PILOTING a Hawk jet upside down through a valley at 700mph requires a certain kind of nerve, but it is Flight Officer Roger Cruickshank’s refusal to abandon his Olympic dream after an horrific skiing accident in Germany in March that truly sets him apart.

“Basically, my thigh went into my shin,” Cruickshank, who is on the verge of being selected for the Great Britain downhill skiing team for the Winter Games in Turin, said. “It was an international giant slalom race and as I was trying to hold a big angle, I slipped into a bank of fresh snow.

“My left leg stopped, bent backwards and twisted, while the rest of me carried on. A couple of cartwheels later, I wasn’t sure if I was going to pass out or be sick.”

Doctors told Cruickshank, 23, that he may never walk properly again, let alone return to competitive skiing. Andy Williams, a fellow Scot, performed the operation in London and it involved inserting nine pins and a plate into the broken leg. “I remember dreamily coming to for him to tell me that it was a lot of metalwork, but that he’d done a damn good job,” Cruickshank added.

The ironmongery has done its work and the iron will behind the skier from Banchory, Aberdeen, is evident from his words. “I guess I’m one of those people who thinks it’s never over until it’s over,” he said.

That he finished second in the Slovenian National Championships on December 23 ought not to have raised too many eyebrows, then, even if his doctors have described his comeback as “a miracle”.

Even sweeter than a return to the podium in a leading championship, the result qualified Cruickshank for the Winter Olympics. “It’s a bit of a wishy-washy subject,” he said, “but essentially I had reached the qualification standard before my accident. I just had to prove my form this season and, by anybody’s criteria, that result definitely does that.”

He races again today in a Europa Cup competition in Austria, not far from where the Britain squad have their training base in Lofer. “The team for Turin isn’t named until the end of January,” Cruickshank said, “so we’ve got a lot of racing in the next month.”

Which is good news for the Royal Air Force, which has supported its trainee pilot in his Olympic quest since he graduated as the youngest ever officer in 2001. “They have been fantastic,” Cruickshank said. “I’ve been granted a sabbatical to try to reach the Games and now that I’m skiing really fast again, everyone is happy.”

The sport is like oxygen for Cruickshank. “There’s been something going on there since I was 2 years old,” he said. “My Dad was a keen skier and he says he used to take me down the slopes in a backpack. Apparently, I used to scream with delight over his shoulder.”

His first solo flight in a jet generated similar results. “Oh, it’s just an amazing feeling,” he said. “It’s like being in a computer game; that’s the only thing I can liken it to. Everything rushes at you so fast and when I’m skiing downhill at around 100mph, I feel a similar adrenalin surge. You’ve got to be ready and prepared for what could happen, what will happen, and it heightens all your senses.”

The physical consequence of his crash, though, has sharpened Cruickshank’s overall perspective. If he is selected to compete in Turin. as seems likely, his performance will not be pressure-riddled; the taking part really has a deeper meaning. “That’s a good way to look at things,” he said.

“I’m in such a carefree state of mind now because of what I’ve already gone through and what I’ve achieved in the recent races. It means that in the coming months, I’m going to enjoy everything.”

Apart from, that is, the pain that is likely to be an ever-present for the foreseeable future. “Yes, but when I’m racing the adrenalin takes care of that,” he said.

“Also, because I’ve had a knee brace specially designed for me by a company called Technology in Motion, the pain is much less than it was. Basically, the brace stops hyperextension and keeps lateral movement to a minimum.”

It also has a Union Jack painted on it. Cruickshank may have to wear the brace when he resumes active service with the RAF on April 5 — the G forces at 700mph do strange things to flesh and bone — but for now, flying the flag is all about getting down the snowy slopes of Turin at high speed and, of course, in one piece.