s World Cup Skiing programme, and featured on ITV1’s Dancing on Ice. In twenty years of competitive skiing she’s broken her back, neck and leg, but none of those setbacks diminished her passion for the pursuit of her Olympic Dreams. Most paradoxically of all…she’s somehow only 32 years of age?! Here to share her journey with us – the one and only Chemmy Alcott!

“I started skiing at eighteen months,” Chemmy reflects, “because it made me smile, and that smile and passion has carried me through numerous injuries including breaking my neck, back and leg, and funding cuts. I come from a big ski family – my father was a rugby player and my mum a swimmer so when they retired from their sports they took up and fell in love with skiing. As the youngest of three, and my elder brothers already ripping around on the slopes, I followed them into the sport.”

I ask Chemmy what it means to be a world class skier, not to mention all those other pursuits, and how that shapes up on a day to day basis.

“Having just retired my life is slightly different (but no less busy) now so I will talk about the last twenty years! I’d start every day with a coffee and hopefully a big protein fuelled breakfast. Whilst digesting I would reply to any overnight emails – unlike most athletes I have to generate all my own sponsorship and no costs were covered so it was up to me to keep the brand and image moving in the right direction – this could mean emails re my fund-raising activities, interviews, replying to fan mail, organising some after dinner or school speaking dates for when I returned to the UK. I would follow this with my morning warm up – a mix of yoga, ski specific and band work. Then it would be time for the fun – the skiing – we were usually the first ones up on the hill and did all our skiing before the lifts opened for ‘normal’ skiers, so quite often you ski in the pink glow of the morning sunrise. After training and a protein shake we travelled down for lunch followed by a siesta. Then a coffee to wake up again and some more work. I am an Ambassador for Right To Play and as the only athlete on the GB committee I take my role very seriously – I am so blessed to have lived a life through learning in sport that Right To Play is the perfect charity for me to support. After ‘work’ hour it would be back to the gym for either strength based work, recovery or endurance then off to physio, video analysis with the coach then a quick shower, dinner. Post dinner is my time for catching up with friends on Skype or watching the latest TV series!”

Olympian, presenter, ambassador – it’s quite a CV. So which of Chemmy’s achievements gives her the most satisfaction?

“Nineteenth in Sochi,” she replies. “Despite on paper this not being my best result – I came eleventh in both the Turin and Vancouver Olympics – It showed huge amounts of perseverance, confidence and heart to even get in that start gate just six months after breaking my leg and having surgery.”

And just in case you’re thinking her bones are the only elements that have been sacrificed over the years…

“Any relationships with people who don’t understand the sport or my dedication to it soon drifted apart,” she says. “In fact I married Dougie who was on my ski team – he was the first boyfriend to get it! It’s a twenty four-seven focus you need to be at the top of the sport – apart from the two to three weeks a year of holiday which I always needed to totally switch off!”

As with anybody who’s tasted success, Chemmy’s achievements are born of commitment, hard work, and no shortage of physical pain. Still, it’s skiing isn’t it? I mean, who wouldn’t want to make that their life? I am one of those ‘normal’ skiers Chemmy mentioned earlier – and I get on the slopes one week a year. What I wouldn’t give to spend more time in the mountains…But even a four-time Olympian occasionally covets those from the routine set.

“You weirdly always think the grass is greener – because I am so busy and there is so much risk in what I did you always think how nice it would be to be bored sitting in front of a computer knowing that you work nine to five, then live a normal life. However,” she concedes, “I now realise that this is really tough in a different way!”

I wonder if there’s a unique risk, inherent to those who’ve made a name for themselves in sport. For actors, designers, entrepreneurs, success is a journey. For a sports personality it manifests itself in tangible targets: a medal or a title, perhaps a world record. And always, always, the shadowy hand of age is reaching for you: participants in almost every sport, with only one or two exceptions, have a shelf life. So how do you overcome that? For one thing, Chemmy started young. In doing so she extended her time as an internationally competitive skier. Significantly though, she’s achieved celebrity status through TV appearances, commentating, presenting, public speaking, her work as an ambassador for Right to Play. She’s an expert not only on the subject of skiing, but the broader concept of international competition – certainly the Olympics. Perhaps there’s a book on the way; let’s face it, Chemmy’s journey to competing at Sochi is a story in itself. Yes, I see a long and golden road ahead! So what’s the secret to Chemmy’s success?

“Failure is a necessary journey to success,” she explains. “Don’t be afraid to risk. And always, no matter what, follow your dreams. If you pursue your dreams, there is a chance you might fall short. If you don’t you are guaranteed to fail.”

I’d like to thank Chemmy Alcott for her time, and also to Charmaine Niewerth for helping to arrange this interview. I’m a huge winter sports fan and, as a Brit, it’s a great privilege to interview Chemmy.

Whether you’re a ‘normal’ skier like me, or one with aspirations of international competition, you should drop in to Chemmy’s website: www.chemmyalcott.com. Be sure to click the video link ‘On my Future’ for a four minute run-through of Chemmy’s skiing accomplishments, sacrifices and future plans.

You can keep up to date with Chemmy’s latest news on her Twitter page @ChemmySki and for more information on Right to Play and its aim to transform the lives of over one million children across Latin America, Africa and Asia through sport and play, their website can be found at: www.righttoplay.org.uk