For the ninth year, Ron Kruszewski, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Stifel Financial Corp. and trustee of U.S. Ski & Snowboard, hosted his annual U.S. Ski & Snowboard fundraiser in St. Louis, Missouri. The annual event was wildly successful, raising $1 million for the U.S. Ski & Snowboard organization and athletes. 

Over 300 attendees showed up donning their best neon outfits to be on par with the 80s Aprés Ski theme. To complete the theme, 80s cover band “The Spazmatics” dazzled the crowd, along with food and drink that fit the bill. 

Three athletes, representing three Stifel U.S. Ski Team's joined in on the fun - winningest alpine skier of all-time Mikaela Shiffrin, two-time Olympic medalist Alex Ferreira and two-time Olympian on the Stifel U.S. Freestyle Team Jaelin Kauf traveled to St. Louis for the event.

“It was a blast to be at this year’s Stifel U.S. Ski Team Fundraiser in St. Louis,” said Stifel U.S. Freeski Team athlete Alex Ferreira. “Ron, his family and his friends are incredibly gracious and wonderful to be around. Thank you Ron and thank you Stifel.”

Mikaela Shiffrin also thanked the St. Louis community for showing up to the event in her recent Instagram post, "Thank you, thank you, thank you St. Louis for showing up and showing out once again,” said Shiffrin. “One million dollars raised for the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team on behalf of Stifel?! You’ve outdone yourselves, we had so, so much fun last night at the ninth annual Stifel fundraiser, which was an awesome 80s apres ski-themed party.” 

The event raises money through a silent and live auction and has quickly become one of the U.S. Ski & Snowboard's most successful fundraisers to date. All proceeds from the event directly benefit the U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes as they begin their 2024-25 competition and World Championships season. 

Upon hearing that Meri Stratton was retiring the Summer Fun Nationals race after 35 years at Mt. Hood, the Scroggins brothers, Jesse, Willy and Lloyd, of Willy Camp were determined to keep the summer race tradition alive! Willy Camp partnered with the Pacific Northwest Ski Education Foundation (PNWSEF) and Timberline to create the Wy'East Cup! All proceeds from the event benefit PNWSEF that is the non-profit fundraising arm for the Pacific Northwest Division. PNWSEF provides funding and supports athletes, coaches, officials and clubs across Northern Idaho, Washington, and Oregon.

The inaugural Wy'East Cup was held June 21-23, 2024. In keeping with tradition, it was a family affair with social gatherings every day! The event included GS and SL masters races and family fun races with age class, superseed, overall fastest, and family team awards. 

Spirits were high at Friday's Welcome Party with many familiar faces and volunteers eager to make the inaugural event a success. After a delay sorting out logistics with the race liability waivers (always sign those pesky online waivers several days in advance), 75 racers picked up their bibs, got the latest details, and caught up with fellow racers.

Saturday's GS offered perfect weather and race conditions. With the valiant efforts of the many volunteers, the timing challenges were abundant yet surmountable. The competition was excellent with almost all age classes represented and with the superseed separated only by 3-3.5 seconds per run. When planning a summer race event on a slope above treeline with no start/finish structures, hard-wired timing, or electricity there can be challenges beyond what may be encountered at the average race. Not to be thwarted by hiccups with computers and equipment interfacing, the timing crew relied on the tried and true tapes to ensure all racers received accurate times for the awards. Racers gathered for drinks and the peruse the silent auction items before the banquet and awards. After awards the racers were treated to live music from Roger That PDX. Roger's kids all ski raced in the Pacific Northwest Division and  Class 3 racer Matt Edlen is in the band. The music and dancing were a fantastic way to end the day.

Sunday's SL race brought the sun again but more wind this time. With little ability to adjust overnight, timing met a similar fate on Sunday making for a slow pace. Not to be deterred, the racers were geared up for a great day of competition. The weekend was capped off with a final awards party to present the SL awards as well as the overall fastest man, woman, and family awards for the weekend.

Huge thanks to Willy Camp, PNWSEF, Timberline, the volunteers, the sponsors, and of course all the racers for coming out to make this event possible! 

We are excited to announce that the Wy’East Cup will continue next summer! The crew is excitedly working out the kinks to make the 2025 event even bigger and better. Mark your calendars for June 20-22, 2025 and we'll see you there!

2024 Wy'East Cup Results

On Saturday, Sept. 7, Lindsey Vonn, a three-time Olympic medalist and the most successful downhiller in the U.S., was inducted into the Colorado Snowsports Hall of Fame.

Vonn was one of five inductees, including speed skier Ross Anderson, former Stifel U.S. Ski Team coach John "Johno" McBride, and Norwegian ski pioneers Sigurd Rockne and Bjorn Erik Borgen. The group was inducted in front of hundreds of people in Vail, Colorado.

Vonn was honored for her impeccable ski career, which included three Olympic medals, eight World Championships medals and 82 World Cup wins. She credits Vail Mountain with teaching her how to ski downhill after her family relocated from Minnesota when she was 12 years old.

Also honored was former U.S. Ski Team coach McBride. McBride was a beloved men’s ski team coach, coaching former team stars such as Bode Miller and Daron Rahlves. Most recently, McBride has worked with young athletes in Aspen at the Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club.

PARK CITY, Utah (Sept. 9, 2024) - U.S. Ski & Snowboard officially announced the 49 athletes who have accepted their nomination to the Stifel U.S. Alpine Ski Team for the upcoming 2024-25 season.  

Two-time Olympic champion and winningest alpine skier in history Mikaela Shiffrin, 2022 Olympic silver medalist Ryan Cochran-Siegle, world champion and three-time World Cup podium finisher Paula Moltzan and world champion and World Cup podium finisher River Radamus highlight the roster of alpine athletes returning to the 2024-25 roster. 

After a successful 2023-24 season, several alpine athletes have advanced to a higher team status. New A Team athletes include Lauren Macuga, AJ Hurt and Jacqueline Wiles. Macuga skied to an impressive top five result, Hurt claimed her first career podium and Wiles snagged a podium in her comeback from injury. On the men’s side, Ryder Sarchett rejoins the C Team after impressing the world with his Junior World Championship victory in giant slalom. 

The 2024-25 World Cup schedule is robust, with 20 women’s World Cups and 19 men’s events officially scheduled for the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup calendar. The season also includes the World Championships in Saalbach, Austria, Feb. 4-16. The tour starts with a weekend of giant slalom in Sölden, Austria, Oct. 26-27, before heading north to Levi, Finland, where both the men’s and women’s slalom teams compete.

North American fans have many opportunities to see their favorite alpine skiers shine with four World Cups in the United States, including the women’s slalom and giant slalom races at the Stifel Killington Cup in Killington, Vermont, Nov. 30 - Dec. 1. The following weekend marks the first of two back-to-back World Cup speed races at the Stifel Birds of Prey presented by United Airlines in Beaver Creek, Colorado. The men race downhill, super-G and giant slalom Dec. 6-8, with the women racing downhill and super-G Dec. 14-15—the women’s first time on the famed Birds of Prey downhill. After the full World Cup calendar and a World Championship, the tour will close with World Cup Finals in Sun Valley, Idaho at the Stifel Sun Valley Finals March 22-27, where the top skiers in each discipline will fight for overall titles in front of an American crowd. 

“This is a dedicated and determined group of athletes ready to compete at the highest level as we head into a World Championship season,” says U.S. Ski & Snowboard Chief of Sport Anouk Patty. “The summer training at the USANA Center of Excellence and on the snow shows that these skiers are poised to enter the winter season ready to race. We cannot wait to see what they achieve.” 

2024-25 Stifel U.S. Alpine Ski Team 

(Hometown; Club; College; Birthdate)

A TEAM

Women

• AJ Hurt (Carnelian Bay, CA; Team Palisades Tahoe; Dartmouth College; 12/5/2000)
• Breezy Johnson (Jackson Hole, WY; Rowmark Ski Academy; 1/19/1996)**
• Lauren Macuga (Park City, UT; Park City Ski & Snowboard; 7/4/2002)
• Paula Moltzan (Prior Lake, MN; Buck Hill Ski Team/Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; University of Vermont; 4/7/1994)
• Nina O’Brien (Edwards, CO; Burke Mountain Academy/Team Palisades Tahoe; Dartmouth College; 11/29/1997)
• Mikaela Shiffrin (Edwards, CO; Burke Mountain Academy/Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 3/13/1995)
• Jacqueline Wiles (Aurora, OR; White Pass Ski Club; 7/13/1992)
• Isabella Wright (Salt Lake City, UT; Snowbird Sports Education Foundation; 2/10/1997)               

 Men

• Bryce Bennett (Olympic Valley, CA; Team Palisades Tahoe; 7/14/1992)
• Ryan Cochran-Siegle (Starksboro, VT; Cochran’s Ski Club/Mount Mansfield Ski & Snowboard Club; University of Vermont; 3/27/1992)
• Tommy Ford (Bend, OR; Mt. Bachelor Ski Education Foundation; Dartmouth College; 3/20/1989)
• Jared Goldberg (Holladay, UT; Snowbird Sports Education Foundation; University of Utah; 6/15/1991)
• River Radamus (Edwards, CO; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 2/12/1998)    

B TEAM

Women

• Keely Cashman (Strawberry, CA; Team Palisades Tahoe; Montana State University; 4/4/1999)
• Katie Hensien (Redmond, WA; Rowmark Ski Academy; University of Denver; 12/1/1999)
• Tricia Mangan (Buffalo, NY; Holimont Race Team; Dartmouth College; 3/7/1997)

 Men

• Erik Arvidsson (Woodside, CA; Team Palisades Tahoe; Middlebury College; 9/3/1996)
• Sam DuPratt (Park City, UT; Park City Ski & Snowboard Team; University of Utah; 11/28/1993) 
• Sam Morse (Carrabassett Valley, ME; Carrabassett Valley Academy; Dartmouth College; 5/27/1996)
• Kyle Negomir (Littleton, CO; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; Dartmouth College; 10/3/1998)
• Ben Ritchie (Waitsfield, VT; Green Mountain Valley School; 9/5/2000)
• Jett Seymour (Steamboat, CO; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; University of Denver; 11/5/1998)
• Luke Winters (Gresham, OR; Sugar Bowl Academy; 4/2/1997)

C TEAM

Women

• Elisabeth Bocock (Salt Lake City, UT; Rowmark Ski Academy; Dartmouth College; 9/3/2005)
• Mary Bocock (Salt Lake City, UT; Rowmark Ski Academy; Dartmouth College; 10/7/2003)
• Tatum Grosdidier (Wenatchee, WA; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; University of Utah; 7/24/2004) 
• Stella Johansson (Aspen, CO; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; Dartmouth College; 9/2/2003) 
• Allison Mollin (Truckee, CA; Team Palisades Tahoe; 7/7/2004) 
• Liv Moritz (Edwards, CO; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; University of Denver; 11/28/2004) 
• Dasha Romanov (Thornton, CO; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; University of New Hampshire; 5/3/2003)
• Ava Sunshine (Encinitas, CA; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail/Burke Mountain Academy; University of Utah; 6/20/2002)

Men

• Stanley Buzek (Silverthorne, CO; Team Summit Colorado; 8/18/2005) 
• Bridger Gile (Aspen, CO; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club/Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 10/15/1999)
• Isaiah Nelson (Wayzata, MN; Buck Hill Ski Racing Club; 4/3/2001)
• Camden Palmquist (Eagan, MN; Buck Hill Ski Racing Club/Team Summit Colorado; 4/15/2003)
• Jay Poulter (Bondville, VT; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club/Stratton Mountain School; University of Utah; 7/1/2003)
• Cooper Puckett (Steamboat, CO; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; Dartmouth College; 3/31/2003)
• Ryder Sarchett (Sun Valley, ID; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; University of Colorado Boulder; 7/28/2003)
• Jack Smith (Sun Valley, ID; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; 4/24/2001)

DEVELOPMENT TEAM

Women

• Paige DeHart (Sun Valley, CO; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; 4/27/2005)*
• Kaitlin Keane (Vail, CO; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; Dartmouth College; 11/26/2004)
• Kjersti Moritz (Edwards, CO; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; Middlebury College; 11/28/2004)
• Emma Resnick (Vail, CO; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; Dartmouth College; 7/23/2003)

Men

• Finnigan Donley (Anchorage, AK; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; 2/28/2005) 
• Colin Hanna (Sun Valley, ID; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; 12/15/2004) 
• John Kerbaugh (Williston, VT; Mt. Mansfield Academy; 11/11/2005) 
• Jevin Palmquist (Eagan, MN; Buck Hill Ski Racing Club/Team Summit Colorado; 3/6/2007)*
• Sawyer Reed (Hingham, MA; Green Mountain Valley School; 7/26/2005)  
• Hunter Salani (Edwards, CO; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 2/25/2005) 

*Newly named to the Stifel U.S. Alpine Ski Team
**As of Oct. 10, 2024

2024-25 Alpine Coaches & Staff

• Chief of Sport: Anouk Patty
• Alpine Development Director: Chip Knight
• Vice President of High Performance: Gillian Bower
• Director of Alpine Sport Science: Per Lundstam 
• Alpine Medical Coordinator: Torey Anderson
• Alpine Elite Team Manager: Aaron Strubel
• Alpine Communications Manager: Sierra Ryder
• Women’s Alpine Press Officer: Mackenzie Moran 

MEN

Men’s Head Coach:

• Mark Tilston

Men’s World Cup Speed:

• Head Coach: Burkhard Shaffer
• Coach: Florian Scheiber
• Coach: Austin Savaria
• Strength & Conditioning Coach: Daniel Sanz
• Physical Therapist: Martina Plunger 

Men’s World Cup Tech:

• Head Coach: Fabien Munier
• Coach: Claude Cretier
• Coach: Nathan Bryant
• Slalom Coach: Tristan Glasse-Davies
• Strength & Conditioning Coach: Bernd Wiener
• Physical Therapist: Vincent Corrado

Men’s Europa Cup:

• Head Coach: Clement Tomamichel
• Coach: Brian Morgan

Men’s NorAm:

• Head Coach: Michael Bansmer
• Coach: Francio Bertolini
• Strength & Conditioning Coach: Will Horstmann

WOMEN

Women’s Head Coach:

• Paul Kristofic

Women’s World Cup Speed:

• Head Coach: Alex Hoedlmoser
• Coach: Daniel Dejori
• Strength & Conditioning Coach: Kip Spangler
• Physical Therapist: Shannon Colleton

Team Shiffrin: 

• Head Coach: Karin Harjo
• Coach: Janne Haarala
• Physical Therapist: Regan Dewhirst 
• Public Relations: Megan Harrod
• Strength & Conditioning: Bob Poehling

Women’s World Cup Tech:

• Head Coach: Rudi Soulard
• Coach: Zan Spillar
• Coach: Scott Graham
• Strength & Conditioning: Per Lundstam

Women’s Europa Cup:

• Head Coach: Marjan Cernigoj
• Coach: Miha Kuerner 
• Strength & Conditioning: Foreste Peterson

Women’s Development: 

• Head Coach: Seth McCadam
• Coach: Kevin Keane
• Strength & Conditioning: Foreste Peterson
• Physical Therapist: Madison Whitaker

Follow the Stifel U.S. Alpine Ski Team:

• Instagram: @usskiteam
• Facebook: @usskiandsnowboard
• TikTok: @usskiandsnowboard 
• X: @usskiteam
• TikTok: @usskiandsnowboard 
• Threads: @usskiteam

2022 Olympian and Stifel U.S. Alpine Ski Team athlete Alix Wilkinson formally announced her retirement from the sport of alpine ski racing on Friday, Sept. 6, 2024.

“Well ski racing, it’s been a hell of a ride! Cheers to the end,” wrote Wilkinson in her social media post.

Wilkinson was a rising force on the women’s speed circuit while on the national team. Looking back on her career, she scored her first World Cup points in Cortina d’Ampezzo downhill, when she placed 18th—only her seventh World Cup start to date. Not only did she score points at multiple World Cup downhills in her career, Wilkinson also holds a U.S. National Championship title in giant slalom.

Wilkinson’s retirement stems from injuries she sustained following the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games, which prevented her from competing the past two seasons. 

“Getting diagnosed with CRPS last summer has changed a lot for me," she wrote, referring to complex regional pain syndrome. "My ankle is simply no longer capable of doing what it used to and sadly I’m not able to ski World Cup speed anymore.”

Wilkinson looks forward to the future beyond ski racing but is thankful for all the memories she made in her career.

“While this isn’t the ending I’d dreamed of, I wouldn’t change a single minute of it. Thank you so much to everyone who made this sport as special as it was for me. To my friends, teammates, coaches, and family you are what made ski racing truly the time of my life and it wouldn’t have been the same without you. Thank you, on to the next!”