FasterSkier would like to thank Fischer Sport USA, Madshus USA, Concept2, Boulder 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.
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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.
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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.