Olympic Games in 2026 on the horizon for world champion ski jumper Alex Loutitt

Canada's Alexandria Loutitt celebrates after finishing second in the women's ski jumping event, during the World Cup, in Lillehammer, Norway, Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-NTB Scanpix, Geir Olsen

The words "why not me" are tattooed on the back of Alexandria Loutitt's hand between her thumb and wrist.

That motto has served her well.

The 2026 Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina, Italy, are on the horizon for Canada's first world champion in ski jumping.

Loutitt claimed the 2023 world title in the women's large hill event, which will make its Olympic debut in Italy alongside the normal hill competition.

"It's the first time the women will have a large hill event, which is my specialty. That feels very exhilarating," said the 20-year-old from Calgary. "It definitely gets my heart pumping thinking about it."

Loutitt was the first Canadian woman to win a World Cup gold medal in January 2023. The next month opened with a world junior women's championship gold medal in Whistler, B.C., and closed with a world title in Planica, Slovenia.

Triumph wasn't without turmoil. She'd finished 26th in the normal hill event in Planica before winning on the large hill.

Before helping Canada's mixed team win bronze in Beijing in 2022 for her country's first Olympic medal in ski jumping, Loutitt was disqualified from the normal hill because she was 300 grams underweight.

"Some of my best results and biggest achievements have come after some of my worst results," she said. "I tend to thrive in a moment where I've been knocked down."

Sandy

She believes some of her grit comes from stories heard at her grandfather Sandy's knee. Their Gwich'in First Nation heritage is through Sandy's mother, and Alex's great-grandmother, Laura McLeod.

Sandy Loutitt, born in Fort Smith, N.W.T., attended residential school, worked as a cook at age 14 at the airport, became a mining prospector as a teenager in Uranium City, Sask., ran taxi, oil and gas, and barge businesses, and travelled the world despite failing eyesight that started in his youth.

"My father had a really hard life, but chose to step past those things and live exceptionally," said Alex's father Sandy Loutitt Jr. "He sort of swung with both hands on the bat and lived big.

"Aboriginal culture, the histories are oral. My father was a fantastic orator. Those stories, myths and jokes that encompass all these ideas, he did what every other elder did before him, he passed that onto his grandchildren orally. That's Ally's connection.

"Because she loved her grandfather, those stories had impact and meaning."

Loutitt internalized what she heard before her grandfather died in 2015.

"It's those family values," she said. "You keep pushing even though you know things are difficult and it looks like there's no way out and there's no opportunity, but you make opportunity and create change for yourself."

She hasn't travelled to Northwest Territories because she hasn't had time. Loutitt lives and trains in Slovenia and competes in Europe the majority of the year.

Gwich'in leaders took note of her accomplishments, however, with Facebook praises.

"It fills my heart to see First Nations youth excel — especially First Nations girls and young women!" wrote Yukon's Vuntut Gwitchin MLA Annie Blake when Loutitt won her World Cup gold.

Gwich'in Tribal Council congratulated Loutitt and teammates on their Olympic bronze in 2022.

"An amazing accomplishment by one of our Gwich’in youth!" wrote Grand Chief Ken Kyikavichik at that time.

Beijing

Beijing brought home to Loutitt the number of people who felt a connection to her.

"The outreach I got from that community, and not just the Gwich'in community, but lots of Indigenous athletes who were supporting me and cheering me on was special and pretty exciting," she said."

Loutitt has stepped on the World Cup podium eight times, but has yet to finish in the medals this season. Her best result so far in 2024-25 was placing fifth in large hill in Engelberg, Switzerland.

The Canadian enters a key part of her season with back-to-back large hill World Cups on Tuesday and Wednesday in Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Oberstdorf, Germany.

Loutitt was diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) at age 18.

"Having the ability to think differently is a huge advantage, especially in a sport where you have only these few seconds, but you have hours leading up to these few seconds to get it right," she explained.

"I always describe my brain as like a block of Swiss cheese. I have all these different thoughts in the little holes of the Swiss cheese, but when the pressure is on, it's like squishing the block and all the thoughts disperse.

"I have my system where 10 jumpers before me I'm like, 'OK, we're going to start thinking about ski jumping.' When I am going into the control box, once my goggles are on, I'm just thinking over and over again what my steps are that I'm going to do to create the outcome I want."

She calls ADHD her superpower.

"Many women with ADHD tend to struggle throughout life just because they can't understand why they're different and feel like the world's not built for them," Loutitt said.

"I hope anyone with ADHD can see me and see that even though the world's not built for you to be normal, it's built for you to be extraordinary."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 29, 2024.