The British siblings hoping to put mogul skiing on the map

When Makayla 'Kayla' Gerken Schofield wanted to practice her first tattoo having learned the art from her girlfriend, there was only one place to turn – her older sister, Leonie. The fact that Leonie let her sibling use her as a guinea pig shows an inordinate amount of trust between the pair, something borne from their intertwined lives as mogul skiers for Great Britain.

And yet there’s more; brother Tom, twins with Leonie, is also part of the family dynamic who tried to make it to Beijing 2022 before ultimately falling short after his progress was stalled last year when he suffered a concussion. Will Feneley has been selected for the men's moguls event for Team GB.

Tom is the first British mogul skier to medal in a World Cup event, and yes, his sisters were there to see their brother’s success, and yes, there were tears. But for now, back to the tattoo bit.

“I have been learning how to tattoo thanks to my girlfriend who sort of got me into it,” says Kayla. “I've always loved art and anything to do with art, and I have given Leonie a couple of tattoos. I gave her a first-ever tattoo, which was quite nerve-wracking for me.”

The tattoo was of flowers around Leonie’s ankle, says Kayla, laughing when Leonie chimes in to say that her younger sibling didn’t tell her until afterwards that the bony ankle joint is one of the most painful places to have a tattoo done. Undeterred Leonie went for a second one, a tattoo on her arm, which relates to the three siblings.

“It's on my forearm,” says Leonie. “It's a tiger, a monkey and a lioness. So Kayla’s the monkey, Tom the tiger and Leo the lion… I think Kayla's a bit of the crazy one, let's just put it that way… and doesn't Leonie stand for lion? I think there's something to do with that and I think it's just a strong character… And Tom, I guess a tiger is really strong and fierce, and that's who Tom is.”

Family dynamic

The trio, who were born in Essex in the UK but who have lived in Chatel in France from a young age, have competed together their whole lives. Kayla and Leonie will need that sibling camaraderie and support even more after being devastated to leave their brother behind as they head to the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, which officially start 4 February. The women's moguls qualification runs begin the day before the opening ceremony on Thursday 3 February.

All three get on really well but there’s no surprise that Leonie and Tom also appear to have the otherworldly connection often talked about between twins.

“When I broke my collarbone in Kazakhstan or when I'm injured, Tom can feel my pain and he's as upset as I am. And I also know, without Tom telling me, I know when Tom doesn't feel okay or is having a bad day. I just know it.”

Kayla agrees her siblings have a special connection but doesn’t feel the odd one out.

“Oh, definitely, I notice it... (but) we've always, always been so close… so I don't really feel left out. I know we all love each other equally.”

None of the trio have been to an Olympic Winter Games before and were hoping to make their first one together.

The best result so far between the three of them is Tom’s thrilling World Cup silver at Krasnoyark, Russia in 2020, only just losing out to Canada’s moguls legend Mikael Kingsbury. Tom’s siblings, competing at the same event, were both at the bottom of the course to see his history-making moment, presuming they could see through their tears that is.

“It was like minus 18,” says Leonie, “but I didn't feel the cold, I was so hyped and the adrenaline was so crazy. I just remember me and Kayla screaming with everything we could – we had no throats the next day. I just remember Kayla started having some tears and then I did and we cuddled and it was just such a great day.”

“When I saw him just standing, waiting to get on the podium, I just cried my eyes out,” says Kayla.

Social media pains

The trio have a social media hashtag – #TeamGS – that cements their siblings-on-snow novelty but Leonie and Kayla find it hard to juggle the demands of the platforms that also equate to financial recompense.

“I find it very hard to promote myself on social media,” says Leonie, “but I think as long as it doesn't distract me from my training… then, it's a good way to show people that are following me what I do for a living, and what mogul skiing is, because I know a lot of people don’t know what it actually is.”

For the uninitiated, mogul skiing is a run of bumps and jumps down a course generally between 650 and 885 feet long (198m-270m) with an average slope grade of 26 degrees. Skiers perform tricks on two big jumps, one at the beginning of the course, one at the end, and in between must navigate around 40 bone-shuddering bumps. The score, given by a panel of judges, is based on speed and quality and technicality of jumps.

“Nowadays you can't really get anywhere without social media,” says Kayla. “Sponsors… now ask for a certain amount of followers on your social media, so you have to constantly be posting about your sport or what you do to be able to get those followers and then get the sponsors due to your followers, which I find really frustrating because at the end of the day, it's more about your results in the sport than your social media.”

Both feel frustration in those who do so little in order for their post to gain traction when these two skilled athletes have to battle for their space.

“Athletes work so, so hard and it's so hard to bring your following up,” says Leonie. “And then, when you see someone that's just, I don't know, done this random video or something and it's gone viral and they are suddenly famous and earning fortunes, I can't tell you how frustrating it is.”

So the trio try to make social media work for them by finding the right balance between showcasing their sport and keeping themselves healthy, but it’s tricky to navigate.

“(Social media) can be pretty overwhelming sometimes,” says Leonie. “I know both of us, and Tom, allow ourselves to take a break even if it's for a week or a couple of days… or even if it's a month. Probably we'll lose followers but at the end of the day, mental health comes first and if I don't feel okay about posting or going on social media, then I won't.”

Kayla agrees. “I find it very important to allow yourself a break once in a while because it's just so important and we don't realise how draining it can be and just be able to switch off because social media is also very fake in a way.”

Keeping it real

Fake content is not what you’ll find from the siblings, who use their platforms in order to help others. After Kayla came out she started to use her platform to encourage others to be themselves.

“For me, coming out was more about like a personal thing, it’s being who I am and just feeling the freedom of that... And I sort of put myself out there on social media towards anyone who's actually struggling to come to accept themselves, in a way, and accept their sexuality.

"If they are struggling with that, to know that it is okay to struggle and they're not alone. That is definitely one thing that I do want to put out there is like no one is alone, and if they do need a safe place for someone to talk to, I am that safe place if they do need it.”

Leonie meanwhile, is an advocate of mental wellbeing, having experienced mental health issues during a slew of injuries.

“I've had several injuries, serious injuries, (over) the last six years,” she says, “and each one of them has affected me in different ways.” Yet to compete in a world championships due to those ill-timed injuries, Leonie, who has suffered a broken collarbone, a broken back, and dislocated shoulder, among other things, using social platforms to share her journey helps Leonie with her own mental health management as well as other people.

In her latest recovery from injury, the frustration was compounded because she was in great form. “Everything was going in the right way,” she says, “and for it to be blown away in minutes is so hard. I remember sitting with my shoulder all strapped up and all these questions going through my head about how gutted I was, and then having to fly back a week later with a displaced collarbone and then having to quarantine because of COVID and then surgery.

“I mean, I was really lucky to have an operation in like two weeks… but the month after surgery, I couldn't sleep I was in so much pain. And then also when you're injured, you can't really do much as an athlete, it's so frustrating. You want to get up, you want to go to the gym and be in your routine, and here I was, just sitting on the sofa.

“And then you start asking yourself questions, ‘Am I good enough? What am I doing? I feel useless, worthless. When I see my mom and dad in tears because I am in so much pain and I don't know what to do with myself. It's really hard as well because I can see how it affects my family."

Leonie has worked with the GB sports psychologist since 2019, and says it's unlikely she would still be competing if it wasn't for them.

No doubt the siblings would say the same of each other, too, as they navigate the highs and lows of their Olympic Winter Games journey.

The Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, start 4 February 2022, with the women's mogul skiing the first event up in the freestyle skiing disciplines, which starts the day before the opening ceremony on 3 February. The mogul skiing event finishes, weather permitting, 6 February.