How Different Paths Led Maddie Mullin and Brooke Ailey to One Team

When Madison Mullin first stepped into a pair of cross-country skis, she was not thinking about World Cups or the Paralympics. 

“I was just looking for a sport to be a part of,” she says. “A sport that I didn’t have to rely on someone else for all the time, and a place where I could still be myself.” 

She was ten years old when she first tried cross-country skiing at a Cross-Country Ski Ontario event in Toronto.  

“I always thought of cross-country as a very recreational sport” she says. “Like something your grandparents would do. I didn’t really think there was a high-performance side to it.” 

At first, it wasn’t immediate love. “I really liked that fact I could go skiing by myself unlike other sports like alpine skiing where I really needed someone to guide me, so I didn’t get hurt. It took me a while to truly find my love for it.”  

Spending more time on skis and seeing gradual improvements eventually led Maddie to her motivation for skiing. 

“I liked that it was based on your time,” Madison says. “You can always improve. There’s always a way to get better.” 

It took years before she saw what that improvement could become. Her first Para Cross-Country World Cup start came in Finland at just 17. Last season marked her debut World Cup season and changed how she saw her future in the sport. 

“I remember being there and thinking, I can’t believe I am actually here,” she says. “That was when it really clicked that I could take this a lot further, and have this sport become a career instead of just an activity that I love doing.”  

Brooke Ailey’s relationship with skiing began much earlier, shaped by family, community, and routine. Growing up in Thunder Bay, she spent her winters at Lappe Nordic, coached by her parents and surrounded by people who loved the sport. 

“It’s always just been part of my life,” Brooke says. “My whole family skis. That community really built my love for it.” 

As she got older, balance became more important. Brooke chose the university route at Nipissing, determined to pursue both skiing and academics. 

“School was really important to me,” she says. “I wanted something outside of skiing and I needed that balance for my mental health.” 

The opportunity to guide Madison came through Nordiq Canada’s Para Nordic Development coach Leslie Bode, at a moment when Brooke was focused on her own racing goals and working toward FISU World University Games selection. 

“I really wanted to guide,” Brooke says. “But I didn’t know if I was going to make FISU and that felt like a big gamble.” 

After qualifying and competing for Canada at the FISU Games in 2025, Brooke made the leap into the world of Para nordic guiding.  

Though they had both grown up skiing and racing in Ontario, neither athlete had really known the other. They had crossed paths for years without ever meeting, but once they began working together, the fit was immediate. 

For Madison, skiing fast is not the most important thing she looks for when selecting a guide.  

“I don’t only focus on the skiing aspect,” she says. “I focus on personality. Being able to get along with someone for a long period of time and being able to communicate.” 

That communication, she says, has to be constant. 

“You spend so much time together training, racing, living together,” Madison says. “If you don’t communicate, things can get really stressful, especially on race days.” 

Brooke agrees. 

“We just say what’s on our mind,” she says. “If something didn’t go well, we talk about it. If something went awesome, we talk about that too.” 

Neither sees the relationship as hierarchical. 

“This is not a you work for me situation,” Madison says. “It’s a partnership.” 

That partnership means supporting each other beyond competition. 

“I don’t want someone to feel like they only matter when I need help,” Madison says. “Brooke has her own goals, and that matters.” 

Guiding has also deepened Brooke’s appreciation for the mental side of sport. Currently completing her undergraduate degree in physical health and education, she plans to pursue a master’s in kinesiology with a focus on sport psychology and para sport transitions. 

“There are so many unique dynamics in para sport,” Brooke says. “Changes in classification, injuries, disability changes. There are a lot of transitions, and we do not talk about them enough.” 

Those transitions resonate deeply with Brooke because of her own experiences in sport. As a young athlete, skiing was not always a positive space. 

“For a long time, sport was really hard for me mentally,” she says. “I was incredibly focused on performance and how I looked, and it turned into something that was really unhealthy.” 

Working through those struggles reshaped her relationship with skiing and with herself. 

“Coming out of that, I learned how important mental health is in sport,” Brooke says. “Now skiing is actually one of the biggest things that helps me manage my anxiety and feel grounded.” 

That perspective carries directly into the way she approaches guiding. 

“I think it helps me be a better guide,” she says. “I understand that what happens on snow is never just about skiing. There’s always more going on, and being able to see that and talk about it matters.” 

For Madison, that awareness has been meaningful. 

“Knowing that Brooke has been through her own things makes a huge difference,” Madison says. “I never feel judged, and I never feel like something I am feeling is silly or wrong.” 

This season, the partnership opened in front of a home crowd at the Para Cross Country World Cup in Canmore, Alberta. 

“Racing at home was pretty special,” Madison says. “Having people there who support you, who believe in you, it means a lot.” 

The results followed. Madison and Brooke finished second in three consecutive World Cup races to start the season.

“It definitely gave us confidence,” Brooke says. “It made us feel like we are doing something right.” 

For Madison, skiing has become something she chooses, rather than something she feels pushed to do. 

“It is my happy place now,” she says. “I really look forward to it, and I really love wearing the maple leaf.” 

Pulling on the Canada racing suit has only deepened that sense of belonging. 

“When you put on the maple leaf, it really means something,” she says. “You realize how lucky you are to be part of this group and to represent so many people.” 

For Madison, racing internationally is about more than results. It is about visibility for the athletes who are still standing on the sidelines, unsure if sport has space for them. 

“I think about the girl who wants to try something but is nervous,” Madison says. “The one who does not know if she belongs or if there is a place for her. That was me.” 

She hopes seeing Para athletes racing on the world stage can shift what feels possible. 

“If someone sees this and thinks maybe I could try, or maybe I can find a place where I feel accepted and supported, then that matters,” she says. “That is who I race for.” 

Brooke understands that responsibility from a different angle. 

“It is such an honour,” she says. “Not just to represent Canada, but to help make sure Madison is seen and supported out there.” 

For Brooke, being part of the partnership means standing beside someone whose presence can change how others see themselves. 

“Being able to do this together and to help Madison represent Canada means a lot,” she says. “If people can see this partnership and realize that sport can look different and still be powerful, that is really important.” 

Together, they race not just for podiums, but for the communities watching from home, for the athletes still searching for where they fit, and for the belief that sport can become a place of confidence, acceptance, and possibility.