In theory, ski jumper Alexandria Loutitt could defend the world junior championship she won last weekend in Whistler, B.C.
The high-flying Calgary kid is just 19 and will be eligible for the 2024 event in Planica, Slovenia; where she just happens to spend most of her time training.
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But by then there might be much bigger hills and podiums for her to climb.
“If I’m fighting for a crystal globe, the overall title, then I won’t go to junior worlds,” Loutitt said Saturday from Whistler, before she headed back to Europe for World Cup competitions in Austria, Norway and Finland and the world championships in Slovenia.
Loutitt wouldn’t have dared utter those words a year ago, before the Olympic team bronze in Beijing and a breakout World Cup gold in Japan last month. An overall World Cup title? For a Canadian ski jumper? That would have sounded preposterous.
But she destroyed the field in Whistler, beating Slovenia’s Nika Prevc, the 2022 junior champ, by 15 points. More impressive, Loutitt had an 8.5-point cushion on the senior field in Zao, Japan last month, finishing ahead of World Cup leader Eva Pinkelnig of Austria and perennial contenders like Katharina Althaus of Germany and Japan’s Sara Takanashi.
Loutitt has essentially jumped ahead of herself, too.
“I am definitely ahead of schedule with all my goals and benchmarks. Junior world championships was the only one that hit the mark (time-wise), but I won’t complain about being ahead of schedule. It’s an older athlete’s game and thriving as a junior is something I’m really proud about.”
In consultation with coach Janko Zwitter, a plan was developed; a red line as Zwitter called it. Follow the red line carefully and good things will happen in time. Loutitt’s natural ability and competitive fire apparently shortened the timeline.
“It went step-by-step and it went really fast,” Zwitter said from Germany last week. “She was following this red line and not even thinking about doing something different than following the line. We made a plan. When we jump we focus on these two or three key parts and let’s make them perfect. You’re allowed to do mistakes beside them, but these three key points, I want you to make them as good as you can. That was good enough for the results she’s getting right now.”
The junior title, the World Cup win and six top-10s in just eight events on that senior circuit are rendered even more impressive by the fact Loutitt started the year on the injured list; rehabbing from surgery to fix a fractured bone in her foot.
She didn’t start jumping until the World Cup tour moved to Villach, Austria in late December. By way of contrast, teammate Abigail Strate has jumped in 17 competitions this year, won her first World Cup medal, a bronze in Hinterzarten, Germany, and is in 10th place on the points list with 485 and 12th on the money list with about $29,000, Loutitt is 16th in points at 310 and 16th on the money list at about $19,000.
Zwitter said one or both of them will likely be back on a World Cup podium before this season wraps up in Finland in late March. He likes their chances in Hinzenbach, Austria this week. And by the time the 2026 Olympics roll around, look out.
“I can see both of them fighting for Olympic medals, for sure,” said Zwitter. “Of course they need to stay healthy and they need to have all the small things that happen around ski jumping really tuned up and ready to go.”
For now, they are focused on World Cups, the world championships in Planica and earning their way into the prestigious Raw Air sky flying tournament in Norway. For the uninitiated, ski flying is basically ski jumping 2.0.
“It’s faster speeds, higher heights, longer distances,” said Loutitt.
Only 15 women will make it into the tourney, and both Canadians are in the hunt. They just have to stay there.
“It’s all just about consistency,” said Loutitt. “Sometimes when I tend to struggle in competition, I’m just too excited. And honestly, that’s better than too nervous. It’s like over excitement, I try a little bit too hard and miss the mark. It comes down to basically me trying not to do anything too special.”
But she’s a special kid, a racehorse according to Zwitter.
“When she has the bib around her neck, you could be 100 per cent sure she will show her best jumps.”
Loutitt’s best used to land her well down the standings. But after four years of international competition, she’s a World Cup winner and world junior champ, and it’s not difficult to envision her on an Olympic podium again in three years, where she just might be standing beside Strate.
dbarnes@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/sportsdanbarnes
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