Zoe Atkin: Mastering Fear to Redefine Freestyle Skiing
World champion freestyle skier Zoe Atkin is determined to expand the limits of her sport, embracing the psychological challenges that come with launching herself high above a 22-foot wall of ice. The Team GB athlete, who combines elite competition with academic studies at Stanford University, believes that confronting discomfort is essential for growth both on and off the slopes.
The Psychology of Risk in Ski Halfpipe
Atkin openly acknowledges the inherent dangers of her discipline, where athletes perform a series of complex aerial manoeuvres in rapid succession. "What we do is pretty risky," she admits. "When a regular person watches, they're like, 'Oh my god, these guys are crazy. What are they doing?'" However, she emphasises that her approach is far from reckless; it is a calculated pursuit of excellence supported by rigorous training and psychological preparation.
Her studies in symbolic systems at Stanford, which integrate psychology, probability, and mathematics, have provided valuable insights into managing fear. "Being able to learn about fear as a biological process has really helped me," Atkin explains. "I know my heart racing like this is just a feeling and I can be bigger than this." This academic perspective allows her to reframe anxiety as a natural response that can be controlled and overcome through mental discipline.
Overcoming Mental Blocks to Achieve World Championship Success
Atkin's journey to becoming world champion was marked by significant psychological hurdles, particularly with her signature trick, the alley-oop flat 540 mute. This demanding manoeuvre involves launching 15 feet into the air, completing a 540-degree spin, grabbing one ski, and landing smoothly on the icy wall. Mastering it required perseverance through repeated failures and injuries over two years.
"I learned the trick a few years ago – first on an airbag, which is basically like a huge bouncy castle, and then on snow," she recalls. "But then I had a couple of falls and it became a pretty big mental block for me." To break through this barrier, Atkin adopted a methodical approach, incrementally increasing the height and complexity of her attempts. "We're not just throwing ourselves out of the half pipe for no reason," she notes. "It's like, 'today we're going to go one foot higher. Then tomorrow I'm going to go two feet higher.'"
Her persistence paid off at the world championships, where she landed the trick in her final run to secure the title. "It was just such a good full circle, to overcome this hurdle I've been thinking about for years," she reflects, highlighting the triumph of mental resilience over physical challenge.
Preparing for Olympic Glory in Milano Cortina
With the Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina on the horizon, Atkin is poised as a leading contender for gold, alongside formidable rivals like China's Eileen Gu. Her recent victory at the X-Games has bolstered her confidence, and she views the competition as a catalyst for improvement. "It's tough going up against such an amazing competitor, but the girls I'm competing against force me to be better," she says. "I'm definitely excited and feeling pretty good."
Atkin also draws inspiration from her elder sister, Izzy Atkin, who won Britain's first Winter Olympics skiing medal with bronze in women's slopestyle at Pyeongchang 2018. "She's always been a very big role model for me," Zoe shares. "Seeing her win an Olympic medal opened my eyes as to what was possible for me." This familial connection adds a personal dimension to her Olympic aspirations, motivating her to emulate and potentially surpass her sister's achievements.
Reflecting on her previous Olympic experience in Beijing, where she finished ninth amid the restrictions of the Covid pandemic, Atkin acknowledges the disappointment but has used it to strengthen her resolve. "Cultivating that identity outside sport has really helped my performance," she remarks, underscoring the importance of a balanced life in sustaining elite athletic success.
Ultimately, Zoe Atkin's story is one of courage, intellect, and relentless ambition. By embracing fear as a tool for growth and applying academic insights to her sport, she continues to push the boundaries of freestyle skiing, aiming not just for Olympic medals but for personal and professional evolution.
