Get to know Amalie – First European Champion in Freestyle and currently ranked 3rd in the world in Freestyle Open
In this interview, the wonderful Amalie told us why she loves to fly in the wind tunnel. The professional Indoor Skydiver, coach, and performer from Norway has already competed in many championships and is a regular visitor to Windwerk.
You once posted on social media that you wanted to be an astronaut when you were a young girl. What did stop you from doing that?
Nothing ever stopped me from becoming an astronaut, I can still do it. I still dream of going to space, but for now I choose to be an Indoor Skydiver and fly.
How did you get into Indoor Skydiving?
I started 10 years ago when a wind tunnel opened in my hometown. I flew a little here and there for a few years before I started participating in a junior 4-way Freestyle girls’ team. Later I switched to Solo Freestyle and started competing in that discipline. I have also competed in Dynamic 2-way and I have trained on a Dynamic 4-way team. In the last years I became a coach to teach others how to fly. I love to fly and improve my skills, to teach others, and that is what keeps me in the sport.
Do you have a role model?
I am inspired by many different people, so I do not think I have a specific role model. I feel very lucky to have been influenced by so many strong and smart women over the years, who have made me who I am today and who I want to become. My family, friends, mentors, students, and new people I meet all inspire me in some way with their different qualities, views and opinions, energy and passions.
Which is your favorite discipline?
Freestyle is my favorite discipline because of its creative aspects and how it really pushes you to step out of your comfort zone. When flying an artistic discipline, especially solo, it makes you work on your weaknesses. The possibilities of what you can do are limited only by yourself. In Freestyle, you can really create anything, and that is what makes it so interesting.
What does excite you most about Freestyle? What are the biggest challenges?
What appeals to me about Freestyle is that you can create so many things. I love the artistic side of sport, where it turns into art, as well as how deep you can go into the details of your technique. Freestyle is a very flowy and energetic way of flying that challenges every single “rule” and makes you think outside the box.
The biggest challenge with Freestyle, in my opinion, is, that many Freestylers fly and train primarily alone. If this applies to you, I recommend teaming up with fellow flyers, friends, family members or coaches to help you. Over the past few years, I have worked with my partner a lot during training and competitions. Although he does not coach me, his outside perspective and understanding of body movement helps me improve many details, big and small, in my flying.
You’ve trained with some great skydivers. For example, who with?
I have been lucky to learn from many great flyers like David Reader, Inka Cagnasso, Rafael Schwaiger, Fabien Ramseyer, Martin Dedek, Martin Kristensen, Rune Aspvik, Marius Sotberg, Ignacio Martinez. I also learn a lot when I fly and spend time with my friends and fellow competitors like Maja Kuczynska, Kathya Toussaint, Laurie Lubbe, Max Martin and Mathieu Carduso.
At Tunnel Camps, you also work as an instructor. What do you like about that job?
I love meeting so many different, inspiring flyers from around the world and teaching them what I know. Teaching expands my understanding of what I do and how to teach it to others. Everyone flies differently and learns differently, but anyone can learn to fly if they are taught right. When I can boost people’s confidence and enable them to do something they could not do before or struggled to learn, that is very rewarding.
You have already successfully participated in numerous championships. What were your best placements or what are you most proud of?
It is easy to say that I am most proud of the best placements I have achieved in competition, like becoming the first European Champion or being ranked third in the world, because those are great achievements. But I would also say that I am very proud of the competitions where I did not achieve the placement I wanted, but still did my best. I think it is in those moments when we are challenged like that and know that we will not reach our set goals that we can grow the most.
What are your goals for the future in flying?
My goals in flying are many, they are constantly changing, coming along and evolving. Currently, I am training for the World Championships next year and I am ready to compete for the gold medal.
I want to continue to give back to this sport that has given me so much, and teaching is currently my way to do that. It is where I can support the current and next generation of flyers.
One of my biggest goals is to combine art and Indoor Skydiving by creating more projects and collaborations. Flying has so much potential and there are so many things that can be created with Indoor Skydiving if the resources and creativity are there.
How many wind tunnels in how many countries have you flown in?
I think I have flown in about 25 different wind tunnels in numerous countries.
Most Indoor Skydivers are also Skydivers. How about you?
I come from a generation of flyers who started flying in the tunnel rather than in the air, which was not common until a few years ago. I just started skydiving this summer and currently have 25 jumps. Although flying in the tunnel has a lot of similarities to skydiving, I find that the two are quite different. The wind tunnel teaches you to control your body, but it does not prepare you for the other aspects of skydiving, such as canopy flying, altitude awareness, awareness of how you move in the sky, and weather conditions. I think it is super important that people coming from the tunnel to the sky really understand this in order to be the safest skydivers they can be.
You participated in a commercial trailer for the Audi RS3. What was it like to be involved in this project?
I think this commercial was one of my favorite projects so far. The crew was amazing and we worked really well together, which made it a very nice experience. I also love the way the commercial turned out in the end and how well the flying fits the movement of the car. We filmed in different ways, both from the outside with the camera crew and from the inside, where a camera plane followed me. Since the tunnel was 17 ft wide, we had a lot of space to play with, which made filming easier. I love when you can use flying in different ways for different purposes, like in this commercial.
Where do you see the sport of Indoor Skydiving in 10 years?
I hope to see a sport with an open and inclusive community with a lot of diversity. I hope we will have a working scoring system for competitions and a development of new disciplines. I am very intrigued to see at what level we will have brought our aerial arts to in 10 years.
Last but not least: How did your connection with Windwerk come about?
I started coaching here a few years ago and I love so many things about this place. The tunnel itself, the crew here, its flying community and the beautiful nature in Switzerland. There is a lot of good energy and nice vibes, which makes it such a nice place to be, fly and work. I really appreciate this place and its people.
– Amalie Hegland Lauritzen (Follow Amalie on Instagram or Facebook to stay updated!)
