Q&A ALEX GOUGH
Q You finished fourth — twice — in Sochi, in the women’s event and in team. How long did it take to get over, and looking back now, is it with pride or frustration?
A Fourth is still great, however, it’s very bittersweet and tough to swallow, because you’ve come so close and fall just short. Different aspects of it are still a little tough to deal with. But for the most part, I’ve moved on, moved forward to Korea. I’m (mostly) just using that feeling as motivation to push and be as prepared and as ready for Pyeongchang as I can be.
Q You took some time off from competition post-Sochi to finish your engineering degree, right?
A After Sochi I went back to school and split myself between being a full-time athlete and a full-time student — technically full-time at both. I ended up racing about six out of 10 races for each of the two seasons after the Games. I have two years remaining on my civil engineering degree and I’m committed fulltime to luge for this past season and the upcoming one.
Q Canada has never been better at the elite level in luge than over the last four years. What does that mean to you as someone who has been on the team for a while and what kind of message are you sending to the kids who are thinking about luge as a sport?
A It’s been a heck of a journey and I’m super proud and feel very privileged to have been able to be a part of it. I’m really looking forward to be going into another Games with this group of people and the young ’uns that we’re going to bring up with us. The expectation of performance on the young guys coming up is so much higher than it was on us, but they’re rising to the occasion ... If any of what I’ve done can inspire them to push the envelope even further, that would be amazing.