Nordic Nation: U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s ‘TK’ in the House (Part 2)

Jason AlbertFebruary 27, 2018

FasterSkier would like to thank Fischer Sport USAMadshus USAConcept2Boulder Nordic Sport, and Swix Sport US for their generous support, which made this coverage possible.

PYEONGCHANG, South Korea — In this episode recorded at the Olympics, you’ll hear Part 2 of our conversation with one of the busiest people at the Games … Tom Kelly. Kelly is U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s longtime vice president of communications. After starting with the organization back in 1986, he will be stepping down a few months after the Olympics. Kelly, 65, is the nerve center to U.S. Ski Team’s media and communications outreach. Shepherding athletes through the mixed zone or writing up a press release about Jessie Diggins’s and Kikkan Randall’s latest win — yes Kelly oversees all the sports at U.S. Ski & Snowboard — are just some of his responsibilities.

Tom Kelly of U.S. Ski & Snowboard literally in the back of a bus in PyeongChang, South Korea.

Kelly, who goes by “TK”, is a pro’s pro. He’s mastered the combination of respecting both the athletes’ needs and being an open communicator with the snow sport community. Again, this is a two-part interview. Part 1 explores the early years of Kelly’s career; Part 2 explores his more contemporary experiences including this nugget: how he came to be known as “TK” and where his hallmark hat came from. Kelly also discusses the good work of The Speedy Foundation.

Jason Albert

Jason lives in Bend, Ore., and can often be seen chasing his two boys around town. He’s a self-proclaimed audio geek. That all started back in the early 1990s when he convinced a naive public radio editor he should report a story from Alaska’s, Ruth Gorge. Now, Jason’s common companion is his field-recording gear.

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