Six years is a long time for an elite athlete between World Cup events.
To get on the podium in a race after what she’s been through left Vernon’s Elena Gaskell exhilarated.
Gaskell was third Friday, Jan. 9, at the women’s freestyle skiing slopestyle World Cup event in Aspen, Colo. (Slopestyle is where athletes ski or snowboard down a course including a variety of obstacles such as rails, jumps and other terrain park features. Points are given for amplitude, originality and quality of tricks.)
Her score of 72.90 on her second run earned her a bronze and left Gaskell overjoyed. She couldn’t wait to share the result with her parents.
“I’ve spent the last few years battling injuries and the last slopestyle World Cup I did was in February 2020,” said Gaskell. “It was so reassuring that all the work I’ve been putting in is paying off. That I am still a competitor after coming back from injury.
“I called my parents immediately after the event a filled with emotion and happiness talking to them and sharing it with them.”
Gaskell was third behind Great Britain’s Kirsty Muir, who won gold, and Canadian teammate and comrade Megan Oldham of Parry Sound, Ont.
“I am so happy to share to podium with my teammate Megan,” said Gaskell. “We are really good friends, so it’s extra special to celebrate that moment with her. We always lap together in training and support each other.”
Gaskell, 24, continues to battle back after a devastating injury in 2022.
She was named that year to her first Canadian Olympic team, taking part in the opening ceremonies of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics in China, wearing her Canadian colours with pride and walking into the stadium with all of her Canadian teammates and officials.
Her Olympic experience then ended badly.
On her last day of training before competition, Gaskell blew out her knee, tearing her ACL, meniscus, and suffered a bone bruise on her femur.
“Returning from that injury I torn my other knee’s ACL/meniscus, and sustained a bunch of cartilage damage in January 2024,” she said. “This has been tough mentally coming back from such a long time off competing due to injury. I’ve been questioning myself a bit and my confidence hasn’t been at its highest. So this podium is very reassuring.”
Gaskell made her national team debut in 2016. She was Big Air World Champion in 2018-19.
Being named to her second Canadian Olympic team isn’t out of the question for Gaskell.
“I am still hoping to make the 2026 Games,” she said. “I have another event this week in Switzerland to try and make the team. But it’s tough to do all the qualifying only in the season going into the Games. So all I can do is give it my best shot!”
The 2026 Winter Olympics run Feb. 6-22 in Milano Cortina, Italy.