For 37-year-old Richmond snowboarder and UBC Commerce alumna Alexa Loo, even an accounting office downtown with a view of the mountains was not enough to keep her from leaving her clients to pursue an Olympic record. 

When Loo graduated from UBC in 1994, she didn’t get into snowboarding until the next year. Then, in 1998, the same year that she received her Chartered Accountant designation, Loo decided to charter a new life course, which she began carving out on the mountain as a member of the Canadian National Snowboarding Team.

Although Loo missed qualifying for the Salt Lake City in 2002 by eleven hundredths of a second, she persevered, and at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics she became the first Canadian woman to compete in the Olympic Parallel Giant Slalom (PGS) event, placing 20th. 

Since Turin, the time and money that Loo has invested in training for PGS—where two snowboarders race head-to-head down a course through a series of gates—has paid off. Loo won a bronze medal in 2006 in Italy, a World Cup bronze medal in 2009 in the US, and last Wednesday (January 6), Loo raced to a career-best second-place finish in World Cup PGS event in Kreischberg, Austria.
“My second place last week in Kreischberg was my biggest accomplishment so far,” Loo told The Ubyssey in an e-mail sent from Switzerland (where she is training for a World Cup run on the 17th). “It felt like a huge relief and a lot of fun, as I had been doubting my abilities recently after a few bad races.”

The weight of a silver medal around her neck has allowed Loo to shake off some of the self-doubt that inevitably affects the athletes who dedicate years of their life to a race where every split-second is significant.

“Every day, I think about what I am doing and how it will affect my snowboard career; how to keep my body healthy and strong, whether I need to make changes to my equipment or my training,” said Loo.

In addition to the demands of her own professional snowboarding career, Loo has dedicated her time to representing the voice of Canadian Olympic athletes. After serving as the Athlete Rep for the International Ski Federation (FIS), she worked to reform the FIS election process so that it was more democratic and functional. Currently, Loo is serving as a board member for AthletesCAN and an Athlete Rep for the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC).

“I try to be an ambassador for my sport, sharing it with others whenever I get the opportunity. I especially enjoy going to elementary schools and showing the kids photos and movies of my sport and telling them about it,” said Loo.

With just over one month remaining in the Olympic countdown, Loo has set her sights on reaching her podium potential in the women’s Parallel Giant Slalom event on February 26. But the accountant in her always keeps the long-term in mind. 

“I will probably keep racing until the 2011 World Championships and then see what opportunities present themselves,” said Loo of her future plans, also sharing the news that she will be marrying the love of her life, Ari Goosen, after the Games. 

“The great ones are the ones who are truly talented athletes and can keep focussed and driven long enough to show their talents.”