Kimberley McRae

Biography

Kimberley McRae made an impressive Olympic debut at Sochi 2014 where she finished fifth in the women’s singles event, just one place behind Canada’s top luger Alex Gough. Both women improved upon Canada’s previous best-ever Olympic result in the event. McRae matched her fifth place finish at PyeongChang 2018.

At the 2017 World Championships, McRae came back from 10^th place after a rough first run to end up on the podium with the bronze medal, making her just the second Canadian luger after Gough to win a singles medal at the worlds. In her second run she pulled one of the best starts of her career, putting all her hard, off-season training on display.

McRae has been competing on the World Cup circuit since the 2011-12 season. That winter she suffered a stress fracture which sidelined her for five months until she could start lifting weights again. In her world championship debut in 2013, she was one of three Canadian women ranked in the top-eight with her seventh-place finish. Her time also earned her the silver medal in the under-23 world championships.

McRae earned her first World Cup medal in January 2014 when she finished third in Altenberg. Gough won the gold medal in that race to make them the first Canadian lugers to stand on the same World Cup podium. She had more success on the Altenberg track in February 2016, winning World Cup silver in the team relay. A singles silver and team relay gold followed in Lake Placid in December 2016. McRae had experienced the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games as a forerunner.

A little more about Kimberley

Getting into the Sport: Introduced to luge at a ski show in Calgary in 2004 at age 11 where the Canadian Luge Association had set up a booth… She tried out a wheeled sled and was hooked…  Was drawn by the uniqueness of the sport and the adrenaline it gave her, flying down the track at 120km/hr… Now finds her drive in trying to execute the perfect run… Outside Interests:  Enjoys reading, fishing, hiking, and exploring the places they stay during their competitive travels… Trains in taekwondo to help with coordination and overall body awareness… Graduated from the National Sports School in 2010… Would like to pursue a nursing career… Athlete ambassador for Fast and Female… Odds and Ends: Always listens to country music during her warmup because it reminds her of home and calms her down… Favourite motto: If your dreams don’t scare you, they’re not big enough…