Travis Gerrits (born October 19, 1991, in Milton, Ontario) is a former Canadian freestyle skier. Gerrits was the silver medalist from the 2013 FIS World Championships and was named the FIS Rookie of the Year in 2011.
Early life Gerrits attended W.I. Dick Public Middle School and Milton District High School, both located in the Town of Milton. He described missing half his classes in his school years due to his training and competitions.
With an initial background in gymnastics and trampoline, the latter of which Gerrits had competed at the provincial level, he had begun skiing at the age of 6. When he was 10, he competed at provincial skiing championships, where he had gained mentorship and support from fellow skier Nicolas Fontaine. Gerrits had spent his initial ski training sessions abroad in Lake Placid, New York, before the Canadian Freestyle Ski Association built a Quebec facility in 2004.
Career
By the time Gerrits was 15, he had gained a position on the Canadian National Development Team for aerials. He was invited to the 2010 Winter Olympics as a forerunner for the men's aerials. He was named the international rookie of the year following the 2010 season.
Gerrits spent the end of his 2011–2012 season recovering from a MCL tear.
During the 2012–13 FIS Freestyle Skiing World Cup season, Gerrits won two silver medals.
Gerrits' next breakthrough came when he won silver at the 2013 World Championships in Norway, which meant his qualification for the 2014 Winter Olympics as a representative for Canada. After he commented on his success saying, "To me, second place is a victory in my eyes (because) I qualified for the Olympics. To be honest, I couldn't be happier. I did everything I wanted to do today and this whole season. It's awesome."
At the end of 2013, Gerrits won the World Cup aerials in Beijing, China.
In the 2014 Winter Olympics, Gerrits had come in 7th place for the Olympic men's aerials final.
Gerrits withdrew from the 2018 Winter Olympics qualifying to enter rehabilition for sustained inquires.
According to a 2019 interview, Gerrits had retired from his skiing career after 14 years on the Canadian national team.
Personal life In 2017, Gerrits opened up about his experience living as an athlete with bipolar I disorder. Diagnosed in 2014, he commented on his treatment management, and how his career results "came in spurts and peaks" due to his illness.
In 2020, Gerrits was inducted into the Milton Sports Hall of Fame.
Results Top Five Finishes Nor-Am Cup: 8 World Cup: 7 World Championships: 1
SeasonDateLocationResult 2006-07 1 top five January 28, 2007 Mont Gabriel, Canada Nor-Am Cup 5th 2007-08 1 top five February 16, 2008 Apex, Canada Nor-Am Cup 3rd 2008-09 2 top five January 11, 2009 Apex, Canada Nor-Am Cup 3rd February 21, 2009 Canada Olympic Park, Canada Nor-Am Cup 2nd 2009-10 2 top five December 21, 2010 Utah Olympic Park, USA Nor-Am Cup 2nd March 2, 2010 Apex, Canada Nor-Am Cup 3rd 2010-11 3 top five December 18, 2010 Apex, Canada Nor-Am Cup 2nd December 19, 2010 Apex, Canada Nor-Am Cup 1st January 8, 2011 Mont Gabriel, Canada Nor-Am Cup 3rd 2011-12 1 top five January 15, 2012 Mont Gabriel, Canada Nor-Am Cup 3rd 2012-13 4 top five's January 12, 2013 Val Saint Come, Canada World Cup 2nd February 1, 2013 Deer Valley, USA World Cup 2nd February 23, 2013 Bukovel, Ukraine World Cup 5th March 7, 2013 Voss-Myrkdalen, Norway World Championship2nd 2013-14 2 top five's December 15, 2013 Beida Lake, China World Cup 4th December 22, 2013 Beijing, China World Cup 1st 2014-15 1 top five February 21, 2015 Moscow, Russia World Cup 4th 2015-16 1 top five February 5, 2016 Deer Valley, USA World Cup 4th
References
External links Freestyle Skiing Canada profile Gerrits for CBC Sports