Cross-Country Canada
January 2002

Olympic Profile: Milaine Theriault

Hometown: St. Quentin, New Brunswick
Current Residence: Canmore, Alberta
Ski club: Husky

Milaine Theriault, a member of Canada’s National Cross Country Ski Team, is set to represent Canada at the Olympic Games in Salt Lake City. Already Milaine has achieved many outstanding international results such as a silver medal at the Pre- Olympic World Cup at Soldiers Hollow as part of the history making relay team. As well, she placed 17th in the same day pursuit in the World Cup at Soldiers Hollow. At last years World Championships in Lahti Finland she placed 25th in the individual classic event and a 6th place in the relay which was very dramatic because it came down to a sprint finish between 5th and 6th place just seconds away from fourth place. Already this year Milaine has had a personal best result with an 8th place in the World Cup sprint in Asiago, Italy where she qualified in the time trial in fifth place. As part of the relay team in the World Cup in Davos, Switzerland in December the women placed a very strong 6th with only seconds separating them from the teams in front. This impressive lead up to the Olympics will surely have Canadians watching and cheering for our team.

Interview with Olympian Milaine Theriault

Q. What have you done differently, if anything, this year in preparing for the Olympics?

A. We had a number of training camps, many at high altitude.
July at the Haig Glacier
September Park City- Soldier Hollow (Olympic Venue)
November – Silver Star
December- Middle Europe
January - Mt. Shark and Sun Valley
We trained at the Olympic site for three weeks in September.
We used altitude tents to prepare ourselves.
Also, I tried to rest well between camps because training at high altitude can be taxing on the body. When I’d return home from a camp I’d lower my training hours.

Q. You’ve already had so much success on the World Cup, how has that motivated you for the Olympics?

A. Doing well on the World Cup circuit last year has brought me a lot more confidence to race against the best in the world. My mind is set now to compete with the best instead of battling with the back of the pack as in previous years. I am going into these Olympics with fixed goals set in my mind, unlike the last Olympics where even though I tried my best to get results I was also just glad to be participating.

Q. What makes the Olympics special for you?

A. At the Olympics I’ll be racing against the same people I race against on the World Cup, so that will not be much different. The Olympics will be special because I’ll be part of Team Canada that will consist of many athletes about 150. We are all going to encourage each other even if it is in different sports. I’ll get to meet Canadian athletes I’ve heard of but never actually met. The Olympics will also be special for me because my parents will be present with friends. It will be the first time my parents will see me compete internationally.

Q. From an athletic standpoint, how is the racecourse at Soldiers Hollow?

A. I really like the course at Soldiers Hollow. It is pretty hard but it is a course where you have to ski intelligently and you have to have a feeling for the course. Because the altitude is high you have to be careful not to push it too much at the beginning because you could blow up, so I like the fact that you have to go with your gut feeling. I really like how the course has to be skied with long strides, the downhills are not so hard so you can have a good rest.

Q. What advice would you give a young skier who aspires to be an Olympian?

A. Never give up hope. I’ve been competing for over ten years now and I’m just starting to do well on the international level. If you keep working hard it will pay off at some point. Also, learn to know yourself better, this will really help with training, you’ll know when you are tired and need a break and when you can push it. It took me a long time to be able to decide what kind of training I need and just to be able to make my own decisions. Since then my training and results have been much better.

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