The iconic moments on the ice, will always be a part of Rachael Flatt's story and the Cheyenne Mountain graduate has the battle scars to prove it.
"My body is definitely happy to be done with all of the training, everything creaks and pops these days," Flatt said.
More than five years after she retired from competitive figure skating, the U.S. Champion and 2010 Olympian is now building up a different part of the body: Her Brain.
"I'm learning something new every day and definitely getting challenged quite a bit, but it wouldn't be as fun if it wasn't challenging," Flatt said.
In the time since the 27-year old called it a career, she has earned a bachelor's degree from Stanford University and his currently working on her clinical psychology PhD at the University of North Carolina.
"I found out I was more interested in mental health then building resources out, to address the needs of very specific populations and specifically athletes,"
Last week, Flatt was able to put both chapters of her life into a new venture as a member of Team USA's Mental Health Task Force as announced by the USOPC.
"I knew this was an opportunity I had to jump on because I can contribute not only as an athlete with those experiences and perspective, but also as a budding researcher and clinician, meshing those two skill-sets together," Flatt said.
She's jumping right into the routine of helping fellow Olympians, many currently dealing with the disappointment of the postponed 2020 Tokyo Games.
"For a lot of athletes, this is truly the pinnacle of their career, can't imagine what these athletes are going through, the staff, etc.," Flatt said. "Just a huge emotional toll, lots to adjust to, hope we can provide as much support to them as we can."
While her skating days might be over, Rachael Flatt is proving you can always find a new way to be on the cutting edge and make your country proud in the process.
"I think if this happened 10-years ago we wouldn't even be having this conversation about mental health," Flatt said. "Which for me, I'm thrilled we're able to do this now but at the same time we still have a huge way to go."
