It was a rather frustrating Christmas and New Year for Andrew Noble. Instead of applying the final polish to his preparations for the start of the 2008 World Cup season, he was laid up with a nasty knee injury.

But the 23-year-old baby of the British World Cup squad is a naturally optimistic type of guy, and he was hoping to be back in action by the end of January and ready to build the confidence and experience that he believes could lead to a medal at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver.

A skier since the age of three - his first tentative slides were on the dry slopes at Hillend in Edinburgh - Noble was elected to the GB squad this year, joining fellow-Scots Alain and Noel Baxter and Finlay Mickel in the four man line-up.

He admits that it is the clichéd "dream come true" to be a member of such an elite group, especially since his 30-year-old idol Alain is still involved.

It was Alain's bronze medal performance at the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City that inspired Andrew to overcome a terrible setback and give it a go as a full-time skier.

"I broke my back and ruptured my spleen in a skiing accident seven years ago and was laid on my back for three weeks and completely out of skiing for six months," he explained.

"But I was glued to the TV during the Salt Lake Olympics and Alain was so fantastic to watch. I almost decided there and then that I would leave school and give skiing a go for a year."

Six years on, and he is now getting close to a world top 100 ranking and the highlights to date are a victory in last year's British Championships and a sixth place in the French National Championships.

This season, his goal is to get into the top 15 in Europa Cup events and then use the World Cup circuit to get a grip of competing with the big guys. By this time next year, he hopes to be in the world's top 50.

He listens with almost incredulity to Alain's tales of his early days on the circuit when the cash-strapped British team travelled and slept in a car.

Nowadays, the GB squad almost receives the same treatment as the Scandinavians and those raised in the foothills of the Alps and, on a personal level, Andrew is hugely grateful to his main sponsors, Initial City Link, for providing support.

"Skiing is the national sport in some of the other countries, and it can be hard to keep up," he admits. "But there is no reason that we can't be just as fit. I've been full-time for five years, so it's not an excuse any-more."

If he hadn't been a committed skier, Noble, who went to Edinburgh Academy, would now (hopefully) have graduated in economics and law from Bristol University.

"I had a place and kept deferring it. Now I think they've given up on me," he joked.

But, despite the odd injury, he certainly hasn't given up on his ambition of making his name as a truly great British sports star - making medal bids in three years' time in Vancouver and then again at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia are the goals hovering enticingly on the horizon.

EB
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