World in Beauty - May 2026 (Mathilde Gremaud)

The Mindset of an

by Robyn Tucker-Peck

Sport is one of life’s greatest teachers, requiring courage, humility, and resilience before success. For Swiss Olympic champion Mathilde Gremaud, every jump, fall and victory forms part of a journey that extends far beyond the slopes. As an ambassador for Omega,

High above the snow, suspended for a moment between that feels almost instinctive. In freestyle skiing, there is no separation between body and mind — only timing, courage, and the willingness to commit fully to the unknown.

In sports, everything comes down to a moment — measured not only in motion but also in time. For over a century, Omega has captured those moments while athletes like Gremaud

We spoke with Mathilde about courage, failure and the mindset required to reach the highest level of sport.

WiB – What mental practices or rituals help you stay focused when the pressure is at its highest?

Mathilde – When I started some things, I realized only afterward that I was really good at being in the moment. Then, with sports and doing so many things, I think I lost that. Then, thinking again about my upbringing, I got it back, and that’s something I could build a lot of trust on, like, get that trust back.

There are some tips and tools I use for myself. But to get in that mindset, you think about where you are right now, and you focus on that, and you do one thing after the other. If you of it. And then you put it aside and take the next paper. And that’s how I try to see it, like sometimes the pile gets pretty pretty high, but then I go back to just doing one thing after

Olympic Champion Gremaud:

the other and in sport, it’s the same in how I try to stay in the moment. Sometimes it feels harder, but yes, there are multiple tools I use; mainly, I remember myself and then all the rest kind of clicks afterward.

WiB – Behind every athlete is a support system. Who has been most important in helping you navigate both the

Mathilde – When I’m in the start gate, I try to empty

lot of people around me who are helping me stay focused and keep working. My parents have never been the pushy type; they’ve always been very supportive and have worked hard themselves to give my sister and me good opportunities, whether it’s for school or for sport. They’ve just really been there for me when I was a teenager.

At some point, I was like, “Oh, come on, they’re annoying and stuff, but never in a pushy way, just parents being annoying, I guess.” And at some point, I realized they’re actually really giving me opportunities, so I really owe almost everything in my career to my parents, because without them, I wouldn’t be here. All the people in the

coach to the coach I have now. They’ve always been very caring and supportive as well. Whether it’s a coach or the federation or anything, it’s always been really sane, which

is amazing. Since I started, my coach has been through literally everything with me. I’ve had a change of physical coach twice. I have had the same technical coach for ten

career with him. His name is Greg. He’s really a big, big part of everything, because he has an overview. He knows everything that’s going on in my life. If I miss 1 day of training, which I’ll then make up with another day, he will know why. Because I might have somewhere to be, we will make sure I get that day back whenever it’s most suitable, for any other reason—all my friends, my girlfriend as well. And yeah, there’s, I mean, just a huge family around me.

WiB – After winning the Olympic medal, what was the very

Mathilde –

my second run, and then on my third run, I was last drop, and I was at the top. And I already knew I had won, so we could celebrate at the top with the staff, which was really cool. And then they obviously had to go down for my last run. I think that was a really quiet moment for me, actually, like, just going down. I was smiling the whole way down, giggling and laughing.

I was like, “Oh my God. This is insane,” and I was just by myself, and I could hear when I was at the start, I could hear like the people at the bottom cheering already, because my whole family was there. And a lot of people

from the hometown ski club were there as well. So I was just, like, super super hyped, and I could hear them, but I

myself and fully enjoying the moment. Before the craziness of it all, crazy from that moment to going to bed, it was just pretty crazy the whole time. So it was not that quiet. But I

like right when it happened, which was pretty cool.

or something they learn to live with? What do you say to yourself when you feel fear?

Mathilde – Fear is a big one. I think when I was younger, I didn’t really have it. That’s why I started doing what I’m doing. With my own experience of losing a bit of my innocence, I realized fear is a thing, and I quickly realized I have to learn to deal with it. How I deal with it now – I mainly accept that it’s here, and it’s here every day, and I accept that it’s here every day I’m on my skis. Sometimes it’s small,

days, I feel like I’ve never been that scared, so I have to deal with it. I approach it by trying to accept it, then seeing which areas it’s affected and which don’t really impact me. And then I try to go in that direction, where the fear doesn’t impact me. For me, it also reminds me of the importance of what I’m doing. If I weren’t scared, it probably wouldn’t be really fun, because then what’s the reward for doing something? If you’re not scared, and you still go for it, then when you achieve it, or when you achieve your goal?

Then you’re actually seeing even more reward, so I think I like to feel a bit of fear because it pushes me to focus and be okay. One of my fears is maybe getting hurt. So I will do everything I can to avoid getting hurt, and maybe I’m scared of failing. I’ll do everything I can to avoid failing, because that’s not what I want. And it’s scary to think about failure. It pushes me to do my best. If something doesn’t feel scary, it’s probably not that important, so I can easily do it without fear. It’s also a good feeling not to be scared, like I’m not scared 100% of the time. But when I am, I really try to see why I’m scared and what I can do with it. I think it just pushes me to work harder. I think, in terms of fear when I’m skiing, there is good fear and bad fear. There is. I think I got pretty good at realizing, with bad experiences as well, what some of the fear I feel means. Let’s pause and pull the bridge, or maybe today isn’t the right day to do this trick or learn this new one. Then there is the good fear, the kind that, yeah, pushes you to be better and to focus 100%. So you can achieve what you want. So there is a bit of a

difference, I think, in the fear that you feel. For me, I really call it the good and the bad fear. If you’re able to control it, then you know, it is really big.

There are cliché motivational speeches that say the people who succeed are the ones who aren’t scared of failing. And that’s also part of how you can control your fear, which grow, then you’re able to control your fear, because it’s something you need to learn, like everything else. I don’t think many people know how to control fear like that. You need to want it and work on it. Otherwise, like everything, nothing falls from the sky.

WiB – In sport, failure is unavoidable. Can you remember a moment when a setback or fall taught you something that ultimately made you a better athlete?

Mathilde – I think it was 10 years ago. I was competing at the Youth Olympic Games. I was one of the only girls. I was in the junior program, so I went to the Youth Olympic Games and was kind of like, “Cool.” This sport does not make the team and stuff like that.” And I felt like I wasn’t I did not perform the way I thought I would at all. I got sixth place, which is not bad. I could have done better and potentially won the event, but I didn’t.

That’s when I learned that you don’t take anything for granted. You still have to do every single step. Otherwise, you trip. And so you can’t skip anything. And then I realized how important skiing was to me, and it was also one of my experience in competing, and I really just messed it up. I didn’t meet my expectations at all. So I think that taught me a good lesson. I’m never gonna think that I can do it before I do it. I have to believe I can do it, but I can’t just go there and be like, “for sure, it’s happening.” I think it was a good, healthy to learn, and I need to be ready for that.

WiB – What are your passions outside of sport?

Mathilde – I really like to solve little games like brain games and Rubik’s cube, puzzles, sudoku, stuff like that. It’s not a passion, but it is a hobby I have outside of sport. I don’t have another big thing as time-consuming as sport because it’s all I do all the time. If I am not able to play sports myself due to an injury or something, I love attending sports events, concerts and other social events with my friends.

WiB – As Omega’s ambassador, what does the brand mean to you personally beyond the watches themselves?

Mathilde – In terms of the sport that Omega supports, luckily for me, my sport is Olympic, so that played a big role in our partnership. It started with the last Olympics and was supposed to be a one-shot, but it turned into a longer partnership. I’m not the main sports focus, but we do need to be super, super precise in my sport, and that’s what Omega is always communicating, and that’s what they are known for. And measuring every event at the Summer and

they’re really good at. Precision is my thing as well; that’s something that needs to be honed in my sport. So there’s their technology and the whole moon story we all know.

In my sport, there are many pioneering possibilities, especially on the women’s side, with many things that haven’t been done on snow, and I’ve been doing some

is something we both stand strong on. Precision and the brand’s pioneering spirit are what link me most to it.

WiB – Which Omega watch is your favorite and why? Is it about design, functionality, or the story behind it?

Mathilde – I think it’s the Moonwatch, the Speedmaster, like the very classic one. I think it has 2 of my favorites.

And it’s also the watch I wear the most. This is my favorite, but it goes with everything and works for daily life.

The Speedmaster Moonwatch is one of the world’s landings, symbolizing the brand’s adventurous spirit. The watch features a 42 mm stainless steel case with a

It has hesalite crystal on the front and an embossed Seahorse medallion on the back. Inspired by the 4thgeneration Speedmaster worn on the Moon, it features an asymmetrical case, a black stepped dial, and the recognizable dot over 90 on the anodized aluminum bezel.

an Omega watch?

Mathilde – What impression did it leave? The funny story is that I had a short phase in my teenage years when I wanted to become a watchmaker before I really got into skiing and had to think about what job I could do. It seemed hard to get into, so I dropped it. It also required being away from home (as if that is not what I am doing now), but that’s when I started looking into watches and learned about the Moonwatch. So, years later, when I was introduced to the

remember trying to act cool, but internally I was very stoked. I had never seen one before. I mean, probably on someone’s wrist, but I was not a good watch spotter back then.

Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra Tokyo, Japan Olympics 2020 Limited Edition 2020

was a tribute to the Olympic

Omega Speedmaster Chronoscope 43 mm model was a tribute to the Olympic Games, Paris, France, 2024

Omega

Planet Ocean Limited Edition – PyeongChang, South Korea, Olympics 2018

2016

Omega Speedmaster

Mark II Olympics Rio, Brazil 2016

Omega Seamaster 1948 CoAxial Limited Edition, London, England, Olympics 2012

Omega Seamaster XXIX Limited Edition Beijing Olympics 2008 2008

Omega Seamaster Diver 300m “Vancouver 2010” Limited Edition