Annabelle Zurbay is about to make a little bit of history by becoming the youngest ever alpine skier to represent Ireland at a Winter Olympic Games.
Not that she’s fazed by the prospect. The teenager (she turned 17 before Christmas) lives in Vail, Colorado, the sort of pretty-as-a-postcard town that makes you think of John Denver songs.
Everyone takes a different journey to an Olympics, but you’d be hard-pressed to find an Irish representative as comfortable as Zubray in the environment. She was born for this.
“In my school it’s actually kind of normal to become an Olympian,” smiles Zurbay, confirmed yesterday as a flagbearer for the opening ceremony.
“I’m one of three for my school, I think, this year across multiple different nations. So most of my teachers are pretty accommodating with my busy schedule.”
The daughter of two accomplished ski racers is eligible to represent Ireland through her Westmeath-born grandmother Rosaline.
Zurbay will be based in Cortina and makes her Olympic debut on Sunday week in the giant slalom. She’ll also compete in the slalom.
These are daunting events; extremely technical and hair-raisingly fast, but it’s second nature to Zurbay, who declares: “I’ve been skiing since I could walk. I actually started skiing in Minnesota. Both of my parents were ski racers in college and they met through skiing.
“So then they were coaches. When I was six, I started racing. Right before Covid, my family, including my brother, we moved up to Colorado because it was getting a bit more serious than what Minnesota could offer.”
Anabelle Zurbay: ‘I’m going to go out there and ski as fast as I can and have a lot of fun’
Vail’s 5,330 acre ski resort attracts thousands of tourists a year. They pour into the area, even in the height of summer whe the hiking trails are more forgiving and the fishing is good.
“It’s really busy in the winter,” smiles Zurbay. “It’s insane, but it’s really cool. We used to go all the time for family vacations because we’d be out there for training camps. So it’s pretty cool to go from being a tourist more to living there and knowing all the local spots.”
She’s been to Ireland a couple of times in recent years and says she’s “super proud” to represent Ireland this month.
Granny Rosaline will be watching – “she’s always been one of my biggest supporters” – but there’ll be no nerves when Zurbay stares down the enormous slope before she embarks on her first run.
“I’m just going to go out there and ski as fast as I can and have a lot of fun,” she adds.
“I don’t like being on the air in my skis, but I like going fast.
“I feel like I’ve been competing for so long it doesn’t really affect me too much anymore.”
Watch the Winter Olympics with highlights each night and selected live coverage on RTÉ Player
Team Ireland schedule
Friday 6 February: Opening Ceremony – Milano (Irish in the Livigno, Cortina and Predazzo clusters)
Saturday 7 February: Cormac Comerford – Downhill (Alpine Skiing), Bormio
Sunday 8 February: Thomas Maloney Westgaard – 10km + 10km Skiathlon (Cross Country), Predazzo
Wednesday 11 February: Cormac Comerford – Super-G (Alpine Skiing), Bormio
Friday 13 February: Thomas Maloney Westgaard – 10km Free (Cross Country), Predazzo
Saturday 14 February: Cormac Comerford – Giant Slalom Run 1 & 2 (Alpine Skiing), Bormio
Sunday 15 February: Anabelle Zurbay – Giant Slalom Run 1 & 2 (Alpine Skiing), Cortina
Monday 16 February: Cormac Comerford – Slalom Run 1 & 2 (Alpine Skiing), Bormio
Wednesday 18 February: Anabelle Zurbay – Slalom Run 1 & 2 (Alpine Skiing), Cortina
Thursday 19 February: Ben Lynch – Halfpipe Qualification (Freestyle Skiing), Livigno
Friday 20 February: Ben Lynch – Halfpipe Final (Freestyle Skiing), Livigno
Saturday 21 February: Thomas Maloney Westgård – 50km Classic (Cross Country), Predazzo
Sunday 22 February: Closing Ceremony – Verona (All athletes)