We recently caught up with Luca Robillard, a recipient of the 2019/2020 SYNC Athlete Fund, for a little Q&A. See what he has to say!
Q: So where did you grow up skiing?
A: I grew up skiing at Squaw Valley, where I skied for 12 years. Now I'm at Sugar Bowl Academy, which has been amazing and has really helped me improve a lot.
Q: What is your favorite discipline and why?
A: I love all disciplines pretty much equally because they all offer different challenges and all have something that is unique about them. That being said, GS wins by a little bit because it feels the most natural and is the most fun.
Q: How has this season been going so far? Are you on track for the goals you set out for yourself at the beginning of the season?
A: This season so far hasn't been going as I wanted, with a lot of mistakes and poor execution, but I am confident it will get better.
Q: What is one fun fact that many friends, teammates, and coaches don't know about you?
A: One thing that not many people know is that I speak three languages fluently. This trait usually flies under the radar until I start talking to my mom, purely in French.
Q: If you were not a ski racer what sport do you think you would pursue instead?
A: If I weren't ski racing I would be racing XC mountain biking and/or surfing.
Q: Which World Cup race would you want to start in the most?
A: My ideal WC start would be Madonna di Campiglio. I have always loved watching this race under the lights and it would be such an amazing experience to race it myself. This one is definitely on the bucket list.
Q: Can you walk us through your pre-race routine and describe how you mentally prepare?
A: My pre-race routine basically consists of a good warmup, very solid inspection, a few warm-up runs, top of the hill warmup, and push out of the start. Mentally, I really focus on the inspection and make sure I have the course dialed and memorized in my head. I usually just do whatever makes me feel the most prepared because every situation is a little bit different and too strict of a routine can be detrimental.
Q: Finally, we have to know, if you could be any part of a burger what would it be and why?
A: If I could be any part of the burger, I would be the top bun. The bun is crucial to the overall quality of the burger and it would be cool to be one of the most important parts of the burger.