Olympian Ducarroz a champion for mental health

After hibernating at her training grounds in North Carolina during the lockdown of the pandemic, Nikita Ducarroz emerged ready to take on the world, earning a bronze medal at the Olympic games this past summer.

But if the story of the Sonoma Valley native focused only on her ascendance to the No. 1 ranked women’s BMX freestyle biker in the world after performance at the Olympics and her gold medal performance at the European Championships earlier this month -- it would only be telling half her story.

“When I was younger, when I thought about the Olympics, it was such a huge thing,” Ducarroz said. “But then when I was in that position myself, it kind of felt like I was going to another event and another competition.”

Because at every competition, whether a small contest or the world stage, there’s something she’s scared to do, she said.

Is there any comfort, really, in releasing one’s hands from the handlebars of a bike 8 feet above the ground? Or back flipping through the air for two seconds with nothing but air between one’s body and the concrete below?

“I just love it so much that it's worth it. It's worth all the panic,” Ducarroz said. “Because if I didn't like doing it, there's no way I would put myself through all of this just to ride bikes.”

Her affectatious smile, mossy green eyes and cascade of brunette hair are often covered by a RedBull helmet, beanie or perforated trucker hat. Rarely, does a day go by where she doesn’t train.

Her drive to compete has helped her overcome what are sometimes debilitating panic attacks. The Sonoma Valley native has been outspoken about her mental health struggles with anxiety and depression since her debut.

In November 2020, she experienced the worst panic attack of her life, she wrote on her mental health-focused Instagram page @m1ndtricks. For eight hours during the middle of the night, she was in an unshakable state of fear and felt unable to breathe. Her mother traveled to see her in North Carolina, spending five weeks helping her recover her mental fortitude and prepare for the upcoming games.

It’s an experience that is rarely shared publicly among athletes. And while she’s been outspoken about her experiences with anxiety, many other athletes have kept their own mental health issues closeted.

But things changed at the Olympics this summer, the pinnacle of competition for athletes from across the world who work their whole lives to get a chance at being the best in the world. Simone Biles, the most decorated gymnast in history, exited competition when the mental stress caused her to get the “twisties” and nearly injure herself in the process.

Though half of Ducarroz’s story of the Olympics was earning a bronze medal in women’s BMX freestyle cycling, the other half was uplifting the issue she champions: mental health. And reporters interested in finding other advocates of mental health in the Olympic village began to go to Ducarroz.

“Whenever I would get interviewed, people were asking about (mental health),” Ducarroz said. “And so they kind of allowed me to speak more on the subject.”

And then, less than three weeks later, it was over.

Ducarroz recalled a post going around about how, no matter the success of the athlete, the end of the games made them feel “flat.” Many had worked their whole lives to be on this international stage, and now they had to return to their homes and go back to their normal lives.

In an Instagram post celebrating her victory on the world stage, she wrote, “It’s been a long week of pure stoke, excitement, and a bit of exhaustion as I take in what just happened. That’s what people see. The success. The glory. The reward.”

But what the public didn’t see was the stress that preceded it or the mental wear and tear that comes with being in the spotlight of an international competition. But the mental health story lines of the games allowed the superhuman-like athletes to show the world their vulnerabilities, too.

“It was just cool to see how many more people felt safe to to open up about that kind of stuff,” Ducarroz said. “And maybe get help that they didn't think they could get before because of that.”

She hopes that she can be a model for people struggling with anxiety; that her struggles can show what can be overcome; that her story isn’t just about her mid-air acrobatics at the skate park, but also about the obstacles inside her head.

She’s come a long way from the child too scared to leave her house. After winning gold at the European Championships this past month, Ducarroz rose to No. 1 in the world for women’s BMX freestyle cycling.

“I definitely wonder sometimes how I ended up doing such a stressful sport,” Ducarroz said.

Contact Chase Hunter at chase.hunter@sonomanews.com and follow @Chase_HunterB on Twitter.