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2023-24 U.S. Para Alpine Ski Team Nominations Announced

By Ryan Odeja
August, 21 2023
Ravi Drugan of USA competes in the Men's Sitting Downhill race at the World Para Snow Sports Championships at Hafjell on January 14, 2022 in Lillehammer, Norway. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
Ravi Drugan skis around a gate at the 2022 World Para Snow Sports Championships in Lillehammer (Luc Percival)

Park City, UT (August 21, 2023) - U.S. Ski & Snowboard is excited to announce the 13 athletes nominated to represent the U.S. Para Alpine Ski Team across sport classes for the 2023-24 competition season.

This year’s roster is filled with talent, including seven-time Paralympic medalist Laurie Stephens, two-time Paralympic medalist Andrew Kurka and Paralympic silver medalist Thomas Walsh. Andrew Haraghey and Spencer Wood also return this year after posting consistent results last season. Jesse Keefe is new to the A team this year, moving up from the B team following a successful 2022-23 season and World Championship effort. 

B team nominations include Allie Johnson, who, only in her second season of full-time racing, showed incredible promise last year on the World Cup circuit. Along with Johnson is Saylor O’Brien, who quickly added impressive results among intense competition to her resume. Moving up from the development team is Audrey Crowley, a nod to her impressive accolades and consistent results. 

“We are thrilled to have named such an accomplished Para alpine ski team this season,” said Anouk Patty, U.S. Ski & Snowboard's Chief of Sport.  “This team plays an integral role in our organization and we are excited to see what these amazing athletes can achieve this season.” 

The U.S. Para Alpine Ski Team is led by Para Sport Director Erik Leirfallom and new U.S. Para Alpine Ski Head Coach Ryan Pearl. Pearl comes to U.S. Ski & Snowboard from the Australian Para Alpine Team, bringing the team to two Paralympic Winter Games and was named the 2019 Australian Paralympic Coach of the Year.

“We are extremely excited to continue building off of the successful season we had last year and to implement new resources to help these athletes achieve more big results,” said Leirfallom. “With a combination of great young talent and seasoned Paralympians on this team, we know they will be able to pass on their knowledge and skills to the next generation as we grow and build under U.S. Ski & Snowboard.” 

The 2023-24 FIS Para Alpine Ski World Cup season is set to kick off with downhill races for the men and women in St. Moritz in mid-December. The team will make additional stops in Austria, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, Japan and Slovakia throughout the season. You can find the finalized FIS World Cup schedule here.

2023-24 U.S. Para Alpine Ski Team

(Hometown; Club; Birthdate)

A Team

Women

Laurie Stephens (Wenham, MA; 3/5/1984)

Men

Andrew Haraghey (Enfield, CT; National Ability Center; 12/16/1995)

Andrew Kurka (Palmer, AK; Alyeska Ski Club; 1/27/1992)

Jesse Keefe (Sun Valley, ID; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; 3/26/2004)

Thomas Walsh (Vail, CO; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 1/30/1995)

Spencer Wood (Pittsfield, VT; National Sports Center for the Disabled; 1/17/1997)

B Team

Women

Allie Johnson (Chicago, IL; National Sports Center for the Disabled; 12/23/1994)

Saylor O’Brien (Woodland, UT; National Ability Center; 4/28/2003)

Audrey Crowley (Vail, CO; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 3/1/2007)

Men

Matthew Brewer (Huntington Beach, CA; National Ability Center; 5/8/1975)

Connor Hogan (Foxborough, MA; National Sports Center for the Disabled; 6/6/1997)

Ravi Drugan (Eugene, OR; Oregon Adaptive Sports; 12/19/1989)

Patrick Halgren (Tolland, CT; National Sports Center for the Disabled; 6/24/1992)

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Audrey Crowley headshot image
Audrey Crowley
Audrey was born in small town Wisconsin and grew up skiing on a 196 vertical foot hill with her family.
Saylor O'Brien headshot image
Saylor O'Brien
Saylor grew up in Woodland, Utah, trying every sport she could. At age four, she found skiing and immediately fell in love. She met Picabo Street before deciding to attend her academy.
Jesse Keefe headshot image
Jesse Keefe
Having grown up in a passionate skiing family and an active ski town, Jesse found himself in skis at just two years old. Keefe was born without an ankle bone in his right leg; at 11 months old, he had his foot amputated.
Allie Johnson headshot image
Allie Johnson
Johnson has been skiing since she was four years old, when she started with her family in Winter Park, Colorado. Ever since she was a little girl, she dreamed of skiing every day, but that was not quite a possibility while growing up in the suburbs of Chicago.
Spencer Wood headshot image
Spencer Wood
Spencer started skiing very young and even started racing at age five.
Thomas Walsh headshot image
Thomas Walsh
At the age of two, Walsh began skiing, and by the age of five was ski racing. As an avid athlete, he was also active in the arts and has been acting since the age of six.
Laurie Stephens headshot image
Laurie Stephens
Laurie Stephens was born and raised in New England and hails from Wenham, Massachusetts. Stephens was born with spina bifida and found skiing at age 12 when she joined a group of athletes with disabilities who skied at Loon Mountain in New Hampshire.
Andrew Kurka headshot image
Andrew Kurka
Kurka’s first Olympic dream wasn’t on the slopes but on the wrestling mat, as he was a six-time Alaskan state champion in freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling.
Andrew Haraghey headshot image
Andrew Haraghey
When Andrew was six months old, he contracted viral encephalitis, which resulted in cerebral palsy. This presents as severe muscle tension from the waist down. Andrew started skiing at seven and began racing a few years later.