Narooma youngster Ali Guseli is blazing her own path in the snowboarding world.
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Ali, the younger sister of snowboarder Valentino Guseli, recently won two gold medals at the 2018 Australian Interschools Snowsports Championships held at the Perisher Ski Resort.
She won the boarder cross event with a two-run time of 60.55 seconds, and the giant slalom with a two-run time of 72.51 seconds.
Her winning time in both event was four seconds quicker than the second-placed finisher.
Boarder cross is an event where riders race down a track full of jumps and turns, while giant slalom sees riders race through a series of gates down a slope.
Ali said she “felt happy” with her performance at her “home” ski resort.
“I know my way around Perisher, and I don’t really like the snow at other snow resorts,” she said. “It can get a bit too slushy.”
While Ali had her success at a relatively local ski field, she’s ridden all over the world. Some of her favourite slopes include Mount Bulla (Victoria), Mammoth Mountain (California), Copper Mountain (Colorado), Mount Hutt (New Zealand), and Cardrona (New Zealand).
Ali has been riding for eight years, a long time for someone who is just 10 years of age.
“Her brother started at three, and he was keen as, so by the time she was two we had everything we needed to start her early,” Ali’s mum Kristen said.
“She’s never really done any training, she’s just kind of a natural. She’ll turn up on the day of an event, do well, and then decide she wants to do well at the next one as well.”
Ali has been competing for six years, and tends to enjoy the racing events more than the performance events.
“Things like the halfpipe or slopestyle where you’re judged on your tricks, she doesn’t enjoy them as much as racing,” Kristen said. “I sometimes wonder if that’s due to the objective nature of racing. It’s not judged, it’s timed, so there’s no grey area.”
Kristen said she was “super proud” of her daughter considering how tough the division can be.
“That division is year four and under, so she’s been in that division for five years,” she said. “This year she was finally at the top of her division because a lot of her main rivals had moved up.
“We’re really proud of her, and she really dug deep to win this event. It’s probably the first time I’ve seen her so dertermined and focused, so we’re very glad that paid off.”