Radamus and Cashman Nominated to Winter Youth Olympic Games
PARK CITY, UT (Jan. 12, 2016) - Two young Americans have been nominated to the alpine team slated to compete in the 2016 Winter Youth Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway February 12-21.
The International Olympic Committee’s Youth Olympic Games offers a competitive venue for young athletes to not only compete, but also participate in a Learn & Share program designed to inspire and empower youth. The 2016 U.S. Youth Olympic Team will be formally named by the United States Olympic Committee in late January.
Headlining the 2016 U.S. alpine ski team are U.S. Ski Team athlete River Radamus (Edwards, CO), the current national junior champion in slalom, and the National Training Group’s Keely Cashman (Squaw Valley, CA) who has been performing strongly in this season’s Nor-Am Cup and European FIS-level races.
Radamus and Cashman qualified based on results from international competitions this season.
Modeled after the Olympic Games, the Youth Olympic Games debuted its winter event in 2012 at Innsbruck, Austria. Held every four years, the Winter Youth Olympic Games will feature over 1,100 athletes, aged 15 to 18, from around the world. Alpine events will include slalom, giant slalom, super G, downhill and alpine combined.
Coupled with the competition, the Learn & Share program will offer young athletes the opportunity to become ambassadors of their sport through workshops and exercises based around five major themes: Olympism, Social Responsibility, Skills Development, Expression and Well-Being and Healthy Lifestyles.
2016 U.S. Youth Olympic Team Alpine Nominees
EVENT
Men
River Radamus (Edwards, CO, 17, U.S. Ski Team/Ski & Snowboard Club Vail): New to the U.S. Ski Team, Radamus qualified for the Development Team this season with a myriad of excellent results. A great competitor and the youngest athlete on the D Team, he was first in the national junior championships slalom in 2015 and is currently fourth in the slalom world rankings in his age group.
Women
Keely Cashman (Squaw Valley, CA, 16, National Training Group/Squaw Valley Ski Team): A National Training Group (NTG) athlete of two years, currently ranked seventh on the FIS list for world age group rankings, Cashman skis with solid fundamentals and balance. She is currently fourth in NorAm Cup slalom standings, 18th overall, and is only a first-year FIS athlete. She snagged top three in her birth year in the first two European FIS races of the season and she is ranked the best in overall age group ranking across all events.
Highlights
- The 2016 Winter Youth Olympic Games will be held in Lillehammer, Norway, February 12-21.
- It is the second installment of the Winter Youth Olympic Games and will feature over 1,100 young athletes aged 15-18 competing in winter events.
- Alongside competition, the teens will also learn the spirit of the Olympic Games, so that they may become strong ambassadors of their sports.
- The USOC will formally name the 2016 U.S. Youth Olympic Team in late January.
