BEITOSTOELEN, Norway (Nov. 15) – The U.S. Cross Country Team wrapped up three days of pre World Cup racing Sunday with even more unexpected success as World Championship silver medalist Kikkan Randall (Anchorage) took fourth and Kris Freeman (Andover, NH) fifth in the women’s 5K and men’s 10K classic FIS races in Norway. “That has to be one of Kikkan’s best longer distance races ever and it really bodes well for the upcoming season and...
BEITOSTOELEN, Norway (Nov. 14) – The U.S. Cross Country Ski Team is a leg up on the competition scene after competing in two days of FIS races in Norway where Kikkan Randall (Anchorage), Kris Freeman (Andover, NH), Liz Stephen (East Montpelier, VY) and Morgan Arritola (Ketchum, ID) have all had great early season results. “It was a really good start for the year. It was our first competition racing of the season. Our expectations were...
The 4th annual FIS Tour de Ski will be held this season, and for the first time an American will compete. Andy Newell will start the eight-stage event that is modeled on the Tour de France. In the past it hasn’t made much sense for US athletes to take part. Contesting the Tour requires not only a high level of fitness, but the ability to excel at every distance and technique. Rule changes for the...
ISHPEMING, MI (Nov. 6) – Paralympic champions Chris Waddell and Sarah Will highlight a group of eight athletes and sport builders named for induction to the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame. They are joined by adaptive skiing pioneer Jack Benedick, legendary big mountain skier Doug Coombs, noted industry writer and instructor Stu Campbell, veteran ski jumping champion Ansten Samuelstuen, the father of southern skiing Sepp Kober and longtime U.S. Ski Team press officer...
Clinic Options, Race Correction, and Kids Activities We are getting closer to the 2009 Yellowstone Ski Festival and this year is sure to be a blast. All of your favorite Nordic vendors and a few new and unique companies will be in West Yellowstone this year. With the Olympics in the near future, we expect to see many of the big names in cross country ski racing on the Rendezvous Ski Trails later in the...
USSA has posted PDFs from this fall’s Coaches Education Conference.
World Championship gold medalist Billy Demong (Vermontville, NY) has undoubtedly left his mark on the world of nordic combined skiing. But, on the brink of an Olympic season, he is looking to make an even bigger splash. Any fun summer adventures? My fun getaway is bike racing and I definitely did a few of those, not as many as I did last year but if I focus my training in other directions for periods I...
USSA Spokesman John Farra has issued a press release explaining the FIS Olympic quota allocation for the 2009 Vancouver games, which dictates how many athletes each participating country is allowed to bring. Farra explains why the US currently only has 7 spots, how this might change, and the process related to it.
WHISTLER, BC (Sept. 14) – The U.S. Cross Country Ski Team wrapped up camp this week at its 2010 Olympic venue in Whistler and, according to Cross Country Coach Matt Whitcomb, everything is falling right in line with where the Team wants to be. “This was our fifth time up here in the past two and a half years and everything is feeling right on time. Nothing is rushed, nobody is panicked. The Team is collected...
LILLEHAMMER, Norway (Sept. 5) – U.S. Nordic Combined Team athlete Todd Lodwick (Steamboat Springs, CO) carried on the tradition of winning he started last year right into the 2010 Olympic season as he won his 2nd consecutive Lillehammer SuperSprint title in downtown Lillehammer on Saturday. Lodwick led the U.S. team in qualifications, finishing second, followed by Nick Hendrickson (Park City, UT) in sixth, Billy Demong 14th, and Bryan Fletcher 16th. The race was in a...
As the sports world gears up for the Vancouver Olympics in February, the faltering economy has forced the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) to make cuts to its programs and staff. According to USSA Nordic Director John Farra, the American athletes with a chance at medaling at the Olympics have been insulated from the cuts. But both employees of the organization and some of the athletes who depend on it for financial backing have...
The U.S. Cross Country Ski Team’s Kris Freeman had an outstanding year in 2009 as he earned two U.S. titles and a fourth place at World Championships. But, even with intense training for the 2010 Olympics at the forefront of his mind, Freeman is taking the time to speak to youth about Diabetes. A Type 1 diabetic, Freeman was told when he was diagnosed that he would have to end his career as an endurance...
USSA memberships expire annually on June 30. You can renew your USSA membership here. Avoid late fees and renew before you forget.
Rick Halling is Nordic Race Director for Atomic US. Nordic skiers love our blogs and websites where too often we dwell on the negative. Sometimes our discussions degenerate to the point of whining and always present is the claim that Nordic doesn’t get its fair share of support. A number of times it has been suggested that the US Cross Country Team and US Nordic Combined Team should break away from USSA and form a...
WHISTLER, BC – The U.S. Nordic Combined Ski Team wrapped up the 2009 season on snow as athletes took to the terrain of Whistler to train on what will become their Olympic stage in less than a year. “We had an awesome camp with our group with 10 athletes up there. We got really good skiing in, really good jumping in, and it was just good to train up there,” said World Champion Billy Demong...
USSA has officially launched the XC Coaches Certification. The course manual and excel training plan are now available for purchase from the USSA website. The test is available at here. The 2009 clinic schedule will begin with the Regional Elite Group camps throughout the U.S. If you’ve participated in a U.S. Ski Team clinic within the past two years of applying for your Level 100 certification, this category is satisfied. To get started, complete a...