Shaun White may be on the L.A. and New York talk show circuit, but Maelle Ricker, Canada’s Gold Medalist in Snowboard-Cross, wouldn’t be anywhere else but home. I spoke with Maelle this afternoon in an exclusive conversation about how she prepared for her competition and what she thinks of being an Olympic Champion in her hometown of Vancouver. After our twenty-minute discussion, I still can’t tell if she naturally smiles all the time or if she’s simply overjoyed with her success. I assume the former. The humble pioneer, she’s the first Canadian woman to win gold in Canada, keeps her medal in her pocket, never mentioning it until asked. “I was very fortunate to find record snow in Whistler during November, when I came back between trainings to practice on my own, cruising all over Whistler’s west side and down Peak to Creek,” Ricker recalls. She doesn’t remember much of her historic race, however. “I had a sense I was ahead but I never looked back because the course was way too technical to take my eyes off it. I only realized I’d won when I looked up into the crowd and saw everyone going bananas. Then I looked for my mom.” As we talk, it’s challenging not to get lost in the sparkle of Ricker’s eyes; she’s a poster child for the fresh-faced good life of ski resort living. Yet, even when discussing her own historic achievement, the gilt of this Olympic Champion’s personality shines. “It was a blast walking through the village,” Maelle smiled, “Because I got to watch Ashleigh McIvor’s gold medal run in skier-cross, and she was awesome.”
