Picture
Picture
Picture
  • Home
  • Aerials
    • Aerial Skiing About
    • Aerial Skiing News
    • Gabi Ash
    • Abbey Willcox
    • Laura Peel
    • Danielle Scott
  • Moguls
    • Moguls Skiing About
    • Mogul Skiing News
    • Jakara Anthony
    • Matt Graham
    • Cooper Woods
  • Park & Pipe
    • Park & Pipe About
    • Park & Pipe News
    • Tess Coady
    • Matt Cox
    • Scotty James
    • Valentino Guseli
  • Snowboard Cross
    • Snowboard Cross About
    • Snowboard Cross News
    • Josie Baff
    • Cameron Bolton
    • Belle Brockhoff
    • Jarryd Hughes
    • Adam Lambert
  • Individual Athletes
    • Individual Athletes About
    • Individual Athletes News
    • Madison Hoffman
    • Harry Laidlaw
    • Louis Muhlen-Schulte
    • Greta Small
    • Bree Walker
    • Jackie Narracott
    • Tahli Gill
    • Dean Hewitt
    • Alex Ferlazzo
    • Brendan Corey
    • Doug Crawford
  • About
    • OWIA News
    • Sport Integrity
    • Media
    • OWIA About
    • OWIA History
    • Executive & Staff
    • OWIA Policies & Documents
    • OWIA Calendar
    • Sponsors & Partners
    • Australian Sports Foundation
    • Newsletter
    • Privacy
    • National Redress Scheme
    • Contact

Unique training in Brisbane heat helps Matt Graham regain momentum for Beijing

13/1/2022

 
A month after snapping his collarbone in a training crash, Olympic moguls silver medallist Matt Graham has defied the odds, resuming practice just weeks away from the start of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.

Matt underwent surgery straight after the fall at the Idre Fjall World Cup event in Sweden, but incredibly he's back practising jumps at the Geoff Henke Winter Olympic Training Centre in Brisbane, as he aims to compete in his third Olympic Games.

On a day where Genting Snow Park, which hosts the Olympic moguls competition, hit a low of minus 19 degrees, the 2021 overall moguls World Cup champion launched off the ramps into the pool in 30 degree Brisbane heat.

While training in summer on a water ramp just 22 days before the Winter Olympic Opening Ceremony is an enormous change to the skier's normal preparation, the 27-year-old from New South Wales' Central Coast is taking on the challenge.

"It's bizarre being here in an Australian summer only 22 days out from my Olympic competition, but exciting too," Matt said. "It's super important and beneficial to be able to use this facility and there is nowhere else in the world you can do this right now."

"I got surgery four days after the injury, it put a plate there with 13 screws, it's all bolted together, strong and sturdy which is good. It's all come really good in the past seven days and today was the first day giving it it's real test.

"Today I put the shoulder through the paces, getting in the air again to regain that confidence. I went through the skills I'll perform in Beijing – I haven't been off the snow for too long, so today it was good to get the feelings and sensations back.

"I've remained really positive throughout this period. Getting there is the first challenge, and once I'm there, I want to be fit and healthy and compete at 100%. Coming off the last Olympics, winning silver was a career highlight. I'd love to go one better, for me it's about focusing on my own performance, run by run.

"I have high expectations of myself and what I want to achieve in Beijing. Having this injury, it's not ideal but it works in my favour to have all of my experience from previous Games behind me."

Matt will fly to Ruka, Finland this weekend to rejoin the Australian moguls team, for final preparations on snow before the Games.

The facility, a $6.5 million collaboration between the Australian Government through the Australian Institute of Sport, Queensland Government, AOC and Olympic Winter Institute of Australia (OWIA), opened for testing in November 2020 ahead of its official Opening in May 2021 and has already seen Australia's aerials and moguls teams hone their skills in the leadup to Beijing 2022.

Chef de Mission for the Australian Olympic Team for Beijing, Geoff Lipshut, praised Graham's tenacity.

"Matt is a champion in every sense of the word," Mr Lipshut said. "He's attacking his recovery and disrupted preparation for Beijing with the same determination and courage as he shows skiing down the moguls courses on the world's biggest stage.

"This facility is already showing its incredible value. To allow for Olympians like Matt to use Brisbane as a home base just weeks before an Olympic campaign is something only Australian athletes now have at this time of the year.

"I look forward to seeing Matt continue his recovery and getting back on the slopes soon, with the help of the fantastic Geoff Henke Olympic Training Facility in Brisbane."
A month after snapping his collarbone in a training crash, Olympic moguls silver medallist Matt Graham has defied the odds, resuming practice just weeks away from the start of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.

Matt underwent surgery straight after the fall at the Idre Fjall World Cup event in Sweden, but incredibly he's back practising jumps at the Geoff Henke Winter Olympic Training Centre in Brisbane, as he aims to compete in his third Olympic Games.

On a day where Genting Snow Park, which hosts the Olympic moguls competition, hit a low of minus 19 degrees, the 2021 overall moguls World Cup champion launched off the ramps into the pool in 30 degree Brisbane heat.

While training in summer on a water ramp just 22 days before the Winter Olympic Opening Ceremony is an enormous change to the skier's normal preparation, the 27-year-old from New South Wales' Central Coast is taking on the challenge.

"It's bizarre being here in an Australian summer only 22 days out from my Olympic competition, but exciting too," Matt said. "It's super important and beneficial to be able to use this facility and there is nowhere else in the world you can do this right now."

"I got surgery four days after the injury, it put a plate there with 13 screws, it's all bolted together, strong and sturdy which is good. It's all come really good in the past seven days and today was the first day giving it it's real test.

"Today I put the shoulder through the paces, getting in the air again to regain that confidence. I went through the skills I'll perform in Beijing – I haven't been off the snow for too long, so today it was good to get the feelings and sensations back.

"I've remained really positive throughout this period. Getting there is the first challenge, and once I'm there, I want to be fit and healthy and compete at 100%. Coming off the last Olympics, winning silver was a career highlight. I'd love to go one better, for me it's about focusing on my own performance, run by run.

"I have high expectations of myself and what I want to achieve in Beijing. Having this injury, it's not ideal but it works in my favour to have all of my experience from previous Games behind me."

Matt will fly to Ruka, Finland this weekend to rejoin the Australian moguls team, for final preparations on snow before the Games.

The facility, a $6.5 million collaboration between the Australian Government through the Australian Institute of Sport, Queensland Government, AOC and Olympic Winter Institute of Australia (OWIA), opened for testing in November 2020 ahead of its official Opening in May 2021 and has already seen Australia's aerials and moguls teams hone their skills in the leadup to Beijing 2022.

Chef de Mission for the Australian Olympic Team for Beijing, Geoff Lipshut, praised Graham's tenacity.

"Matt is a champion in every sense of the word," Mr Lipshut said. "He's attacking his recovery and disrupted preparation for Beijing with the same determination and courage as he shows skiing down the moguls courses on the world's biggest stage.

"This facility is already showing its incredible value. To allow for Olympians like Matt to use Brisbane as a home base just weeks before an Olympic campaign is something only Australian athletes now have at this time of the year.

"I look forward to seeing Matt continue his recovery and getting back on the slopes soon, with the help of the fantastic Geoff Henke Olympic Training Facility in Brisbane."
Picture

Comments are closed.

    ARCHIVES

    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    September 2022
    June 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    October 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    September 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    October 2013
    August 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    September 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    August 2010
    March 2010
    February 2010
    January 2010
    December 2009

    RSS Feed

    NEWS
    ​CATEGORIES

    All
    Britt Cox
    Brodie Summers
    Claudia Gueli
    Cooper Woods
    Dale Begg Smith
    Dale Begg-Smith
    George Murphy
    Jackson HArvey
    Jakara Anthony
    James Matheson
    Krystle Yin
    Madii Himbury
    Matt Graham
    Matt Graham
    Nicole Parks
    Nicole Parks
    Ramone Cooper
    Rohan Chapman Davies
    Rohan Chapman-Davies
    Sam Hall
    Sam Hall
    Sophie Ash
    Taylah O'Neill

Picture
OLYMPIC WINTER INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA
​

CONTACT
​
O'Brien Icehouse
Level 2
105 Pearl River Road
Docklands, VIC 3008
Australia

P
hone: +61 3 9686 2977

ABOUT                 
OWIA History
Executive & Staff
Policies & Documents 
Sponsors & Partners
OWIA Calendar

Australian Sports Foundation
North American Medical
Media Center


SPORT INTEGRITY
​
​SITE MAP

AERIAL SKIING
News
ALPINE SKIING
News
​
MOGUL SKIING
News
PARK & PIPE
News
SNOWBOARD CROSS
News

INDIVIDUAL ATHLETES
News


Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture

​Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy  |  2022 © Olympic Winter Institute of Australia  All rights reserved