Under 23 Questions: Laura Leclair

In an effort to showcase the North Americans competing at this week’s International Ski Federation (FIS) 2018 Nordic Junior/U23 World Championships in Goms, Switzerland, we asked those qualifying athletes several questions about themselves — actually, we had them fill in the blanks. Here we have 21-year-old Laura Leclair, of the Centre National d’Entraînement Pierre-Harvey (CNEPH), or Pierre-Harvey National Training Centre, who’s representing Canada at her first U23 Worlds.

On Monday, Leclair placed 15th overall in the women’s freestyle sprint on the first day of U23 World Championships racing.

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“My full name is Laura Leclair, but you can call me Laura.

I was born and raised in Chelsea, Quebec, and I learned to ski at 5.

I spent the time between Mont Sainte-Anne trials and Junior/U23 Worlds at home and in Praz-de-Lys, France.

The hardest workout I did in the last training year to prepare for this was a double team sprint relay with CNEPH teammates.

This is my fifth time in Switzerland and third time racing internationally, and so far it’s been a great learning experience.

One difference I’ve noticed between Switzerland and Canada is the amount of cheese you eat.

Skiing and racing in the Alps is incredible. Usually racing at altitude is hard for me because I am not often exposed to it. There are tiny mountains around where I live.

One of the things I’m most excited about for Junior/U23 Worlds in Goms is racing at a high level.

One race I’m especially targeting there is the skate sprint.

I really hope I can chat/make friends with someone from France and ask them about where to get cheap wine.

My favorite thing at the breakfast where we are staying is coffee.

Fondue is the best thing on earth. The cheese here is very cheesy. And the chocolate is chocolaty.

If I had a totally free day here and didn’t have to worry about race fitness or training, I’d spend it eating cheese fondue and drinking wine.

The best way to follow me on social media is on Instagram @lauraraaaaa.”