История американского лыжного спорта и команда США по лыжным видам спорта

The U. S. Ski Team, operating under the auspices of U. S. Ski & Snowboard, develops and supports men's and women's athletes in the sports of alpine skiing, freestyle skiing, cross country, ski jumping, and Nordic combined. Since 1974 the team and association have been headquartered in Park City, Utah. These individuals represent the best athletes in the country for their respective sports and compete as a team at the national, world and Olympic level.

*The first U. S. Ski Team was officially named in 1965 for the 1966 season, however the United States participated in skiing at all Olympic Winter Games and sent various athletes to World Championships prior to the '66 season.

Ski clubs appeared in the United States starting in 1861, in California. Norwegian "snowshoe" downhill races are noted in Sierra and Rocky Mountain mining camps. The Nansen Ski Club of Berlin, New Hampshire, was founded by Norwegian immigrants and named in honor of Norway's legendary Arctic explorer Fridtjof Nansen. It continues to operate. Annual ski jumping tournaments began in Great Lakes mining and timber regions. The Saint Paul Winter Carnival included skiing events starting in 1888.

A regional ski association is formed by the Eau Claire (Dovre), Ishpeming (Norden), Stillwater (Norwegian), Red Wing (Aurora), and Minneapolis clubs, but dissolves after an economic downturn and a couple low snow winters.

The National Ski Association of America, the forerunner of the present day U. S. Ski & Snowboard, was founded on Feb. 21, 1905 in Ishpeming, Michigan. Club President Carl Tellefsen proposed holding a meeting after the 1905 jumping tournament – a national competition – to found a ski association which, among other duties, would oversee jumping tournaments. In 1905, the association was formally organized during a meeting attended by officers from the Ishpeming, Minneapolis, Red Wing, Stillwater and Eau Claire ski clubs. On Feb. 21, 1905, Carl Tellefsen announced the National Ski Association of America with himself as its first president.

In 1910, the International Ski Commission was formed at the first International Ski Congress to develop rules for international ski competitions. On Feb. 2, 1924 in Chamonix, France, while what would come to be recognized as the first Winter Olympic Games were being held, the commission gave way to the International Ski Federation (FIS); 14 member nations were present at the founding; 108 are FIS members today.

The first Winter Olympic Games actually were under the banner of International Sports Week, but were renamed the Winter Olympic Games in 1924 after organizers saw how successful they were (and after Norway, which had opposed "Winter Olympic" events because of concern Norwegians wouldn't dominate, saw it would be a winter power) supported the concept. Only Nordic skiing events were held, including cross country, ski jumping (then the premier ski event everywhere) and Nordic combined. Sixteen nations competed. Anders Haugen, a Norwegian immigrant to the United States, was listed as fourth in ski jumping because of a calculation error. In 1974, as Norwegians prepared to celebrate the 50th anniversary of those first Winter Games, a recalculation in Oslo found Haugen was the real bronze medalist and not Thorleif Haug (1894–1934). A medal presentation was arranged in Oslo, where a frail Haugen received the bronze medal from the daughter of Thorleif Haug, who had been dead since the Thirties. Haugen's medal remains the only jumping medal won by an American in the Olympics or World Championships. Originally, the IOC did not recognize the medal exchange and kept Haug listed as its 1924 bronze medalist for years before recognizing Haugen as the legitimate medal winner.

International competitive skiing was still primarily a European sport in the Twenties. Although the United States participated in the Winter Olympics of 1924, '28 and '32 where there were only Nordic events, there was no U. S. Ski Team.

The championships returned to Mürren, Switzerland, site of the first official alpine championships in 1931. Six men, seven women were on that first U. S. squad at Worlds.

Alpine skiing was introduced to the Olympics with a single event, the combined (one downhill run and two slalom runs). While Nordic remained an all male province, alpine was opened to men and women. Germans took gold and silver in both the men's and women's alpine combined events; Franz Pfnür and Christl Cranz were the new champions; Dick Durrance, who grew up in Florida but spent several years in Germany learning to ski before Adolf Hitler took power, was the runaway best U. S. skier, finishing 10th. For the only time, the FIS authorized a World Championships in addition to the Olympics with alpine championship races held in Innsbruck, Austria.

The Olympics (with Germany and Japan barred from competing) returned after a 12 year hiatus, with American Gretchen Fraser (then of Vancouver, WA, later of Sun Valley, ID) winning the first two U. S. Olympic ski medals – and they came on the same day, Feb. 5; the combined downhill had been run the previous day and when she won the slalom, it gave her second place in the combined calculation. In addition to the combined, which debuted in 1936, alpine added both elements of combined as individual events, meaning alpine was now equal with Nordic, having three events (slalom, downhill and the combined; however, there were no women's Nordic events until 1952). Fraser led U. S. skiers, collecting the first medals by a U. S. skier gold in slalom and silver in combined. The U. S. women's team captain, Dodie Post, broke her ankle in a practice session and was unable to compete. The team also included a talented young teen – Andrea Mead, 15, whose parents owned Pico Peak, near Rutland, VT. Also of note, Gordon Wren (Steamboat Springs, CO) qualified for all four individual ski teams. He eventually competed only in jumping. "I was going ragged, bumping into myself, trying to train, ski alpine, cross country and the rest, so I decided to focus on jumping," he explained. He finished fifth.

Poor snow in the Adirondacks almost forced cancellation of the Nordic events, but, alerted by 1948 Olympic cross country racer Chummy Broomhall that there was more than a foot of snow in his hometown of Rumford, Maine, officials agreed to stage opening ceremonies and the jumping events in Lake Placid, then everyone drove to Rumford for the cross country competitions. At one point, Broomhall helped set the race tracks – no machine setting equipment in those days, so skiers would ski in the tracks – and then went home to change into his racing outfit; traffic at the site meant Broomhall missed his scheduled start time, but officials let him run at the end of the pack. The alpine Worlds, organized by Dick Durrance, then general manager at the fledgling Aspen Ski Area, included slalom, downhill, and the first appearance of giant slalom. American Katy Rodolph of Colorado led the US, finishing fifth in the women's downhill. Aspen was established as an alpine destination as a result of the successful World Championships.

The young Squaw Valley resort near Lake Tahoe in California ushered in a new Olympic era under the direction of Alexander Cushing. No bobsled run was built. In cross country, Squaw Valley introduced the initial machine set tracks; everything had been walked or skied in before Squaw Valley but – with Al Merrill and Chummy Broomhall setting the tone as chief of competition and chief of course, respectively – snow machines were used to help groom Nordic courses for the first time.

The 57 year old National Ski Association got a new name as the U. S. Ski Association. The renamed organization moved from Denver to Colorado Springs, Colorado. Also, the U. S. Ski Education Foundation, designed to "Establish, administer and promote educational programs devoted to the development and training of skiers" and promote ski museums, was founded Oct. 8, 1862 (and chartered June 13, 1964). By enabling donors to receive tax deductions for contributions, it would become the fundraising arm of the U. S. Ski Team, the forerunner of the U. S. Ski and Snowboard Team Foundation.

The Olympics came to Austria for the first time in 1964. U. S. men earned their first medals Feb. 8 as Billy Kidd (Stowe, VT) won silver in slalom and Jimmie Heuga (Tahoe City, CA) took slalom bronze. Jean Saubert (Hillsborough, OR) was a double medalist, tying for silver in giant slalom and collecting bronze in slalom.

In 1965, the USSA took the first steps in the formation of a formal U. S. Ski Team by naming its first head alpine coach. At the annual USSA convention on June 21 in Spokane, Bob Beattie was named the first full time U. S. alpine skiing head coach. "When you think you're going too fast accelerate!" he would goad team members. Chuck Ferries, a 1964 Olympian, was named assistant coach, with primary responsibilities as head coach of the women's alpine team. Ferries took leave from his job with Head Ski Co. to coach, and was named full time women's coach in 1966. No full time Nordic jumping or skiing coaches were yet designated.

National Training Centers were created for both national alpine and Nordic teams. It was opened Oct. 28 in three old, mid mountain, mining buildings at Park City Ski Area (now Park City Mountain Resort). Former Alpine Director Willy Schaeffler was the center's director.

In the summer of 1974 the alpine portion of the U. S. Ski Team relocated from USSA's Denver office to Park City, Utah. The athletes and coaches began utilizing the Alpine Training Center, a building designed by Willy Schaeffler, that opened in old mining buildings at Park City Ski Area. Administrative offices were set up in the old Mountain Air Grocery on lower Main Street.

In 1976 the USSA and the U. S. Ski Team agreed to part ways. The USSA continued to control the rules and governance of the sport, as well as organizing travel programs for recreational skiers, while the U. S. Ski Team focused solely on the elite national team.

After years of operating separately, the USSA and U. S. Ski Team were merged once again in the Summer of 1998 under the direction of Thomas Weisel. Weisel proposed the creation of a 'super board' consisting of 15 people representing the leadership of both organizations. USSA CEO Howard Peterson was selected to lead the new organization and the USSA moved its national offices from Colorado Springs to join the U. S. Ski Team in Park City, UT, establishing its headquarters at its present location on 1500 Kearns Blvd.

The USSA broke ground on the Center of Excellence on July 18, 2007. Upon opening in 2009, the Center of Excellence housed athletic facilities including strength training areas, a gymnasium, a climbing wall, ski and snowboard ramps, trampolines, a nutrition center and rehabilitation facilities. Additionally, educational areas for athletes, coaches and clubs such as a computer lab, multimedia rooms for performance analysis and equipment workshops are available. All of the educational resources are shared with the USSA's 400 clubs around the country.

Interested young athletes generally begin competing through one of 425 local U. S. Ski and Snowboard Association clubs located in communities around the country, generally at ski and snowboard resorts. Clubs provide introductory education and training, as well as competition programs. Each U. S. Ski Team sport is also organized at a regional and divisional level, with slight variances by sport. Alpine skiing, for example, is organized in three regions: Eastern, Rocky/Central and Western. Within those regions are divisions including Northern, Eastern, Southern, Central, Rocky Mountain, Intermountain, Far West and Alaska. In some areas, such as New England, there are also state based organizations. Competition programs are held within each region or division leading up to national and international events. From these competitions, athletes earn points and are ranked nationally with the highest ranking athletes earning nominations to join the US national teams, which compete at the World Cup level. Ski & snowboard is one of the only Olympic sports in the United States to support a full time standing national team in every sport. Teams are nominated each spring or summer based on results. Teams for FIS World Championships (held every odd year) and Olympic Winter Games (held every four years) are selected by specific criteria and named for those individual events.

Year Location Athletes Medals 1948 St. Moritz, Switzerland Gretchen Fraser Gold, slalom; silver, combined 1952 Oslo, Norway Andrea Mead Lawrence Gold, slalom; gold, giant slalom 1960 Squaw Valley, California, USA Penny PitouBetsy Snite Silver, downhill; silver, giant slalomSilver, slalom 1964 Innsbruck, Austria Jimmy HeugaBilly KiddJean Saubert Bronze, slalomSilver, slalom; bronze, combinedSilver, giant slalom (tie); bronze, slalom 1972 Sapporo, Japan Barbara CochranSusie Corrock Gold, slalomBronze, downhill 1976 Innsbruck, Austria Greg JonesCindy Nelson Bronze, combinedBronze, downhill 1980 Lake Placid, New York, USA Phil MahreCindy Nelson Gold, combined (unofficial Olympic event); silver, slalomSilver, combined 1984 Sarajevo, Yugoslavia Debbie ArmstrongChristin CooperBill JohnsonPhil MahreSteve Mahre Gold, giant slalomSilver, giant slalomGold, downhillGold, slalomSilver, slalom 1992 Albertville, France Hilary LindhDiann Roffe Silver, downhillSilver, giant slalom 1994 Lillehammer, Norway Tommy MoeDiann Roffe SteinrotterPicabo Street Gold, downhill; silver, super GGold, super GSilver, downhill 1998 Nagano, Japan Picabo Street Gold, super G 2002 Salt Lake City, Utah, USA Bode Miller Silver, combined; silver, giant slalom 2006 Torino, Italy Julia MancusoTed Ligety Gold, giant slalomGold, combined 2010 Vancouver, Canada Lindsey VonnJulia MancusoBode MillerAndrew Weibrecht Gold, downhill; bronze, super GSilver, downhill; silver, super combinedGold, super combined; Silver, super G; bronze, downhillBronze, super G 2014 Sochi, Russia Mikaela ShiffrinTed LigetyAndrew WeibrechtBode MillerJulia Mancuso Gold, slalom Gold, giant slalomSilver, super GBronze, super G;Bronze, super G 2018 Pyeongchang, South Korea Mikaela ShiffrinLindsey Vonn Gold, giant slalom; Silver, super combinedBronze, downhill 2022 Beijing, China Ryan Cochran Siegle Silver, super G

Year Location Athletes Medals 1954 Åre, Sweden Jannette Burr Bronze, giant slalom 1958 Bad Gastein, Austria Sally Deaver Silver, giant slalom 1962 Chamonix, France Barbara FerriesJoan Hannah Bronze, downhillBronze, giant slalom 1966 Portillo, Chile Penny McCoy Bronze, slalom 1970 Val Gardena, Italy Billy KiddBarbara CochranMarilyn Cochran Gold, combined; bronze, slalomSilver, slalomBronze, combined 1978 Garmisch Partenkirchen, West Germany Pete Patterson Bronze, combined 1982 Schladming, Austria Christin CooperSteve MahreCindy Nelson Silver, slalom; silver, giant slalom; bronze, combinedGold, giant slalomSilver, downhill 1985 Bormio, Italy Doug LewisDiann RoffeTamara McKinneyEva Twardokens Bronze, downhillGold, giant slalomBronze, giant slalomBronze, combined 1987 Crans Montana, Switzerland Tamara McKinney Bronze, combined 1989 Vail, Colorado, USA Tamara McKinney Gold, combined; bronze, slalom 1993 Morioka, Japan AJ KittJulie ParisienPicabo Street Bronze, downhillSilver, slalomSilver, combined 1996 Sierra Nevada, Spain Hilary LindhPicabo Street Bronze, downhillGold, downhill; bronze, super G 1997 Sestriere, Italy Hilary Lindh Gold, downhill 2001 St. Anton, Austria Daron Rahlves Gold, super G 2003 St. Moritz, Switzerland Kirsten ClarkJonna MendesBode MillerErik Schlopy Silver, super GBronze, super GGold, giant slalom; gold, combined; silver, super GBronze, giant slalom 2005 Bormio/Santa Caterina, Italy Julia MancusoBode MillerDaron Rahlves Bronze, super G; bronze, giant slalomGold, downhill; gold, super GSilver, downhill; Bronze, giant slalom 2007 Åre, Sweden Lindsey KildowJulia Mancuso Silver, downhill; silver, super GSilver, super combined 2009 Val d'Isère, France Lindsey VonnTed Ligety Gold, downhill; Gold, super GBronze, giant slalom 2011 Soelden, Austria Lindsey VonnTed LigetyJulia Mancuso Silver, downhillGold, giant slalomSilver, super G 2013 Schladming, Austria Mikaela ShiffrinTed LigetyJulia Mancuso Gold, slalomGold, giant slalom; gold, super combined; gold, super GBronze, super G 2015 Vail/Beaver Creek, Colorado, USA Mikaela ShiffrinTed LigetyTravis GanongLindsey Vonn Gold, slalomGold, giant slalom; bronze, super combinedSilver, downhillBronze, super G 2017 Sankt Moritz, Switzerland Mikaela ShiffrinLindsey Vonn Gold, slalom; silver, giant slalomBronze, downhill 2019 Åre, Sweden Mikaela ShiffrinLindsey Vonn Gold, slalom; gold, super GBronze, downhill 2021 Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy Mikaela Shiffrin Gold, combined; silver, giant slalom; bronze, slalom bronze, super G

Event Place Athlete Highlights 1976 Olympic Games Innsbruck, Austria Bill Koch Silver 30 km 2002 Olympic Games Salt Lake City, Utah John Bauer, Kris Freeman, Justin Wadsworth, Carl Swenson 5th 4x10km Relay – Historic best US Olympic relay finish 2006 Olympic Games Turin, Italy Kikkan Randall 9th 1.1 km Classic Sprint – Historic Best US Women's Olympic or World Championships Sprint Result 2018 Olympic Games Pyeongchang, South Korea Kikkan Randall, Jessie Diggins Gold Team Sprint Relay – First Medal for US Women's Cross Country and First US Gold Medal in Cross Country

Year Athlete Highlights 1976 Bill Koch Tied for 3rd in World Cup Overall 1982 Bill Koch World Cup Champion 1983 Bill Koch 3rd in World Cup Overall 2006 Andy Newell 3rd in 1 km Freestyle Sprint in Changchun, China – First US Man on a World Cup Podium Since 1983 2007 Kikkan Randall 3rd in 1.2 km Sprint at Rybinsk, Russia (January 21, 2007) – First US Woman on a World Cup Podium 2012 Kikkan Randall World Cup Sprint discipline title (first ever World Cup discipline title won by an American woman) 2013 Kikkan Randall World Cup Sprint discipline title 2014 Kikkan Randall World Cup Sprint discipline title

Event Place Athlete Highlights 2003 World Championships Val di Fiemme, Italy Johnny Spillane Gold K120/7.5 km Sprint – historic first US Nordic combined medal Olympics or Worlds 2007 World Championships Sapporo, Japan Bill Demong Silver HS100/15 km individual 2009 World Championships Liberec, Czech Republic Todd Lodwick Gold HS100/10 km mass start 2009 World Championships Liberec, Czech Republic Todd Lodwick Gold HS100/10 km normal hill 2009 World Championships Liberec, Czech Republic Bill Demong Bronze HS100/10 km normal hill 2009 World Championships Liberec, Czech Republic Bill Demong Gold HS134/10 km large hill 2013 World Championships Val di Fiemme, Italy Bill Demong, Todd Lodwick, Taylor Fletcher, Bryan Fletcher Bronze Team HS106/4x5km

Year Athlete Highlights 1981 John Broman First U. S. World Cup victory – February 22, 1981, Thunder Bay, Ontario