Chandra was born on a full moon on hospital hill in Canmore. Her love of physical activity was matched only by the intensity of her competitive spirit and by the age of 12 she was competing with local running, swimming, mountain biking, cross-country skiing and biathlon clubs. Although only 4 years old during the 1988 Calgary Olympics, the spark ignited in her while watching international competitions at the Canmore Nordic Center grew into a wildfire. Countless hours were enjoyably spent honing her skills with her friends at a world-class facility.
With the Canmore Nordic Center as her playground and the support of the Bow Valley community she surprised no one more than herself with her Olympic gold medal win in Torino, Italy 2006. Her exuberance quickly captured the hearts of Canadians when Chandra stepped onto the winner’s podium and belted out the national anthem at the top of her lungs.
Since then the highs and lows of athlete life have been navigated by Chandra and her support team, the pillars of which are her family and her boyfriend since 2002 Devon Kershaw, a World Champion skier. A tremendous highlight was winning her first World Cup ever in her beloved home town of Canmore in 2008 when the fans cheered her to her first victory since the Olympics. Her dad, Glen, a professional camera-man and producer was manning the camera at the finish line – cheering for her and capturing it on film just as he has been her whole life.
When not skiing, Chandra enjoys yoga, practicing her French and Italian, long-boarding, dance parties, swimming in the river, reading, playing guitar (acoustic and air), riding her Ducati Monster, wine-tasting and exploring in the mountains.
Although almost all of her energy is focused on competing at the elite level, in 2005 she and her teammates started Fast and Female. This North-America wide program is dedicated to “Empowerment Through Sport.” She thrives on getting girls hooked on the athletic lifestyle and is grateful to everyone in this fine community who makes Fast and Female possible. If she can sprinkle the next generation with some of the magic fairy dust 4-time Olympian Canmore Girl Sara Renner dumped on her, the fly-wheel of inspiration will power Fast and Female into the future.
