Under 23 Questions with Adam Martin

In an effort to showcase the North Americans competing at this week’s International Ski Federation (FIS) 2017 USANA Nordic Junior World Championships and U23 Cross Country World Championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah, we asked those qualifying athletes several questions about themselves — actually, we had them fill in the blanks. Here we have 22-year-old Adam Martin, of Northern Michigan University, who’s representing the U.S. at his second U23 Worlds.

On Saturday, he raced to 15th in the men’s 30 k skiathlon, and on Thursday, he placed 22nd in the men’s 15 k freestyle.

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“My full name is Adam Gregory Martin, but you can call me Adam. I was born and raised in Wausau, Wis., and one thing you should know about my hometown is that it is home to Granite Peak Downhill Ski Area, which was one of the first ski areas in North America when it was founded in 1937.

I started cross-country skiing when I was in 4th grade, thanks to my parents. I currently train in Marquette, Mich., with Northern Michigan University.

If I’m not skiing, you might find me trail running or, if it’s a special occasion, studying. If I had to pick a favorite book, it would be ‘The Secret Race‘.

One of the things I’m most excited about for U23/Junior Worlds at Soldier Hollow is Café Rio. One race I’m especially targeting there is the skiathlon.

The best advice anyone ever gave me about skiing or racing was ‘Don’t worry about pushing yourself too hard. If you drop dead, I’ll make sure you get back to your family.’

One of the best race memories I have is trying to hang onto faster skiers who have caught me in interval start races.

If I could meet one World Cup skier, it would be Ingvild Flugstad Østberg (DM me, Instagram handle below).

If I don’t end up being a professional skier, I’ll probably be a software engineer.

I’m missing 10 days of school to be here, and my professors are probably thinking, ‘That’s less than last year.’

You can follow me on Instagram @adam.martin.94.”