Emily Rothney is on the road to recovery after a serious knee injury, and is confident she’ll be better than ever on her return to the slopes.
Last year was shaping up to be a big one for Emily after she announced herself on the Freestyle circuit, winning Big Air gold at the Youth Olympics in Georgia and strong showings in events in Australia and New Zealand. She was ranked inside the world’s top 35 in Big Air and was aiming to qualify for her first Olympics at Milano Cortina.
But her season would be cruelly cut short before it had even started. She tore her MCL (medial collateral ligament) after an awkward fall while training in Switzerland in December, it would require an operation which ruled her out for the season and ended her chances of competing for Team GB at the Winter Olympics.
To help Emily throughout her rehabilitation the sportscotland institute of sport regional team have been on hand to provide bespoke support to get Emily back to competition as quickly as possible. And with the worst behind her she is itching at getting back on the snow.
Emily said:
“I was hoping to do a few World Cups this year, but I would like to do that when I am back on snow. It broke my heart to miss out on snowboarding this season, but I can’t wait to be back out there with them as soon as I’m ready.
"I have been working with Scott Simon at sportscotland, which has been really good.”
With competitions and training opportunities across the world, travel expenses for snowboarders very quickly stack up. The sportscotland Athlete Travel Award Scheme (ATAS) has helped to ease that burden for Emily.
The scheme provides funding to athletes from Shetland, Orkney, Outer Hebrides and Highland to support with the cost of traveling to events or training so opportunities, to help athletes based in rural communities stay at home if they wish and not be disadvantaged by doing so.
Emily has been a recipient of the scheme since 2023. Growing up on the slopes of Cairngorm Mountain Resort and Lecht Ski Centre, she now finds herself racking up air miles to compete. ATAS funding presented a great opportunity in 2025 shortly before her injury when Emily competed in New Zealand ahead of what looked like a breakout season.
She said: “I got the chance to go to New Zealand before this season started, and it was just really cool.”
With Emily’s status as part of GB Snowsport’s World Cup Squad, she often finds herself traveling to tournaments and training camps. Travelling to countries such as Georgia and Austria can be hard at the best of times, however the rurality of the Highlands is often a further barrier. “It really helps with my travel and my accommodation when I am out at competitions.” She said.
In the summer of 2025, Emily travelled down to a training day at The Ski Centre Manchester with the support of ATAS. The centre offers performance athletes like Emily with a like-for-like swap for snow, reducing the need for Emily to travel further afield to gain access to facilities. She added: “They have really good rails, and it gives athletes a quick turnaround, so you get lots of hits in.”
As Emily progresses in her sport, she is noticing the importance of having other female athletes as role models. Something that she is looking to become for younger participants: “I look up to a lot of people like Kirsty Muir, I look up to her a lot. So, it’s nice to see younger children, and be like that.”
“It’s good to aspire to someone. Kirsty is doing so well getting back from her ACL and winning her World Cup, it’s just someone to look up to.”
