Charlotte Bankes was just 22 when she appeared at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games and she left it thinking it might be her last.
Hampered by a persistent hip injury and finding enjoyment hard to come by, Bankes was weighing up whether to continue in a sport she had started as a toddler and witnessed on its Olympic debut as a wide-eyed 10-year-old at Turin 2006.
The context makes her ascent over the last four years – during which time she switched to Great Britain having represented France at the past two Games – all the more remarkable and she now arrives at Beijing among the favourites to occupy the top step of the podium.
She identifies the move to the British system as key to her improvement and while the upturn in fortunes was not immediate, patience has proved to be a virtue.
Her World Championship gold in 2021 was Britain’s first in a snowboarding event and she began this calendar year with back-to-back World Cup wins in Krasnoyarsk to climb to the top of the snowboard cross standings.
🇬🇧Here's how Charlotte Bankes became Britain's first snowboarding world champion.
— Team GB (@TeamGB) February 11, 2021
Watch until the end! 🤯pic.twitter.com/or08juVquh
“I wasn’t happy in the system I was in and saw the chance to do something new,” she said, reflecting on her post-PyeongChang change of allegiance.
“For me, it was the start of a new career and it’s gone really well.
“Sorting out my hip and health problems was one of the big things and meant I could train properly.
“It’s taken time – it wasn’t perfect then and it’s still not absolutely 100 per cent – but I can properly put in all the hard work now, which is really nice.
“I was getting good results without training properly so I knew if I could train properly, it could pay off.
“I had doubts as to whether it would be possible and there have been a lot of ups and downs. I wasn’t getting results as fast as I’d have liked but I had to be patient and let the time come.
“Now everything is rolling and we’re having a good season – the hard work is paying off and everything is coming together.”
Bankes’ recent form has raised expectations ahead of the main event but snowboard cross is a sport of fine margins where an athlete’s fate can lie in the hands of their competitors as much as their own, with crashes wiping out multiple racers not uncommon.
The British hopeful – who will, as usual, be fuelled by her favourite tea in Beijing – is aware of the pitfalls and recognises the pressure will ramp up a notch as competition nears but remains confident she can take it in her stride.
🥇She's done it again!🥇
— Team GB (@TeamGB) January 9, 2022
Charlotte Bankes gets her second @fissnowboard World Cup gold of the weekend🏂#fissnowboard #sbxpic.twitter.com/9Borvbq3fG
“This year has been going really well,” she said.
“I’ve had the best season I’ve ever had so I’m really happy with that – not just the results, but how I’m riding as well.
“I’m getting to the level on race day that I’m reaching in training, which is what we’ve been focusing on in the past couple of years.
“There’s always going to be a bit more pressure at an Olympics, everyone’s watching and it’s the only time in four years everyone sees our sport.
“That’s what brings on the pressure, that and trying to put on the best show for all those people watching, those who have got up early to watch back home.
“On the other hand, the race itself is the same as a World Cup – all the best girls will be there bringing their a-game. I’ll give my best on the day and won’t give up until I cross that finish line.”
Sportsbeat 2022