“We do a bunch of backflips up in the air and we fall or land from 60 feet up in the air,” the Olympic aerialist says with a laugh. “So I have this much anxiety all the time.”
Only two U.S. freestyle skiers — moguls skier Jaelin Kauf and aerialist Kiley McKinnon — have earned the two podium finishes so far this season to meet the qualifications for next month’s Olympic games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. So this week’s Freestyle World Cup at Deer Valley, one of three Olympic qualifying events left on the calendar, carries some added significance as the Americans try to solidify their roster.