As of next week, sisters Chloé and Justine Dufour-Lapointe will head to Sweden to prepare for the next Freestyle Skiing World Cup season. Quebec workers are not necessarily aiming for the crystal globe in 2021, but rather a qualification for the Beijing Olympics.
The two sisters have not yet qualified for the next Olympics. In fact, the only Dufour-Lapointe guaranteed to participate for the moment is Maxime, as the athlete godmother of the Canadian Olympic Committee.
“For me, this is the first time that I haven’t qualified a year in advance,” said Justine at the launch of Tissées tightres, their collection of winter clothing for women. We had a really difficult season (only three World Cups were contested – Editor’s note), no training, always left at the last minute; It was really difficult mentally. This time, I was able to train, there will be a season, the Olympics will take place: I feel more serene, more equipped to face this season. ”
The process to obtain qualification in freestyle skiing is not simple: quotas are granted to countries according to the disciplines (moguls, jumps, slopestyle, ski cross, halfpipe) and countries must respect a number of athletes per discipline. and by gender.
“Let’s say that the easiest way is to make a podium”, summarizes Justine, Olympic champion in Sochi and silver medalist in PyeongChang.
” A top 10 gives you good chances, but a podium, that simplifies things ”, adds Chloe, Olympic vice-champion in Sochi and who is aiming for a fourth participation in the Olympics.
Chloe, who is 29 years old, also approaches this qualification process in a more serene way.
“To have a greater lightness of mind in this whole process helps me. It helps my ski, it helps me spread my wings and have less pressure. I also feel more ready than last year. We made the choice not to have any downtime after the season, to make the most of the snow we had in Canada. I am coming to the end of my summer season and I feel ready to race. This was not the case last year. ”
“Having had a good training camp on snow makes me feel confident,” adds Justine. There is not much left: the next Games happen so quickly that I want to have fun during the process. I want to take advantage of each World Cup to improve myself until the Games. ”
“We are following the plan; we are in the right place at the right time now, continues Chloe. I feel that we are building something, that we are not chasing our plan like last year, even if it was out of our control. […] As these will be my last Games, I want to take advantage of it. I want to be part of the movie, not watch it. And I want to enjoy every moment. Every day, I want to be happy with my day, with what I have done. ”
So when they start at the World Cup in Ruka, Finland, in early December, it could be the first milestone of their last lap for each of them. Chloe and Justine, 27, however, do not confirm anything at this time, not wishing to close the door.
One thing is certain: they seem to have a well-planned post-career. The collection launched Thursday is their second, although the first has been hit hard by the limits imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
For the three sisters, it was important to offer clothes in their image, which make you want to move in the cold.
“It’s no secret that we’ve always loved fashion,” says Justine. Even in 2014, my dream was to launch a clothing collection. Woven tight, it was not just to design clothes, but to leave something bigger than our sporting exploits.
“These clothes, we created them so that young girls and women feel good, feel beautiful, feel strong and that it encourages them to go and play outside. Above all, give them self-confidence, ”she concludes.