USA Para Nordic – FasterSkier

After a Series of World Major Marathons, Aaron Pike Transitions to Winter

Rachel PerkinsNovember 23, 2021

While no one would choose the circumstances, pandemic induced cancellations presented marathoners with a unique calendar of events this fall. All six of the iconic World Marathon Majors — Berlin, London, Chicago, Boston, Tokyo (held virtually, in-person event postponed to 2022), and New York — took place within a span of 42 days. (In a typical season, Tokyo, Boston, and London are run in the spring.) While Shalane Flanagan has been in the limelight for...

Feature Olympics Para Nordic Racing

Kendall Gretsch Makes History With Gold Medal in Paratriathlon

Rachel PerkinsOctober 7, 2021

If you didn’t catch the ending of the triathlon during the Tokyo Paralympics, prepare for the chills. Spoiler alert: in an all out, last gas effort in the final meters, dual-season athlete Kendall Gretsch edged out Australia’s Lauren Parker by one second for a Gold Medal victory. This is Gretsch’s third Olympic gold, alongside the two she earned during the 2018 PyeongChang Paralympic Games, first in the 6-kilometer biathlon sitting sprint and again in the...

General News

U.S., CANADIAN NGB/NSOs FORM NORTH AMERICAN FLUOROCARBON FREE POLICY WORKING GROUP (Press Release)

FasterSkierJune 15, 2020

Press Release PARK CITY, Utah (June 15, 2020) – National Governing Body’s and National Sport Organizations (NGB/NSOs), and snow sport organizations from the United States and Canada today are announcing the formation of a Fluorocarbon Free Policy Working Group. With representation from U.S. Ski & Snowboard, USA Nordic, U.S. Biathlon, USA Para Nordic, USA Para Alpine, Alpine Canada, Canada Snowboard, Freestyle Canada, Nordiq Canada, Biathlon Canada, Nordic Combined Canada and Ski Jumping Canada in addition...

Interviews Para Nordic

Masters and Gretsch Prepare for Two Paralympic Cycles After Postponement of Tokyo Games

Rachel PerkinsMay 5, 2020

Of the members of the U.S. Para Nordic team, more than half compete at the highest level in both summer and winter sports. Instead of quadrennial, their training is designed for biennial Paralympic cycles, oscillating between sports each year with an overall focus shift toward whichever Games is approaching fastest. And the goal is not simply to compete in both rounds of the Games, it is to bring home medals. Illinois based Oksana Masters is...

Community Interviews Para Nordic

Wednesday Workout: Structuring Training for Para Athletes Q&A with Martin Benes

Rachel PerkinsNovember 27, 2019

This insight into training para nordic athletes comes from Martin Benes, head coach of U.S. Para Nordic skiing. Benes joined U.S. Para Nordic in August 2018 after spending five years as the nordic ski director and head coach at Sugar Bowl Academy in Norden, CA. Benes responded via. email following a team training camp in Canmore, Alberta. FasterSkier: Before taking this job, did you have any background in or connections to para sports? What have...

Interviews Para Nordic

Non-Traditional Summer Training with Dan Cnossen

Rachel PerkinsOctober 28, 2019

Dan Cnossen is a badass. There. We said it. In the realm of para nordic sport, the 39-year-old medaled in each of the six biathlon and cross country events in which he competed during the 2018 Paralympic Games. At the 2019 World Championships, he Cnossen earned a silver medal in both the cross country sprint and middle distance races after a slew of podium finishes in World Cup events during the season. Prior to his...

Interviews Para Nordic

The Life of an Elite Multisport Para Athlete With Kendall Gretsch

Rachel PerkinsOctober 23, 2019

27-year-old Kendall Gretsch is a well-decorated athlete. A glance at the Illinois native’s bio shows three consecutive ITU Paratriathlon World Championship titles (2014 – 2016) plus a silver medal at this year’s event on September 1st in Lausanne, Switzerland. She is a five-time USA Paratriathlon national champion, four-time gold medalist at the PATCO/CAMTRI American Championships, and has four medals from ITU Paratriathlon World Cup events, two each of gold and silver. And that is just...

Interviews News Para Nordic Racing

Mia Zutter and Kristina Trygstad-Saari: Interdependent on the Ski Tracks

Jason AlbertOctober 5, 2019

One skier is twenty years old, the other thirty four. Mia Zutter, the younger of the duo, and Kristina Trygstad-Saari, the eldest, exemplify interdependence on the ski tracks. One guides for the other. They met in Canmore in 2018 at a Para World Cup that served as a qualifier for the PyeongChang Paralympics. Zutter is a visually impaired skier. At the age of 12, having been a lifelong athlete immersed in gymnastics and figure skating,...