Youngest-ever skeleton world champion Hallie Clarke is launching headfirst into the new season

At the 2024 IBSF World Championships Team Canada skeleton racer Hallie Clarke became the youngest ever women’s skeleton world champion—at only 19 years old. 

Naturally, Canadian sliding sport enthusiasts are eager to see what the now-20-year-old has in store for this season. Olympic.ca caught up with Clarke while she was training in PyeongChang, South Korea ahead of the first IBSF World Cup of the season to chat about training, goals, and what she wishes people knew about skeleton.

What are you most excited for this season?

I think I’m most excited for the World Cup in PyeongChang because I’ve never been here to this track. So, I’m really excited that we’ve had a few days now on it. To learn a new track is really fun and a bit more of a challenge to have a race in a short amount of time. 

What does the process of learning a new track look like?

Before we start, they have quite a few videos of people going down with GoPros, so we watch a lot of those. I have notes from people that have been there before, what their steers were—but the ice changes a lot. 

You have that basic plan, but when you start to train you have to change your steers a lot, depending on what the ice is doing, what the weather is doing, all these different things. So it’s kind of a trial and error after that basic plan, which is what makes it so challenging. We have a short amount of time to figure it out.

Can you tell me a little bit about how you first got into your skeleton?

I moved to Calgary in 2018 at 14, and I was in WinSport [Canada Olympic Park], which is where they have the Canadian Sport Institute and they have the Ice House for the sliding sports.

I saw a sign on it that said, “Learn to push for skeleton!” And I had no idea what skeleton was, so I Iooked it up. Coming from a family of figure skaters and hockey players, it was just another ice sport, so I tried it, and I kind of just fell in love with it. 

The Calgary track was still open, so I went to high school across the road from the track, and everything kind of lined up.

Were you already a bit of a daredevil or did that grow as you got into the sport?

I think if you were to ask my parents, I was the one that was always, you know, hanging upside down on playgrounds, being a little risky with what I was doing. But I think it definitely grew when I started doing an adrenaline sport.

Is there something that you wish more people knew about skeleton?

I think one of the big things is that people think that you just lie there and don’t do anything. I think it’s really important for people to know that there’s a lot of steering involved.

We always say “head, shoulders, knees and toes,” like the song—that’s how you steer. The timing of our races are won by hundredths of seconds, which is the window that you have to do some of these steers well. It doesn’t look like people are necessarily doing a lot but they’re making those decisions in those hundredths of a second. And those hundredths of a second could be the difference between them crashing or being on the podium.

Can you tell me a little bit about the 2024 World Championships? What was that experience like?

It was a whirlwind. It was obviously a great surprise. My goal going into it was really a top eight, because I had been in the top 10 the year before. I had struggled a lot that season. I had new equipment, the team was a new environment again. So there was just a lot to adjust to. 

My World Cup season went well, but not as well as you would think, lining up to World Championships. So to be sitting in first after day one, was a little bit of a shock. But I think I had the mentality of: I have nothing to lose. 

Was there any moment where it kind of actually hit you that you were a world champion?

My small town, the community at home in Brighton, Ontario, they did a little meet-and-greet when I got home. Seeing our whole community come together and congratulate me and everything, I think it just kind of hit me then. All these people coming to support meant so much. 

How do you feel about the future of skeleton in Canada?

I definitely feel more positive about it than if you’d asked me a few years ago. Our coaches and our program have done so much work to recruit and try and make sure that there’s access to the sport, because it’s not an easy sport to get involved in with the only track in Canada being in Whistler. 

When I started, I was the youngest for a really long time, because they mainly recruited out of university. So the fact that there’s, you know, kids starting it, and they’re welcoming them, and there’s a massive group of them is, I think, super promising for our sport long term.

Did you watch much of Paris 2024? Did you have a favorite moment as a Team Canada fan while you were watching?

I did—there were so many! I’m going to say Summer McIntosh. Her performances were super inspiring, especially as another young athlete, how well she deals with all of the pressure and the hype was super impressive. She looked unfazed and her interviews were amazing. I definitely was very inspired by her.

Rapid fire with Hallie Clarke

Favourite place to train?

Calgary.

An athlete that you look up to?

My teammate, Jane Channell.

Any pre-race rituals or routines?

I wear the same lululemon rainbow socks every race.

If you weren’t a skeleton athlete, what sport would you do?

I’ve always wanted to try speed skating.