Winter Olympic gold medallist Lydia Lassila wiped away tears as she returned to Australian soil for the first time since winning the women’s freestyle aerial skiing title in Vancouver.
The 28-year-old from Diggers Rest, north-west of Melbourne was greeted by a large crowd at Melbourne Airport, including her parents and siblings.
She is looking forward to a break and some of her mother’s home cooking after being away for 10 months.
“It’s nice to have my feet on home soil and to share this with the most important people in my life,” she said.
“I’ve believed in myself for a long time. But to finally have done what I wanted to do is an amazing feeling.”
Lassila said she gave 100 per cent in her Olympic performance.
“If it was silver or bronze or fifth, I could walk away knowing that I’d put everything into this sport,” she said.
“Gold is just the icing on the cake and it’s something I’ve dreamt of my entire life so it’s really great.”
She is undecided about whether or not to take part in the world championships.
“I mean there’s so much preparation and time went into just getting this and getting to Vancouver and doing my best there, so I need a bit of a break to realise what I’ve achieved,” she said.
Lassila is also planning to lobby for more facilities to improve the sport in Australia.
“To get some more depth into our program, we’re going to have to bring something home so that people can train locally and not have to spend a good 10 months overseas.”
The Australian Posts circulated a stamp (55c) with the gold medallist Lydia Lassila.
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