Women of Winter | Two sports and a career with Anna Trnka

Australian Cross Country skier Anna Trnka has taken hold of a new opportunity and is on the brink of her maiden World Cup as a SkiMo athlete. After a six-year hiatus from international competition, Anna returned to Cross Country skiing in 2021 and alongside this took up a new challenge in SkiMo in 2023. 

Trnka is a multi-talented athlete and is able to juggle numerous responsibilities including competing, coaching, studying and running her own physiotherapy clinic. 

Anna is currently in Gangwon, Korea for the Winter Youth Olympic Games where she is the Australian Cross Country Team coach. 

We caught up with Anna recently to find out more about where her motivation comes from for skiing, her plans for coaching and her career as a working professional. 

How were you introduced to snow sports?
I grew up in Mount Beauty, Victoria which is at the base of Falls Creek. It’s where my mum was living when she met my dad, an elite Czech cross country ski racer who came out to compete in the 1992 Hoppet. We were a super active family and cross country skiing was always a big part of that. I first started “skiing” (walking on skis) at the age of 15 months. I started racing in early high school and then had really amazing opportunities to spend my summers in the northern hemisphere winter, training with family friends and at ski clubs in the Czech Republic.

What do you love most about cross country skiing?
Cross country skiing combines two of my favourite things, being outdoors and going on adventures. Training for cross country skiing often takes me on long adventures in the mountains which can be very beautiful but I also love the sense of empowerment that comes from going to some really special places under my own steam.

Ski racing is a little bit different. Although I am definitely competitive, what really drives me is the pursuit of improvement. Racing gives me the opportunity to see the results of my hard work and no matter the results, good or bad, I’m always looking forward to the next block of training and preparation.
 
With both training and racing I have travelled to some really beautiful and special places.

Can you tell us about a few of your career achievements both as an athlete and a coach?
In 2013, I was the first Australian female athlete to make my debut at both the World Junior and Senior Championships in the same year and over 10 years later I am still the youngest Australian female to represent at the World Champs. For sure, one of the biggest highlights of my career was being the opening leg for Australia’s first ever Women’s Relay team at the World Juniors in 2013, it was so special to share that with some of my closest friends and teammates. 

After the 2015 World Championships, I took a six-year break from international competition. It’s been a slow process of building back up to my previous level of performance and I’m not there yet but I still really love training and racing. This is my third season back competing in cross country skiing but I have also taken up Ski Mountaineering or “SkiMo” racing, making my World Cup debut in SkiMo in March 2023.

As a coach the thing that makes me proudest is seeing an athlete’s personal development and enjoyment of the sport. I never take an athlete’s achievements on as my own but having the opportunity to contribute to a positive team environment that fosters athlete success is something I’m excited to be a part of. It was great to take on the role of VIC XC (Victoria Cross Country) Coordinator this year and get the program that supports Victorian junior athletes back up and running. 

How do you balance being an athlete and your career? 
Being busy has become my defining personality trait! Outside of training for two winter sports I run my own physiotherapy clinic, work for a private practice, I’m studying my Masters in Sports Medicine as well as having coaching roles at a state and national levels. To say that I balance it all would be an exaggeration - it’s not possible to do so many things all really well and usually something is being neglected... often my mental health!

Something that is really important to me is to schedule breaks after busy periods. I love to take a day where I have no commitments or plans and I can just do what I feel like - I call it a 'watch-free day'. I might watch TV all day or I might do a lot of activity but the importance and value comes from taking the pressure off myself.

Advice I give junior athletes is to pick two things to focus on. So if you are in year 12, you can train a lot, ski fast AND do well at school BUT you need to prioritise and this might mean missing out on social activities. Decide what is important to you and do less things well!

What major events are you competing in this season? 
I have a pretty packed schedule for the northern hemisphere winter this year! I arrived in Scandinavia in early November to have a short preparation block before commencing six weekends of consecutive cross country ski racing - 16 races over 5 weeks! So far I’ve raced in Norway, Sweden and Switzerland with my final races coming up in Italy and Austria.
 
After Christmas I will have a break from competition while I take on my role as the Junior Tour Lead Coach and in February I will return to Europe to begin preparation for my SkiMo races. This year I want to build on my experience from last year and am hoping to compete in the Val Martello (ITA) and Schladming (AUT) World Cups.

What are your coaching plans for the Northern season? 
The 2023/24 Junior Tour starts on Boxing Day with a four-week training camp based in Slovenia and Austria. I will be leading 10 athletes including development level athletes, World Junior (championships) hopefuls and the Youth Olympic athletes. I’m really excited to work with this group as they work towards their different goals for the season including racing in January at the Austrian Cup. Then I will take selected athletes to the World Youth Olympic Games in South Korea which will be a very exciting experience to go somewhere completely new and different.

What skills/abilities make for a great coach?
I think it’s really important to be able to meet an athlete where they are at and understand what they need, both physically and mentally - this often means being able to adapt your coaching style. I always say “happy athletes are fast athletes” and I really prioritise that in my coaching. My biggest goal is to create a positive environment focused on athlete wellbeing and I really believe that is where good performance can come from, as well as longevity in sport.