Words :: Allison Kennedy Davies.
While watching the X Games on television with her dad, a tiny 3-year-old Olivia Watson saw Chloe Kim for the first time. Kim, an American two-time Olympic gold halfpipe medalist and a seven-time X Games gold halfpipe medalist, mesmerized Olivia, who turned to her dad and said, “I want to do that!”
With no real on-snow or action sports background, Olivia’s dad headed to Google and YouTube to confirm with Olivia exactly what she wanted to do. The answer was definitive: Olivia wanted to snowboard.
Five years later, Olivia’s resolve has not diminished. Backed by the support of her parents, Richard and Melissa, and a growing team of coaches, supporters and fellow riders, she’s now a highly successful snowboarder and wakeboarder, competing in both provincial and national competitions.
I sat down with Olivia after a day on the slopes at Ontario’s Alpine Ski Club, where she rode halfpipe for the very first time. Tired and eating everything in sight, Olivia looks me dead in the eye and says, “I want to win gold at the Olympics and I want to learn how to do a double backflip off a rail.” And as I watch her smile her toothy grin at me, I feel pretty sure that if Olivia wants it to happen, it very likely will.
How can you be sure an 8-year-old kid knows what they want? Olivia’s coach, Jordan Sullivan of Our Team coaching, offers some insight. “I first remember meeting Olivia at wakeboard camp a couple of years ago,” he recalls. “There are a lot of kids, and at first it can be hard to tell which ones are just there because their friends are there or because their parents want them to be. It didn’t take long to realize Olivia is different. She’s there because she loves it.”
Like all Canadian winters, good things must come to an end. And with Olivia hooked on snowboarding, some of the older girls at The Senders snowboard program suggested she give cable wakeboarding a try. Olivia was immediately hooked, now declaring, “I’m sad when snowboarding ends, but I’m excited because wakeboarding is starting. I wakeboard all summer so that I can go right back to snowboarding without forgetting my tricks.”
Sullivan says it’s a common path for competitive board sports athletes in Canada now. “With the level of top riders these days, it’s not enough anymore to just snowboard and then take the summers off. If you look at Liam Brearley and Cam Spalding, unquestionably the two best snowboarders to ever come out of Ontario, they both spent their summers riding just as hard on a wakeboard. And the two sports transfer seamlessly. Olivia can do it all, plus she can skateboard. When you’re starting that young, riding a board 365 days a year, there’s no doubt that she’s on track to be one of the best in the world.”
Beyond the cross-training appeal of wakeboarding, the Watson family has found a supportive environment on the water. “Our entire experience with this community has been one of an extended family who nurtures and supports each other,” says Richard. Olivia has been able to return that support by attending the recent town hall meetings alongside her instructor, Brennan Grange, in support of his application to build a cable park in the Town of the Blue Mountains.
Last year, Olivia started attending the Sisterhood Sessions, run by wakeboard coach Leslie Sparks at The Rail Yard Wake & Aqua Park in Mount Albert, and the Watsons have been pleased by her success there. “This environment seems to be where Olivia thrives the most,” says Richard. “Being mentored by and sharing the handle with such an amazing group of women who are all so supportive of each other and their progression in the sport.”
“Sisterhood Sessions is a women’s-only cable wakeboard program designed to bring girls together to learn and grow as riders. We help provide one-on-one coaching, assist in contest-pass [a run through the course] development and have become an all-around cheer squad,” explains Sparks. “Olivia takes advantage of the coaching and is sure to ask lots of questions about her future contest passes and sneaks in as many laps as she can (looking as stylish as ever, I might add). Her progression over the summer was nothing short of remarkable, putting her at the top of the podium and dominating the season in her age group. Olivia is always a pleasure to watch, especially when she finally commits to a new trick.”
“I’m sad when snowboarding ends, but I’m excited because wakeboarding is starting. I wakeboard all summer so that I can go right back to snowboarding without forgetting my tricks.”
And for Sullivan, any day on the slopes with Olivia is a sunny one: “Olivia is the best because you’ll never have a boring day with her. Whether it’s silly games on the chair lift or sharing snacks with everyone, she’s always making sure everyone else is having a good time. And then when it comes down to focusing and learning a new trick she can instantly change gears and make it happen.”
“When it’s time to try a new trick, I feel nervous inside,” says Olivia. “But my brain is also thinking that it’s fun. When I don’t get it right away, I just go back and try it again. I am always willing to take on the challenge and try new things.”
If it all sounds like a lot for an 8-year-old, it only takes a quick chat with Olivia to see how much she loves what she’s doing. The joy shines through as she talks about the secret handshake she has with her fellow riders (no, she won’t show me). With a grin, she looks at her mom and asks if she can have another cookie—and maybe hit the trampoline when they get home.
Always moving and always smiling, it would be hard not to root for this kid. The sky’s the limit for this super shredder—on water, on snow and in life.
