Budget supermarket chain Aldi has offered one of its -19C freezers to help Olympic snowboarder Katie Ormerod acclimatise ahead of next month’s Beijing Winter Olympics.
Medal hopeful Katie, 24, completed a number of stretch and cardio exercises among Aldi’s frozen goods.
Katie, from Brighouse, Yorkshire, was forced to withdraw from the 2018 winter games during the practice rounds, due to a horrific injury which caused her heel bone to split in two. Since then, the 24-year-old has become the first British athlete to win a World Cup snowboard title.
She said: “It’s not easy to find the right training conditions in the UK for a snowboarder, so when Aldi approached me and offered an alternative space to train in, I was intrigued.
“I can’t say that I’ve ever trained in a freezer before so it was a first but who knows I may do it again - it was certainly a lot of fun. After recovering from my injury in 2018, I’m feeling stronger than ever and ready to compete for Team GB.”
Coach Hamish Knight added: “The body reacts very differently in cold weather conditions.
"Training in lower temperatures increases our blood flow and circulation, we burn more calories because we use more energy to heat up the body’s core, breathing in colder air works to improve our cardiovascular system and the body’s immune system is tested against the cold and therefore has to improve itself.
“Training in the right environment is vital for Katie’s progression and it’s great that Aldi was able to help.”
Julie Ashfield, managing director of buying at Aldi, responded: “Over the past seven years, we’ve proudly supported Team GB athletes throughout their journey, including providing food vouchers to help keep them fuelled.
We’re pleased to help Team GB in any way we can and were delighted to offer our freezer as a training facility to help Katie acclimatise to the right conditions.”
Since becoming Team GB’s sponsor in 2015, Aldi has supported over 720 athletes with 221 winning Olympic medals. The supermarket also helps the Team GB Nearest and Dearest programme, which supports athletes’ friends and families during games.
For more stories from where you live, visit InYourArea.
