British free skier Peter Speight is confident he will be on the plane to Sochi as his final preparations for Winter Olympic qualifying get underway.
Speight needs two top 20 finishes in the final three World Cup events to clinch qualification and is convinced he will do the job.
The 20-year-old is buoyant after a successful August in Cardrona, New Zealand where he came 13th at the Freeski Open and 26th in the NZ Winter Games.
And qualifying D-days will come in December at Copper Mountain, Colorado and in January events in Northstar, California and Gstaad, Switzerland.
“New Zealand were really good results for me, especially the 13th - that was a landmark result and it definitely shows that I’m on the right track for the Olympics,” said Speight.
“I’ll be looking for consistent results in those three events and hopefully move my position up a little bit in each competition.
“I’m getting pretty close and I think I should make it (to the Olympics).”
Fuelled by the flame of the ongoing Olympic torch relay, Speight has been undergoing gruelling gym work as attempts build the body that will power him to Sochi.
Multiple-squats, core-strengthening and cardio are all part of his routine but he insists the incentive of competing makes it all worth it.
“If I qualify, I’d definitely be hoping push for the finals, which will be around the top 12, 30 guys will go so I feel it’s a realistic target," he added.
The British team are a coming force in winter sport, with slopestyle specialists James Woods and Katie Summerhayes and snowboarder Billy Morgan all genuine medal contenders for Sochi after a number of World Cup podiums last season.
And if he can seal qualification and become part of Team GB’s class of 2014, Speight hopes he and his team-mates can inspire a new wave of British freestylers in the future.
“We’ve all come from dry-slope or indoor snow dome backgrounds and hopefully that should inspire a lot more kids that are coming up,” he said.
“We’re proving that it can be done on the international stage coming from humble beginnings and the investment is only going to get better after the Olympics, so I think 2018 could see us as a real force."
© Sportsbeat 2013