This year, we had the opportunity to interview Mirela ‘Mimi’ Rahneva – a Canadian Olympian skeleton racer. As a fitness company, we admire her level of physical fitness, her drive and her competitive spirit. She is an empowered, strong woman who has great advice for women and girls in sport. Check out the interview below:
From a young age, what inspired you to become an athlete?
I loved watching sports when I was young. No matter what sport it was I thought it was so incredible to have so many different types of athletes – their character and body and I loved watching the way they reacted after winning or losing. I always wanted to be one of them.
How did you get into skeleton?
I saw skeleton for the first time in the 2010 Olympics and was immediately drawn to the sport. After graduating university the following winter, I went to a recruitment camp in Hamilton, Ontario and that’s where the provincial team picked me up.
They asked me to go to Lake Placid, New York and try the sport. After a week of what seemed like extreme tobogganing, I was hooked! I was asked to come back for the entire winter and I’ve been with it since that winter of 2012.
Tell us about your proudest moment as a woman in sports
My proudest moment as a woman in the sport would have to be a race in St. Moritz I did a few years back.
Our races typically are two heats with one combined time. This specific race had about 65 participants and it was men and women combined. Only the top 20 competitors after the first heat would get a second run in heat two of the race.
Men typically go much faster than females because they out push us on the start and they have a lot more weight which helps in a gravity sport. I thought this was very unfair and told myself, ‘I’m getting a second heat no matter what!’ I ended up not only getting a second heat but finishing fifth and was the only female to get a second run.
I was quite proud of this result, even though it had no international recognition.
What advice do you have for young girls looking to get into sports?
I always played sports to be a part of something bigger. I made friends and had fun. It has always been a safe place to test my limits and see how far I can go and what I can achieve. Don’t be afraid to try something new. You will probably not be amazing at it right from the get-go but if you have fun, it’s worth sticking with it.
How does participating in sports make you feel?
Competing or just playing a fun game always makes me feel included and happy. Good music, fun people to be around and a healthy sense of competition. I always feel great moving and seeing what my body can do – I just love it.
Do you have any female role models you look up to (in sport or otherwise)?
I have many role models. Gymnast Nadia Comaneci to Judo and MMA’s Ronda Rousey; to current girls I compete against. I always look for someone highly motivated and driven who goes out and gets it done. I like feeling hungry for success and love finding out what gets others fueled.
What do you envision the future to look like for female athletes? What are your hopes and where do you see it going?
I would like to see more female athletes coming back to the sport they participated in to coach. I find we have incredible female athletes who have retired and walked away from the sport altogether. It’s great to see when a strong female athlete comes back to inspire the next generation of females competing.