Two Revelstoke women have qualified alongside seven other B.C. athletes to represent Canada in the world cross-country ski championships that Norway hosts in March.
Marlie Molinaro and Ruby Serrouya will both compete at the 2026 FIS Nordic Junior and U23 World Ski Championships in the Norwegian ski town of Lillehammer, hitting the Scandinavian snow March 3 to 8.
Molinaro and Serrouya, representing Canada in the U23 women and junior women categories, respectively, qualified with 19 other Canadian skiers following their performance with Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club (RNSC) at the World Junior Trials held two weekends ago in Canmore, Alta.
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Between Jan. 29 and Feb. 1, Molinaro placed third in the 3×3.3-kilometre and 4×5-km U23 women’s races, as well as fourth overall in the senior women’s sprint heats. Serrouya came third overall in 55:01.5 for the 4×5-km women’s mass start.
Her finish in the 1.3-km women’s sprint qualification was also third place overall at 3:08.32, while Molinaro finished sixth overall in 3:11.84 for the qualifier before scoring fourth place in the final round.
Now, their cohort of 21 Canadian athletes will spend more than two weeks in Norway from Feb. 20 to March 9, starting with a pre-camp in Sjusjøen leading up to the competition, according to Matt Smider, a Nordiq Canada national ski development coach who worked nine seasons with RNSC and is co-leading the trip.
“It’s a true and honest world championship,” he said, explaining the pre-camp is a key time to overcome jet lag, get familiar with the race course, and get to know fellow Canadian competitors.
After a prep meeting with athletes Feb. 1 for the trip, Smider has a good feeling about Canada’s cohort this year.
“The group had a really great vibe about them,” he added. “It seems like a really motivating event for our athletes.”
Revelstoke’s Molinaro and Serrouya, who’ve both trained under Smider, hold great promise for the championships, he said. Serrouya competes for the University of Denver ski team and scored first in junior sprints at the U.S. cross-country nationals in January, while Molinaro previously won bronze in the 10-km skate ski at the 2023 Canada Winter Games.
“It’s great to see Marlie get another opportunity to represent Canada,” Smider added.
He emphasized that consistent training will prove key to athletes’ success in Lillehammer, but noted Canadian skiers hold a great track record for mixed relays. Regardless of how much training athletes commit on the course, “often it’s the things you do outside of that with leading a 24-7 life to reach this level,” he said.
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Coming from Revelstoke, Smider raved about RNSC having a solid group of volunteer coaches focused on athlete development, and building a legacy of helping skiers achieve their goals.
“That success and ambition has been carried over year after year,” he added, and with opportunities such as Lillehammer, “it’s always inspiring and motivational to be competing with the best athletes in the world.”
Between waxing her skis in her new home of Denver, Colo., 19-year-old Serrouya told Black Press Media that RNSC “does a good job at keeping things fun.” On top of its exceptional off-piste training, she remembers enjoying night-time games that masked the work of ski practice.
For Lillehammer, “it feels pretty perfect that Matt’s the travel lead, because he used to coach,” she said. “Super nice to have a familiar face on the trip, and also Matt is a really great coach.”
Right up until the week she departs for Norway, Serrouya will be busy racing the next two weekends at invitational cross-country events in Denver and Boulder, Colo. To help prepare for her bigger feat in Lillehammer, her training is turning down a notch to ensure her body can recover.
However, Serrouya won’t have quite as much adjusting to do in Norway as fellow athletes. During her time at Revelstoke Secondary School, she actually studied for a year in Lillehammer.
“It just so happens that the world championships are in Lillehammer, where I lived,” she said, mentioning it’s known for its challenging world cup courses. “I lived 500 metres from the ski tracks.”
She and Molinaro each get four starts, with options including skate sprint, 20-km skate, 10-km classic and four-person mixed relay. Athletes who make the top 30 will advance to the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals. Serrouya is especially happy to be racing on alternate days with Molinaro, allowing them to cheer each other on.
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On top of brushing up her Norwegian, reconnecting with friends, and logging 650 ski hours in 2026, “my overarching goal is just to make the most out of this experience,” Serrouya said about the championships. Lillehammer will be the “highest calibre” she’s competed at, and her first time representing Canada internationally.
She anticipates her Canadian cohort scoring some top 10s, and “I just want to make sure that Revelstoke knows how grateful I am,” she said. “When I come back, I still kind of feel that support from everyone back home.”
For anyone hoping to follow Molinaro and Serrouya at the FIS Nordic Junior and U23 World Ski Championships, the races are expected to be streamed online.
“We are looking forward to a compact championship filled with fair play and exciting competition,” Norwegian Ski Federation president Tove Moe Dyrhaug said in an announcement. “We all remember the fantastic celebration and enthusiastic crowds at the World Championships in Trondheim last year. I hope the participants will have equally unforgettable experiences here in Lillehammer.”