Mia's Story
Fast Facts
Sport: Snowboard
Event: Women's Snowboard Cross
Olympic History: Milano Cortina 2026
Highlights: Winning silver in the team event with Cam Bolton at the 2025 World Champs in St Moritz.
Year Born: 2004
About Mia
Snowboard cross athlete Mia Clift has had an outstanding year leading up to her first Olympic Winter Games. In 2025, she raced to World Cup silver and bronze, as well as World Championship silver in the mixed team event with Cam Bolton. She is ranked eighth in the World Cup standings ahead of Milano Cortina 2026, aged just 21.
Mia was born in 2004 in Melbourne and spent her winters growing up on Mount Buller, where school days often gave way to long hours on snow. She first skied, then, after finishing all the ski school levels, moved to a snowboard at five and “never looked back”. Early interschool races in giant slalom and snowboard cross set the hook, while the pathway carved by Mount Buller greats like Alex “Chumpy” Pullin, Belle Brockhoff and Cameron Bolton showed what was possible.
Her first international steps came at the Australian New Zealand Cup at Mount Hotham in 2019, where she placed sixth, third and second across her opening three events—promising signs for a teenager just finding her feet on the circuit.
At 17, Mia debuted on the World Cup tour at Secret Garden, China, in late 2021, finishing 22nd before placing 26th in Montafon, Austria. The campaign ended abruptly when she sustained a serious knee ligament injury in training at Cervinia, Italy, forcing a lengthy lay‑off until August 2023.
Back at Mount Hotham for the 2023 Australian New Zealand Cup, Mia posted top‑five finishes that rebuilt confidence for a full return to World Cup level. In her first complete World Cup season in 2023–24 she reached the top‑16 finals eight times, made the small final at Mt‑St‑Anne for a then‑career‑best eighth, and finished 19th overall. Her consistency was recognised when the International Ski and Snowboard Federation named her Women’s Snowboard Cross Rookie of the Season.
Momentum carried into 2024–25. Mia warmed up with her first European Cup podium, taking bronze at Pitztal in November 2024. She then produced a composed World Championship debut at St Moritz-Engadin in March 2025, placing ninth in the individual event and with Cameron Bolton racing through the rounds to claim silver in the mixed team final
A week later came a breakthrough World Cup weekend in Mt‑St‑Anne, Canada. On 5 April 2025 she earned her first World Cup medal, taking silver in the big final behind Léa Casta in a photo finish; the next day she returned to the big final and claimed bronze, three consecutive podiums when counted with her World Championship team silver.
By season’s end, Mia had risen to eighth on the 2024–25 World Cup standings, confirmation that her speed, race craft and resilience translate against the world’s best.
Mia raced in the three Australia New Zealand Cup races at Mt Hotham in August 2025, to record one win and two seconds behind Josie both times. In her first World Cup of the pre-Olympic season, at Cervinia (ITA), she was 13th in the individual and ninth in the mixed team event with Cameron. Josie and Adam Lambert were fifth.
She then travelled to China with the Australian team for the double-header World Cups at Dongbeiya. After qualifying eighth, she progressed through the rounds to finish 7th (3rd in the small final). The next day, Mia qualified 10th for the final race of the season, before finishing fourth in the big final. Josie was fifth (first in small final) with the results confirming the depth and young talent of the Australian team ahead of Milano Cortina 2026.
Mia finished the 2025-26 season in eighth place in the World Cup standings, matching her strong season from the previous year.
Away from racing, Mia is part of the national high‑performance set‑up, signing an Athlete Performance Contract with the Olympic Winter Institute of Australia in 2024 and training within the New South Wales Institute of Sport program. When she is not travelling, she enjoys time with family and friends, cooking and following the footy. She is also studying a Bachelor of Business part‑time, a balance that has helped her navigate the demands of a fast‑rising career.
In a discipline where Australia’s depth is now a strength, Mia’s pathway, from Mount Buller winters to World Cup podiums, speaks to both potential and poise. With more major seasons ahead and Milano‑Cortina on the horizon, she has quickly established herself as an athlete capable of contending on the sport’s biggest stages.
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