Olympian Maggie Voisin gets warm welcome home

Whitefish freeskier Maggie Voisin rode a fire truck down Central Avenue on Tuesday as hundreds cheered, held homemade signs and welcomed the teen home from the Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

Leaning on crutches and wearing a blue Team USA jacket and matching mittens, Voisin, 15, met with the media for a few minutes to talk about her untimely ankle injury and reflect on the Olympic experience.

She said it’s nice to be home for the first time since Christmas.

“It doesn’t feel like I was just in Russia,” she said. “It’s nice to be home and be able to relax.”

In late January, Voisin was selected to compete in Sochi with the U.S. Freeskiing Olympic team. She was the youngest competitor on Team USA.

Yet, an ankle injury during a training run on the slopestyle course kept her from competing in the main event.

The injury was a tough blow, she said.

Voisin was considered a medal contender at the Olympics and had just earned a silver medal at the Winter X Games.

“I was ready now — it wasn’t easy to get over,” she said. “I’ve had an amazing ski season and I can’t believe how far I’ve come. I was skiing well at the time and I could have been on the podium.”

Still, Voisin remained at the Olympics and cheered on her fellow competitors, many of whom she knows well and has competed against all season.

She also watched a few other events she had never seen before, like bobsled and luge.

Voisin said her favorite part of the Olympic experience was the opening ceremonies and walking with the other athletes.

“It was an honorable feeling,” she said.

Now at home, Voisin is focusing on her recovery and school work. While she would like to make it back to the Olympics, she says there’s plenty of other events to focus on in the years before the 2018 Winter Games in Korea.

“I’m taking it day-by-day and year-by-year,” she said.