Elite Alberta athletes racing to make Olympic team in 'punishing' new sport

Before she was speeding through snow-covered peaks in the European Alps, Cochrane's Kylee Toth represented Canada on the national speed skating team. 

She has pivoted to become a national champion in ski mountaineering, competing to qualify for the sport's Olympic debut. 

"We're running at our anaerobic threshold as long as we can.… It's not uncommon to see people fall over at the end or vomit," said Toth. 

"If you've ever run uphill yourself for any reason, you'll feel that burn, that lactic acid. We're feeling that from 30 seconds after the start until we end. So it's a pretty punishing sport."

Ski mountaineering — or "skimo" for short — involves racing up and down mountains, either on skis or carrying them. 

Competitors place synthetic skins on the bottom of their skis to keep from sliding backward while racing uphill. Racers remove the skins to move downhill. 

Skimo has been added to the Olympic program for the first time for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Games.

Toth is one of the 18 athletes selected to compete on the 2024-25 Canadian ski mountaineering national team.

"This is a really European-dominated sport, much like nordic skiing or alpine skiing in the '80s," she said.

"I think in order for us to get on the world stage in North America, I think it would just take sponsorship, honestly. We just need more dollars."

Competing against dominant European racers

Canada has no guaranteed spots in Milan-Cortina 2026. Qualification is based on performance at the 2025 World Championships and international rankings.

Toth and the other national team skimo racers spend much of the winter in Europe, competing on the World Cup circuit.

One of Canada's best candidates to earn Olympic qualification is Emma Cook-Clarke of Canmore.

Cook-Clarke is a former firefighter with a background in skyrunning — competitive, technical running on mountain paths with a six per cent minimum average incline.

She took home first place in both the women's individual and team brackets at the 2024 Ski Mountaineering National Championships.

"A good ski mountaineer is somebody who is able to just push themselves, day in, day out, being in really unforgiving conditions and not back down," said Cook-Clarke.

"Your legs are screaming at you, your lungs are screaming at you, your heart is going as fast as it can, and you're just reminding yourself to keep pushing as much as you can."

Cook-Clarke said many of the best ski mountaineers hail from France, Switzerland and Italy.

Canadian national team racers will travel to Shahdag, Azerbaijan, for the next World Cup circuit event, which starts Jan. 10, 2025.

The Olympic qualification period lasts from Nov. 1, 2024, to Dec. 21, 2025.