For our inaugural story of the #SpaAtHome series, USPAAH had the pleasure of visiting the beautiful Surrey home of a true British champion, Chemmy Alcott!

Chemmy is Britain’s most famous Olympic ski racer, competing in 4 Winter Olympic games, and 7 FIS World Championships.

USPAAH treated Chemmy to a 90 min facial in the comfort of her beautiful riverfront home near Hampton Court Palace and got to learn a little bit more about this British champion.

When you were a child you wanted to be a…?
From day one, I wanted to be a ski racer!

What is the one activity you now do every day without fail?
Yoga and meditation. It centres me and gives me the mental calm needed to proceed with the rest of my hectic day.

Your favourite lunch spot is…?
A home cooked meal by my brother Rufus. He gets very stressed in the kitchen, but in the end, he comes up with amazing dishes. That’s my favorite lunch, but for dinner, I would say Sushi Samba.

On a relaxing evening at home, you watch…?
If I’m with my girlfriends or alone I watch “Orange Is The New Black” and when I am with my husband, we watch “Sons of Anarchy”. To be honest, though, I am a big fan of board games.

Which board games do you like playing?
Any of them really, but I love Rummikub and Salad Bowl. We play Salad Bowl all the time with the kids I coach. You know you are getting old, though when the guys you’re playing with write down names of people you’ve never heard of because they are from a totally different generation.

What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?
At the start gate at the Sochi Olympics, I was very nervous. I’d had surgery 6 months before and making it on the Olympic team had taken a huge amount of energy. My coach pulled me aside and said: “Chemmy, there is no pressure on you today. The only pressure you are going to feel is on the outside ski.” I was just about to throw myself down this vertical ice pitch and if you don’t have pressure on the ski you would crash. What he said was so simple, yet brilliant, as he took the mental stress away and diverted it onto a physical object, thus making me focus on that instead. So many things in life are overcomplicated and the best strategy sometimes is to focus on the simple mechanics of the situation and go from there.

Who is your role model?
My best friend Julia Mancuso, she is an American ski racer.
Professional skiing is a pretty amazing sport because of the danger element, you end up becoming very good friends with the people you race against. Julia puts things in perspective, and it helps to have her support and understanding when I am going through tough times. She’s an amazing human being, she follows her heart, she listens to her soul and I think it takes a lot of confidence to do that with all the pressure in today’s society. She is a true inspiration for me.

What quality do you most like in others?
Positivity. I find negative people very energy sapping. I am a very positive person, and I try to surround myself with people that are on the same wavelength.

How do you feel after your USPAAH treatment?
Amazing, and incredibly calming. I do yoga in front of my fireplace all the time, so to be here in my own house having a very different relaxing experience was very special. The steam felt really good on my face, and the smell of the products was just divine. I’d highly recommend this service to anyone who wants the convenience of spa quality treatments done in their home or hotel. Nowadays, we are all so busy and short on time, so it is that much more important to find easier ways to feel and look the best that you can be.

Thank you to Chemmy for her time with us!

Chemmy started skiing when she was just 18 months and won her first race at 3 years old. At age 11, she represented England as part of the British Children’s Team. Her successful sports career spanned over 15 years reaching placements in the top 10 in the world.  She became the first and only brit to win a run in the world cup and placed 11th in the Olympics Games twice (Turin and Vancouver). Her incredibly positive personality, unwavering determination to win, and truly collaborative team spirit, has won over the hearts of millions of fans worldwide and she remains a favorite with fellow professional athletes and media alike, after her retirement from the sport in 2014.

Chemmy now co-presents BBC Ski Sunday throughout the winter and has appeared on Dancing on Ice with fellow professional ice skater Sean Rice.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *