Ben Kilner was an energetic nine-year-old when his Mum took him to Glenshee for a snowboarding lesson. Now, just twelve years later, and the Banchory 21-year-old is ready to showcase his talent on the biggest stage of all when he represents Team GB at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver in February.

Ben is the only boarder to have qualified for the British team for the Olympics, and he will spend the next couple of months training in the US and Canada in readiness for the biggest challenge to date. His goal is to make his mark among the world’s best in the freestyle competition in Vancouver – but he views 2010 as just the start. 

“I’m already looking ahead to the next Winter Olympics in Russia in 2014,” he said. “The aim then will be to get onto the podium. Vancouver promises to be a terrific experience and if I can make the top 15 that would be great.”

Hooked from his first lesson, Ben spent three years honing his skills at Glenshee before heading to Austria where he managed to mix his education with his beloved sport. At 13, he was brought into the Scottish Junior team, three years later and he was a member of the GB squad. He just missed out on selection for the 2006 Olympics. 

“Once I moved to Austria I really started to take it seriously,” said Ben, before dismissing the perceived notion that snowboarders are a rebellious breed.  “Yes, there was a time when the sport was seen as being very anti-establishment, but not since it became an Olympic sport. I’m certainly not a rebel.”

Chatting in the office where his sister Emma works – Xodus in Aberdeen – Ben certainly shows no sign of being a wild party animal. In fact, he says that the most boisterous activity on a rare trip home is the regular training sessions at the Robert Gordon’s University gym.

He has had to make sacrifices, including forfeiting a university education, and his young body has taken severe punishment in perfecting the skills of his trade. His party piece is a move that involves three somersaults in the air.  

In response to a question about injuries, he bursts out laughing. “I’ve had plenty,” he reveals. “A couple of concussions. A broken nose, broken ribs and, the worst of the lot, a dislocated knee.”

But he reckons every bump, bruise and fracture is worthwhile. He is grateful for the support he receives from Sportscotland and the Scottish Institute of Sport, and has recently had a boost by being taken on as a client of Red Sky Management.

The Edinburgh-based company is now working hard on Ben’s behalf, and seeking the sponsorship that could help him fulfil his dream of an Olympic medal.

Unfortunately for Ben, snowboarding struggles to receive much recognition in Britain. But it is televised regularly on Eurosport and is huge in the US, the country of its origin.

“I’ve won the British Championship and finished in the top ten in World Cup events, and I’m improving all the time,” he continued.  ‘The next few years should be really exciting.”

As for his Mum – Jenny – she is delighted that a kids’ fun day out has brought her son so much pleasure and success.

EB
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