U.S. Ski & Snowboard seeks to encourage and support development-level athletes in achieving excellence by empowering national teams and clubs. Dialogue and shared learning between the national and regional level is imperative in maintaining a healthy developmental pipeline. In 2017 U.S. Ski & Snowboard began the High Performance Center Program, which encourages certified gold and silver clubs, who have excellence in athletic development, sports science, and sports medicine, to become a designated High Performance Center (otherwise known as HPC). Since the program’s inception, 12 member clubs have achieved HPC certification, including the most recent additions of Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club (SSWSC), based in Steamboat Springs, Colo., and Team Gilboa, based in Hyland Hills, Minn.
“We’re excited to add Steamboat Winter Sports Club and Team Gilboa to our HPC program,” said U.S. Ski & Snowboard High Performance Coordinator Calin Butterfield. “The addition of Steamboat expands our presence in the Rockies and Team Gilboa marks the first Midwest/Central region club to become part of the program.”
SSWSC and Team Gilboa underwent a rigorous U.S. Ski & Snowboard club certification process before they began their HPC certification. In order to apply, the club must have a fully functioning performance team, which includes sports medicine staff, performance training or athletic development coaches on-site, medical directors or strong relationships with a medical clinic, a facility to train, and some access to nutrition for athletes.
“This unique partnership benefits all of our athletes and enhances our training programs,” said SSWSC Director of Strength and Conditioning Sady Tobin. “It gives us structured training, coaches education, and access to recent research and trends in order to create the best training environment from a youth level continued to our highly competitive programs.”
“Through our partnership with Twin Cities Orthopedics (TCO) and Training HAUS, powered by TCO, Team Gilboa is thrilled to become a High Performance Center (HPC) program,” said Team Gilboa’s Lead FIS Coach and Managing Director Joe Paul. “As the first HPC in the midwest, we feel proud that the ski racing culture that is here is being recognized as world-class. The resources available to our athletes from TCO and Training HAUS have brought our high performance programming to a level that has already made a significant positive impact on our athletic performance.
“For me personally, it is both humbling and rewarding for Team Gilboa to be in the same discussions with HPC programs and staff around the country," Joe continued. "This unique partnership with U.S. Ski & Snowboard will no doubt elevate our club's ability to offer best practices and education to our staff and in the development of our athletes. We hope that these are resources that we can then share beyond Team Gilboa to help support and elevate other snow sports programs at the local and regional level.”
The HPC Program reinforces the national infrastructure of high-quality clubs and athletic development services available to development-level athletes. It focuses specifically on the athletic development, training, sports medicine, and sport science aspects of competitive skiing and snowboarding. Through the program, U.S. Ski & Snowboard has created an invaluable network for clubs and U.S. Ski & Snowboard staff to share high performance learnings, innovations and education.
Recently, the program underwent a shift to focus on collaborative projects and interest groups. Clubs were broken into smaller subgroups of special topics that facilitate U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s high performance objectives. This includes collaborative internships for athletic development coaches, a youth athletic development system, and coaches’ education. “We’ve shifted from being just a partner in group education to all now working together to drive development infrastructure,” explained Calin.
“The future of high performance and sport science relating to competitive skiing and snowboarding is expanding a unified talent and athletic infrastructure that branches out through these HPCS, with resources and knowledge spread nationally. It’s great that we have these 12 high-quality clubs involved in the program, but there are many, many other clubs that don’t have access to these resources. We lean on the HPC clubs as key cogs in reaching a wider membership base to garner more participation.”
High Performance Center Accredited Clubs
Club name and years in program
Burke Mountain Academy (third year)
Carrabassett Valley Academy (third year)
Green Mountain Valley School (third year)
Killington Mountain School (third year)
Proctor Academy (second year)
Ski & Snowboard Club Vail (second year)
Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows (third year)
Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club (inaugural year)
Stratton Mountain School (third year)
Sugarbowl Ski Team & Academy (third year)
Sun Valley Ski Academy (third year)
Team Gilboa of Minnesota (inaugural year)
