MY Story
Hi, I’m Alison Mackie, a 20 year-old rising star in Canadian cross-country skiing. I took my first strides on skis when I was 2 years old, just shortly after I took my first steps. I grew up in Edmonton, Alberta, and would go skiing with my family every weekend during the winter.
I competed in my first race when I was 7 years old, and quickly grew to love not only the competitive aspect of racing, but the friends I made in the cross-country ski community as well.
I participated in many sports growing up, however cross-country skiing has always been my favourite. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I shifted my focus towards training to be the best skier that I could be, just to challenge myself. I knew that I had potential and that I was capable of achieving any goal that I set, regardless of how daunting it seemed at the time. Nothing, however, prepared me for just how successful the next few years would be.
My ski career took off in 2022, at my first National Championships. During that week, I became the National Aggregate Champion, finishing with four podiums: one gold, two silvers, and one bronze.
Those performances earned me a spot on the National Development Team, which I was a member of from 2022-2024. Ever since, my career has taken a dramatic upwards trajectory. In 2023, I represented Canada at my first World Junior Ski Championships, which took place on home soil in Whistler, British Columbia. At just 17 years old, I was the top Canadian in every race and surprised myself with a 13th place finish in the 20 km classic race, a 15th place finish in the 10 km skate race, and a 23rd place finish in the classic sprint.
Following my high school graduation in 2023, I moved to Canmore, Alberta to train with the Alberta World Cup Academy, a national high-performance training centre. In 2024, I competed in my first World Cup races in Minneapolis, USA, in front of 40,000 spectators.
My 2024-2025 race season included several record-breaking performances. I finished third in the 20 km classic race at the 2025 World Junior Ski Championships, becoming the first Canadian woman to finish on the podium at a World Junior Championships since 1989. Two days later, I won another WJSC bronze medal, this time in the 10 km skate race.
These consistent results were rewarded with a spot on the 2025 World Ski Championships team. Two weeks later, in Trondheim, Norway, I raced the first leg of the 4 x 7.5 km relay and the second leg of the classic team sprint at one of the most iconic World Championships in the history of the sport. Finally, I concluded the 2024-2025 World Cup season with two top-30 results.
Going into the 2025-26 season, I had big goals and dreams, but everything would have to come together to make them possible. The main goal was to qualify for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milano Cortina. Not only did I do that, but I finished 8th in the 10km individual free race, marking Canada’s best women’s individual result since 2006.
My second goal of the season was to finish on the podium at the U23 World Ski Championships. After coming off two bronze medals at the 2025 World Junior Championships, I knew it was possible in my first year as a U23. I went into the championships knowing it was possible, and left it all out on the course to finish first!
With my Olympic and U23 World Championships goals achieved, the focus was now on the World Cup circuit. After finishing fifth in Toblach, Italy, earlier that season, I had cemented my place in the U23 Overall leaders’ bib. It all came down to the final race of the World Cup season to secure the overall win, becoming Canada’s first women to win the U23 Overall World Cup Season!
With my Olympic and U23 World Championships goals achieved, the focus was now on the World Cup circuit. After finishing fifth in Toblach, Italy, earlier that season, I had cemented my place in the U23 Overall leaders’ bib. It all came down to the final race of the World Cup season to secure the overall win, becoming Canada’s first women to win the U23 Overall World Cup Season!