Westmount skier goes for the gold

The 42-year-old mother of five was recently named to the Canadian Olympic downhill ski team, and has already started training for the big event. "I'm totally overwhelmed," Oxley told The Examiner this week. "I've only been skiing for a couple of years, so this is quite the honour."

Though she admits to a certain apprehension over the prospect of competing against women half her age, Oxley said her biggest challenge will be making it down the mountain without wiping out — and a recent trip to Whistler, BC, confirmed her worst fears. "It was friggin' scary!" she exclaimed, adding that the sheer height of the mountain and its steep slopes are a far cry from Murray Hill. "I really wasn't expecting it to be so huge. Those skiers go really fast!"

Oxley's husband, Dan, is her biggest supporter. "Alberta will do fine," he said. "She's got a lot of heart and doesn't fall down nearly as much as she used to. As long as there's a comfort station nearby with plenty of hot chocolate and cake, she won't let us down."

Part of Oxley's training will be to shed 40 pounds, which she plans to do over the coming summer. "I'll be jogging in Westmount Park on a weekly basis, and we have already decided to eliminate pizza Thursdays from our family menu… I know I can do this," she says with unbridled confidence.

And if all goes to plan, by this time next year there will be at least one Olympic gold medal on the Oxleys' mantelpiece to prove it.