After a successful finish to her 2018/2019 season, Mackenzie Schwinghamer has a brief rest period before picking right back up where she left off.
The 20-year-old moguls star will be starting her off-season training come July, and will continue to push towards next season’s NorAm tour and Canadian selections.
Schwinghamer said she knows where her sights are for this upcoming season.
“I hope to make the Canadian team, I just missed it this year. I’m a little behind due to injuries, but once I’m fully recovered, I will be above anyone else,” she said.
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Schwinghamer has been competing since she was 10 years when she was just starting out at Apex Moutain Resort.
The Mount Boucherie grad was packing on the accolades this season. She won the Canada Cup in Quebec in 2019, finished as the top Canadian just below the national team in the NorAm tour, and won the gold medal at the moguls event at the 2019 Canada Winter Games.
She said that she’s excited that she’s moving up on the list of so many successful athletes that live and train in the Okanagan.
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But the training doesn’t come easy she said, or cheap. Athletes training to join professional tours, or crack national team rosters, need to promote and get sponsorship to minimize the financial burden.
Local businesses have been important for Schwinghamer’s success.
“I’m so grateful, because I wouldn’t be able to do this sport without their support,” she said.
“I love the sport so much, and it’s definitely a hard road. With every success I have I move forward, and the support, it really motivates me.”
The West Kelowna Warriors hockey franchise, as well as ZipLineSki, have helped Schwinghamer through the past seasons, but she also takes her promoting upon herself and hosts a fun yearly fundraiser.
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Schwinghamer’s focus is currently on maximizing her two months of rest before training starts. But her main focus, the one that keeps her motivated and dedicated, is an event just under three years from now.
“Move on to the world cup tour, and then hopefully on to the Olympics.”
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