NOMINATIONS NOW OPEN!

U.S. Ski & Snowboard Awards

U.S. Ski & Snowboard is a diverse organization of many sports with a vital backbone of athletes, officials, coaches and clubs nationwide all working together for the betterment of the sport. It’s important each year to recognize the work of those behind the scenes who are providing athletes of all ages with an opportunity to participate in ski and snowboard competitions.

The U.S. Ski & Snowboard awards program is designed to recognize a wide range of individuals and organizations for their work over the past year. As a U.S. Ski & Snowboard member, you are eligible to nominate into many of the award categories. To learn more about the full range of U.S. Ski & Snowboard awards, go here.

Award Selection:

• Nominations are accepted all at once and at large from members who have a valid and current membership for the 2024-25 Season.
• Each sport committee will select the respective sports winners for Club and Coach of the Year.
• Selection of other awards winners is determined by a vote of the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Awards Working Group.
• Winners are announced at the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Awards Dinner on May 14, 2025.

Nominations: 

• Click on the nomination link for each individual award for which you wish to nominate.
• Complete the nomination paying special attention to highlighting accomplishments required for each award.
• Nominees must also be current members of U.S. Ski & Snowboard.
• Click to submit.
• Remember, you need to submit nominations for each award separately.

DEADLINE TO SUBMIT NOMINATIONS: Friday, March 28, 2025

NOMINATION CATEGORIES

Paul Bacon Award (event organization)

The Paul Bacon Award is given to an individual or group for the greatest contribution to U. S. Ski & Snowboard in the field of race organization during the 2024-25 season. Traditional nominees include local clubs or individuals whose work has made a difference in providing good events for athletes.

PAUL BACON AWARD Nomination Form

John J. Clair Award (service to national teams)

The John J. Clair Jr. Award is given for outstanding service that benefited the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team in 2024-25. Past recipients have included outside team support personnel, donors, journalists, movers and shakers. Most recipients have been individuals, though some organizations have been recognized. The recipient’s service should be to the national teams.

JOHN J. CLAIR JR. AWARD Nomination Form

Bud & Mary Little Award (service to FIS or USOPC)

The Bud & Mary Little Award is a lifetime achievement award presented to an individual who has contributed significantly through a long-term involvement with the International Ski & Snowboard Federation or U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee. Recipients are eligible to receive the award only once. Achievement should be lifetime; it is not specific to this past year.

BUD & MARY LITTLE AWARD Nomination Form

Buddy Werner Award (sportsmanship)

Have you seen any great acts of sportsmanship this past year? Nominations should be based on actions from the 2024-25 season. It is only open to individuals.

BUDDY WERNER AWARD Nomination Form

Russell Wilder Award (service to youth)

The Russell Wilder Award recognizes the most outstanding effort during 2024-25 in focusing the interests of American youth on the sports of skiing or snowboarding. It can be awarded to an individual or an organization.

RUSSELL WILDER AWARD Nomination Form

OFFICIALS NOMINATION AWARD CATEGORY

West Family Award (outstanding official)

The West Family Award is a lifetime achievement honor, recognizing an outstanding certified official at any level.  Nominations come from the pool of current U.S. Ski & Snowboard Officials membership.

WEST FAMILY AWARD Nomination Form

Nominations only open to those who hold a current U.S. Ski & Snowboard Officials membership. 

FIS TECHNICAL DELEGATE NOMINATION AWARD CATEGORY

Westhaven Award (outstanding FIS technical delegate)

The Westhaven Award is a lifetime achievement award, recognizing an outstanding FIS technical delegate for his or her service over time. Nominations come from the pool of current FIS TDs.

WESTHAVEN AWARD Nomination Form

Nominations only open to those who hold a current U.S. Ski & Snowboard Technical Delegate membership. 

CLUB OF THE YEAR AWARD CATEGORY

U.S. Ski & Snowboard Club of the Year Award

The U.S. Ski & Snowboard Club of the Year is the club that achieved the most outstanding high-performance athletic and organizational results in the current season and best meets the athletic and club performance benchmarks.

This award will be granted for each sport: Adaptive, Alpine, Cross Country, Freeski, Freestyle, Snowboard & Ski Jumping/Nordic Combined

U.S. SKI & SNOWBOARD CLUB OF THE YEAR AWARD Nomination Form

Nominations only open to those who are current U.S. Ski & Snowboard Clubs.

DEVELOPMENT COACH OF THE YEAR AWARD CATEGORY

U.S. Ski & Snowboard Development Coach of the Year Award

The U.S. Ski & Snowboard Development Coach of the Year Award recognizes outstanding contribution to development and international programs by a coach resulting in high-level performance by his or her athletes in competition during the past season. Coaches of the year are recognized for their leadership, commitment, sport knowledge and passion, including proven ability to foster athletic excellence amongst their constituents or teams. 

This award will be granted for each sport: Adaptive, Alpine, Cross Country, Freeski, Freestyle, Snowboard & Ski Jumping/Nordic Combined

U.S. SKI & SNOWBOARD DEVELOPMENT COACH OF THE YEAR AWARD Nomination Form

Nominations only open to those who are current U.S. Ski & Snowboard Coaches.

Park City, Utah (Feb. 13, 2025) – U.S. Ski & Snowboard has announced the 10 athletes who will represent the U.S. Ski Jumping Team at the 2025 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Trondheim, Norway Feb. 27 - March 9, 2025. The team will compete on both the normal hill and large hill.

The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships is one of the most anticipated events of the season, featuring elite competition on Granåsen’s renowned jumping hills. With a rich history of hosting world class ski jumping events, the venue is known for its challenging conditions and passionate atmosphere. The U.S. squad features a blend of experienced veterans and emerging talent, all ready to showcase their skills on one of the sport’s biggest stages.

Women’s Team

The U.S. women’s team is led by Annika Belshaw, who has been in peak form this season, recently securing a career-best 14th-place finish at the Lake Placid World Cup. Paige Jones, Samantha Macuga and Josie Johnson return for another World Championships, bringing valuable experience to the squad. Sandra Sproch will make her World Championship debut.

Men’s Team

Tate Frantz and Kevin Bickner head to Trondheim with a strong season so far, consistently landing top-15 and top-10 finishes on the World Cup circuit. Bickner, a veteran of the World Championships and Olympics, brings a wealth of experience alongside Casey Larson, another seasoned competitor. Erik Belshaw returns for another World Champs, while Jason Colby makes his first appearance.

“The team has been building all season and we’re heading into the World Championships following an already highly successful year, with multiple athletes achieving career-best performances. The hard work is paying off at the perfect time, and the momentum within this group is undeniable,” said Anders Johnson, U.S. & Snowboard’s Ski Jumping and Nordic Combined Sport Director. “With a venue like Granåsen and a season of hard work behind them, I have no doubt this team is ready to step up and perform.”

2025 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS TEAM 

(Hometown; ski club; college; birth date; past World Championship teams)
*Denotes first World Championships team

Women

• Annika Belshaw (Steamboat Springs, CO; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; University of Utah; 6/13/2002; 2021, 2023)
• Josie Johnson (Park City, UT; Park City Ski & Snowboard; 10/3/2006; 2023)
• Paige Jones (Park City, UT; Park City Ski & Snowboard; University of North Dakota; 8/30/2002; 2021, 2023)
• Samantha Macuga (Park City, UT; Park City Ski & Snowboard; Dartmouth College; 2/17/2001; 2023)
• Sandra Sproch (Chicago, IL; Norge Ski Club; 11/9/2007)*

Men

• Erik Belshaw (Steamboat Springs, CO; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; University of Utah; 8/23/2004; 2021, 2023, 2024)
• Kevin Bickner (Wauconda, IL; Norge Ski Club; 9/23/1996; 2017, 2018, 2019, 2024)
• Jason Colby (Steamboat Springs, CO; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; 3/30/2006)*
• Tate Frantz (Lake Placid, NY; New York Ski Education Foundation; 3/28/2005; 2024)
• Casey Larson (Barrington, IL; Norge Ski Club; University of Utah; 12/16/1998; 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023)

Article courtesy of Cara Larson, USA Ski Jumping. 

The 2024-25 winter season kicked off this weekend with the opening World Cup event in Lillehammer, Norway, and Tate Frantz landed two top-10 finishes.

The weekend show started on Friday, Nov. 22, with the mixed team event. Annika Belshaw, Paige Jones, and Casey Larson delivered solid efforts, keeping the USA in contention. The team ended the day in 10th place despite some unforeseen equipment issues.

Saturday, Nov. 23, marked the first of two individual competition days, beginning with the women’s event. Paige Jones and Annika Belshaw advanced past the qualification round and on to the competition round, but both narrowly missed the second round.

The men’s competition followed, featuring Kevin Bickner, Eric Belshaw, and Tate Frantz advancing out of qualifications. Bickner and Belshaw came up just short of the second round. Frantz, however, impressed with a first-round solid jump that positioned him in ninth place. He held his ground in the second round, securing an impressive top-10 finish in 10th place, adding another World Cup podium to his resume.

The competition mirrored Saturday’s schedule on Sunday, Nov. 24, commencing with the women. Athletes Paige Jones, Annika Belshaw, and Josie Johnson successfully advanced through the qualification round to the first round of competition. Jones delivered a commendable performance, securing a spot in the final round and finishing 29th. 

On the men’s side, Frantz found even more success. Four athletes made it out of the qualification round: Kevin Bickner, Tate Frantz, Casey Larson, and Andrew Urlaub; only Bickner and Frantz advanced to the second round. Bickner ultimately finished the day in 24th, but teammate Frantz doubled down and secured his second top-10 finish for the weekend–his eighth career World Cup top-ten. 

Next up, the U.S. Ski Jumping Team will travel to Ruka, Finland for next week's World Cup competition. 

RESULTS

Mixed Team Event (Friday, Nov. 22)
Men’s Large Hill HS140 (Saturday, Nov. 23)
Women’s Large Hill HS140 (Saturday, Nov. 23)
Men’s Large Hill HS140 (Sunday, Nov. 24)
Women’s Large Hill HS140 (Sunday, Nov. 24)

The Viessmann FIS Ski Jumping 2024-25 World Cup season is officially set, with the highly anticipated Lake Placid World Cup returning to the U.S. on Feb. 6-9, 2025. 

Lake Placid, NY will host a World Cup event for the third consecutive year and will include the women’s event in the U.S. for the first time in history. The World Cup will showcase the world's top athletes on Lake Placid’s legendary Olympic jumps.

All three days of jumping will be held on the large hill, an HS128. The women's qualification will begin on Thursday. They will have one round to qualify, and the top 40 athletes will move on to the competition on Friday. 

On Saturday, the men will have their first individual event, starting with qualification, from which the top 50 will move directly into the competition. Afterward, the women will take the stage for their second and final individual event in the same format as a qualification round that leads right into the competition rounds. The day will culminate with the mixed team event, where two male and two women jumpers from each nation will compete against the other nations. 

The men will return to the ski jump for their last individual event on Sunday, the final day of the Lake Placid World Cup. Athletes must requalify, and the top 50 will advance to the competition later that day. 

“We’re delighted to welcome ski jumping back to ‘home turf’ for the Lake Placid World Cup for what promises to be a groundbreaking event,” said Anders Johnson, USA Ski Jumping and Nordic Combined Sports Director. “With both men’s and women’s competitions included this year, we expect an exciting few days of competitions that will inspire fans and future generations of jumpers.”

More on how to tune into our events can be found HERE.