Interview: Of mountains and skis

INTERVIEW Air Iceland Connect

Theodora Mathiesen, manager of the schedule and revenue department at Air Iceland Connect.

The mountains give you energy

Theodora Mathiesen, manager of the schedule and revenue department at Air Iceland Connect, has been skiing since she was five. She competed for Iceland at the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, in 1998, and became Icelandic champion in slalom the following year. Skiing is Theodora and her family’s biggest hobby, and they go backcountry skiing in the Westfjords as often as they can.

TEXT: Svava Jonsdottir PHOTO: Arni Saeberg

When did you start working for Air Iceland Connect?

I started working for Air Iceland Connect in 2000 as a flight attendant while I was studying eco- nomics at the University of Iceland. I then spent five years making crew schedules and was appointed to my current position in 2012.

What is your current position?

I’m the manager of the schedule and revenue department. We’re responsible for uploading the flight schedules to our networks and making sure that all airfares and tariffs are correct. We have different airfares and terms to suit the needs of different passengers. For example, we offer lower airfares for those who are organised and book a long time ahead. We also offer special packages for frequent flyers.

We have new destinations now − flights between Keflavik and Akur- eyri and to Belfast and Aberdeen – so that the extent and diversity of my work has increased. We have more sales channels than before and are distributing through GDS systems now; we used to only sell flights on our website and over the phone until a few years ago.

You’re a passionate skier. Tell us about your career.

I’ve skied as long as I can remember. Everyone in my family are skiers and I started training in the sport at five, competing at the Donald Duck Games at Akureyri when I was six. It’s just so much fun. I trained with KR ski club for many years, and at 17 I went to a ski high school in Norway. While studying in Norway, I was competing a lot in Scandinavia and elsewhere in Europe.

Upon graduation, I made it to the Icelandic national ski team and received a grant to study at a university in the US where I competed with the school team for one winter. At that time, I was at the peak of my career and reached the minimum requirements for competing at the Olympics. I moved back to Norway and then to Austria for half a winter, practising and competing to prepare myself for the games the best I could.

I competed at the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, in 1998. It didn’t go very well, because failed to finish in giant slalom and straddled a gate in slalom. It was a huge disappointment because competing at the Olympics had been my goal for a long time. The following year, I became Icelandic champion in women’s slalom and qualified for the World Championship in the US – where the same things happened as in Japan. I quit professional skiing at the end of 1999.

How do you go skiing these days?

My whole family is involved. I met my partner, Arnor Gunnarsson, through skiing – he stopped competing some time before I did. He’s a carpenter but also a ski coach for kids and is currently [autumn 2017] with our two sons, who are 9 and 11, training on a glacier in Austria.

We go skiing at Blafjoll or Skalafell [the Reykjavik ski resorts] most weekdays and on weekends when it’s open. Nothing beats coming home after a day like that. You feel so comfortably tired after spending time outside and it feels good coming home and relaxing.

Do you also ski off-piste?

Arnor is from Isafjordur [in the Westfjords] and we have a small old house in the town. We try to go there as often as we can. There’s no better place for re-energising, changing the pace and being embraced by the mountains. They give you energy. We spend most summer holidays there, and during most Easter and New Year’s breaks we go skiing in Isafjordur. We do hiking and backcountry skiing in the Westfjords and just enjoy being outside in nature.

We also go on skiing trips abroad, mostly Austria, but also Norway, Italy and the US. The slopes are longer and wider than in Iceland. Skiing has always been a part of my life and will hopefully continue to be for years to come because it’s a fantastic family sport where everyone can have fun on his or her own terms.