Blunck, Shiffrin Nominated for Team USA Awards - December

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The United States Olympic Committee has announced finalists for the Team USA Awards, Best of December, which recognize the outstanding achievements of Team USA athletes from last month. U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes and Colorado natives Mikaela Shiffrin (Avon, Colo.) and Aaron Blunck (Crested Butte, Colo.) have each been nominated. 

Shiffrin was nominated for Best Female Athlete of the Month, as a result of her outstanding achievements on the FIS Ski World Cup throughout the month of December, namely winning six world cup races across four different disciplines, and becoming the first athlete – male or female – in the history of the sport to win in all six alpine disciplines.

Blunck, nominated for Best Male Athlete of the Month, won the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix halfpipe in Copper Mountain, Colorado, and secured a second-place finish in the inaugural modified halfpipe at the Dew Tour in Breckenridge, Colorado.

A total of 10 sports – including alpine skiing, bowling, figure skating, freestyle skiing, long track speedskating, Para Nordic skiing, rugby sevens, sled hockey, swimming and taekwondo – are represented among the 13 finalists across men’s, women’s and team categories. The finalists’ collective accomplishments tell the inspiring story of U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes year-round. 

Fans can vote for Shiffrin and Blunck through midnight on Tuesday, Jan. 8 on Team USA's website.