At the age of 13 Kirsty Muir was already among the best freestyle skiers in Britain, described by those in the know as a “one-in-a-generation athlete”.
The young Aberdonian’s talent for performing flicks and tricks in the air has earned her much deserved recognition in the sport - as well as a silver medal in the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games.
Now 17, the sports star is currently in Beijing and viewed as a strong medal contender for the Winter Olympics.
In recognition of her achievements so far, she has also now been awarded a prestigious award which celebrates adventurous young people and the outdoor pursuits in which they excel.
Ms Muir has been crowned the eighth winner of the Scottish Youth Award for Excellence in Mountain Culture for her freestyle skiing.
Speaking about her award, the skier said: “I am honoured to be this year’s recipient of the Scottish Youth Award for Excellence in Mountain Culture.
“I hope I can inspire people to get out into their local areas and give sports a go.”
Ms Muir has been noted for big air, a sport when skiers or snowboarders slide down a high ramp that curls up at the end and shoot themselves into the sky while doing tricks and twists.
She also performs slopestyle, which involves tricks and jumps on a sloping course with multiple ramps and obstacles, and halfpipe - in which competitors perform a series of tricks while going down a pipe.
She won silver in the freeski big air competition at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games in Lausanne, Switzerland - a moment considered the biggest breakthrough in her career so far.
Former Olympic snowboarder Lesley McKenna has been so impressed by her that she described her as a
“one-in-a-generation athlete”.
Lydia Rohmer, principal and chief executive at West Highland College UHI, which sponsors the youth mountain award, said: “We are delighted that this year’s recipient is so very clearly a young person passionate about achieving her dreams.
“Kirsty is committed and driven to overcome any challenges that come her way to reach the top in her sport.
“These qualities of resilience and determination are what we endeavour to instil in all our students, as well as a keen desire to share their knowledge and expertise by teaching others, and we clearly see these qualities in Kirsty too.
“We wish to send our congratulations to Kirsty and wish her every success in her future career.”
Ms Muir, who was previously nominated for the European Olympic Committee’s 2021 Winter Piotr Nurowski Best European Young Winter Athlete prize, started out on the dry slopes at Aberdeen Snowsports Centre, aged just four.
By the age of seven, she was beginning to hone her freestyle craft and went on to win multiple awards, including a slopestyle World Cup medal in Aspen, Colorado, at 16, and several under-age titles at the British Indoor Championships Ski & Snowboard and The Brits Championships.
However, despite with widespread acclaim, the young athlete appears to take it all in her stride.
She previously said: “I’ve definitely just been trying to enjoy the journey.
“There are a lot of different things I want to do in my career, and going to the Olympics would be one of them, but I don’t want to make it my be all and end all in a sense.
“I don’t think I feel any pressure from anyone. I’m just doing what I can.
“In the end I just have to try my best and try to zone everything out. It’s just me and the course, you know?”
However, the Olympics is not the only challenge facing Ms Muir this year - she is also preparing to sit her Higher exams.
She added: “Right now in school they’re talking about what uni you’d like to go to and what you want to study but I have absolutely no idea. I just want to go off and ski.
“I feel like Mum and Dad want to support me in what I do - I’m so thankful about that. At some point if I take a gap year I’ll go back to some sort of study.”
The Scottish Awards for Excellence in Mountain Culture were set up in 2008 by the Highland Mountain Culture Association, organisers of the Fort William Mountain Festival.
The youth version of the award was then established in 2015.
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