麻豆社区

The summer training season is coming to a close for Yukon cross country skier Emily Nishikawa who will head to Europe at the end of November to get her competition season started.

For a member of the Canadian ski team, the summer is not the time to relax after a busy winter on the snow.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been busy,鈥� said Nishikawa who was reached in Canmore, Alta.

鈥淭raining went really well. Training in the summer is the most amount of volume.鈥�

Primarily training out of Canmore, which is where the national cross country ski team is based, Nishikawa said there was a big focus on technical training which will go a long way in helping her this season.

It was long days for Nishikawa this summer.

鈥淲ith the focus on volume training it鈥檚 at a lower intensity but with multiple 3-4 hour sessions a day,鈥� said Nishikawa.

鈥淏iggest days went up to five hours a session.

鈥淰olume training works on the cardiovascular system so it is a lot of roller skiing and is very technical.鈥�

With the race season looming ever closer Nishikawa said the focus of training has shifted toward a higher intensity.

鈥淚t鈥檚 now about getting faster and getting it translated to racing,鈥� said Nishikawa.

In August, she had the opportunity to travel to New Zealand.

鈥淚t was nice to be able to do three-weeks of training on snow,鈥� said Nishikawa.

Once the race season is in full swing there is less time for practicing which makes the summer imperative to achieving the desired results.

鈥淭his summer was about evolving technique,鈥� said Nishikawa. 鈥淭here is always something to improve. I am always evaluating. We addressed the technique and it is encouraging to see the progression.鈥�

When the season does begin Nishikawa said she will be working toward peaking for races in February and March.

鈥淢y first priority is to have strong results to set myself up for February and March,鈥� said Nishikawa.

There will be no World Championship this year but there is a new event being held called Ski Tour 2020 held in Scandinavia. Ski Tour 2020 will be held over several stages between Ostersund, Sweden, and Trondheim, Norway.

The other event in March is the Cross Country Ski FIS World Cup season finale in Canmore.

鈥淚t is so lucky when you get to host a World Cup,鈥� said Nishikawa. 鈥淵ou get to have family and friends come and watch you.鈥�

Last year, Nishikawa saw good results regularly coming in the top thirty.

She said her goals for the season remain consistent with what they鈥檝e always been.

鈥淢y goal is always to have a performance I鈥檓 proud of, where I put all the skills together,鈥� said Nishikawa. 鈥淚 never want to leave anything out there and when you cross the finish line be sure you gave it your all.

鈥淪ometimes that means when you cross the finish line you just have to lay in the snow and catch your breath.鈥�

Nishikawa said the competition level at World Cup races is always getting higher and that is what keeps her motivated through training.

鈥淢y competition has been training hard as well and a lot,鈥� said Nishikawa.

鈥淥n those days it鈥檚 pouring rain and you are on the roller skis, you know your competitors are doing the same thing. It鈥檚 motivating.鈥�