Ski cross racer Jamie Prebble was one of the final athletes to be welcomed into the Olympic village, arriving on Wednesday. He has spent his last few weeks at a training camp in Austria with some very Games-specific preparation.
“We built a replica start section and got some good training on it,” he explains.
Getting a good start out of the gates is crucial in this sport. After the initial seeding rounds competitors race four at a time and it takes skill and courage to maintain the fastest line whilst avoiding a collision.
The ‘holeshot’ is the race to the first turn on the course as racers battle to take the leading position.
The course is a combination of various terrain structures including banks, rollers, spines, and jumps.
“It looks awesome,” says Jamie.
“There are some big jumps so there’s going to be a lot of air time."
"There’s definitely some stuff in there that suits me. I can’t wait.”
Training gets underway on Sunday and race day is Wednesday 21 February.
In the meantime, Jamie is get acclimatised to the Olympic environment and enjoying every moment.
“It’s amazing being at the Olympic Games,” he says. “It’s blown all my expectations out of the park.
“The amount of support I’ve already had is amazing. It’ll help me lift to that next level again.”