X Games BEING Hailey Langland: If Not Now, Then When?
By Andrew Gauthier
January, 15 2021
Hailey Langland and Red Gerard at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, Korea. (U.S. Ski & Snowboard - Sarah Brunson)
At just 20 years of age, U.S. Snowboard Pro Team member Hailey Langland has accomplished more than most snowboarders in a lifetime. Sponsored at age six, followed by competition wins at age 14, Langland is what you might call “an old soul” on the slopes. With a classic rock upbringing and an appreciation for the snowboarding that came before her, Langland became a multi-discipline threat by age 16 and has no shortage of impressive competition finishes to her name. But all of that pales in comparison to Langland’s style, which she puts first and foremost.
San Clemente, California’s Hailey Langland has excelled in the sport of snowboarding. Before joining the U.S. Team Hailey was part of the Tahoe Select Snowboard Team.
Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund Exceeds Target
By Megan Harrod
January, 11 2021
The Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund has exceeded its $3M goal, raising more than $3,075,000 to support all athletes and teams during these uncertain and unprecedented times.
The Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund has exceeded its $3M goal, raising more than $3,075,000 to support all athletes and teams during these uncertain and unprecedented times.
Just over three months after launching the Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund, U.S. Ski & Snowboard has announced the fund has reached and exceeded its original goal of $3M, raising over $3,075,000. In creating the fund, the Shiffrin family, coupled with six families of generous donors, wanted to honor both Jeff’s legacy, as well as contribute to the ongoing pursuit of excellence for all athletes across all sports. Better days are still ahead, and the thrill and challenge of athletes’ Olympic dreams are worth fighting for.
With challenges, come opportunities.
The Shiffrin family believes that great goals can be achieved through hard work, discipline, and resiliency. The goal of the Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund is to keep athletes’ skis and boards on the snow, despite potential storms ahead. The Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund will sustain coaching, training camps, and competition expenses now, and hopefully, help bridge the gap through the end of the 2022 fiscal year.
“It is an honor to share that we have fully funded the Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund,” said Tiger Shaw, President, and CEO of U.S. Ski & Snowboard. “We are incredibly grateful to Mikaela, her mother Eileen, and brother Taylor, as well as the six families who helped launch the Fund, for their hard work and energy in creating this crucial piece of funding for our athletes and teams. I can think of no better way of honoring Jeff than by ensuring athletes have access to the resources they need.”
Shiffrin rallied a crew of alumni athletes and current athletes who embody the definition of “resiliency,” including Olympic champions Jonny Mosely, Kikkan Randall, Jessie Diggins as well as three-time World Champion Jeremy Bloom and three-time World Cup winner and Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team downhiller Steven Nyman, to share their unique stories of resilience. In addition, over 30 athletes across sports shared their stories of resilience in U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s social media challenge to #KeepTheFlameAlive. Donations flooded in from around the world, including 19 different countries, and 39 states—with Colorado and New York amassing the most donations. From Latvia to Great Britain and even Luxembourg, U.S. Ski & Snowboard fans from around the world donated and shared their words of encouragement with Shiffrin and her teammates.
“I am so full of gratitude, first, for my teammates for being open and courageous as they shared their stories of resilience...and, of course, to U.S. Ski & Snowboard and the donor families who worked tirelessly to make this Fund a reality,” said Shiffrin. “Finally, I’m thankful to all of those who donated, sent words of encouragement, and shared their own stories of resilience via social media. It was really heartwarming to see all of the feedback, and I know my dad would have been so proud of this project and so excited to see athletes across U.S. Ski & Snowboard off to such a strong start this season. Thank you.”
A big thanks is in order to all of the generous donors and to all of the athletes, led by Shiffrin, for their outreach to their personal networks. The fund has allowed U.S. Ski & Snowboard to sustain our training and competition schedule as many funding sources were impacted due to COVID. This has translated into one of the most successful seasons in history, as we have amassed 27podiums and eight victories this season across all sports—including a historic Tour de Ski win by Olympic Champion Jessie Diggins—which is a direct result of the consistent funding. On top of that, many athletes have reached the podium for the first time, the points for the first time, and have also enjoyed career-best results.
“This past year has been a master class in resilience, for our organization and our athletes,” added Shaw. “Through this Fund, we will be able to bridge the gap caused by challenges relating to the global pandemic, and beyond. I am humbled by the continued generosity of our donors and supporters, we could not do what we do without the passionate team behind the team.’
“We have had an incredible start to this competition season, and remain grateful to be able to train and compete. This is an important year for us in the run-up to the next Olympics. As medical advances are made and some sense of normalcy returns to the world, we look forward to a brighter 2021, and we cannot wait to celebrate with the world in Beijing in 2022.“
We are now shifting our focus to our annual alpine and freeski and snowboard sport fundraisers to further support the travel costs of each team.
For more information about the Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund visitkeeptheflamealive.org.
Two-time Olympic gold medalist and eight-time world champion Mikaela Shiffrin began turning heads almost instantly when she finished top 15 in her first two NorAm Cup races.
Jessie Diggins
Three-time Olympic medalist (bronze, silver, and gold), 7x World Champion, 29x World Cup winner (79 podiums), and 2021, 2023 and 2025 overall World Cup Crystal Globe winner, Jessie Diggins of Afton, Minnesota, is one of the most dominant and successful cross country skiers in the world.
Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix at Mammoth Mountain Postponed
By U.S. Ski & Snowboard
December, 23 2020
U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced on Dec. 23, 2020 that the 2021 Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix FIS Freeski and Snowboard World Cup at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, Calif., originally scheduled for Feb. 3-6 has been postponed.
The International Ski Federation (FIS), U.S. Ski & Snowboard, and Mammoth Mountain are working closely together to reschedule the events and will follow up with more information as it becomes available.
“We have worked closely with Tiger Shaw and U.S. Ski & Snowboard and agree that we must continue to prioritize the health and wellbeing of our employees, athletes, guests, and community,” said Mark Brownlie, President and COO of Mammoth Resorts. “With that in mind, the decision was made to postpone the event to a later date. We look forward to continuing our longstanding relationship and commitment to athletics at Mammoth Mountain and will explore all opportunities to reschedule this season.”
Specific event information will be forthcoming as the local organizing committee works through its detailed protocols with local and state health officials. The U.S. Grand Prix is contingent on local and state health department approvals based on existing and future COVID-19 rules and regulations. FIS, U.S. Ski & Snowboard, the local organizing committee, and Mammoth Mountain are taking a unified approach consistent with guidance from federal, state, and local health authorities.
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About U.S. Ski & Snowboard
U.S. Ski & Snowboard is the Olympic National Governing Body (NGB) of ski and snowboard sports in the USA, based in Park City, Utah. Tracing its roots directly back to 1905, the organization represents nearly 200 elite skiers and snowboarders in 2020, competing in seven teams; alpine, cross country, freeski, freestyle, snowboard, nordic combined and ski jumping. In addition to the elite teams, U.S. Ski & Snowboard also provides leadership and direction for tens of thousands of young skiers and snowboarders across the USA, encouraging and supporting them in achieving excellence. By empowering national teams, clubs, coaches, parents, officials, volunteers and fans, U.S. Ski & Snowboard is committed to the progression of its sports, athlete success and the value of team. For more information, visit www.usskiandsnowboard.org.
X Games to Kick Off Elite U.S. Park & Pipe Competition
By Andrew Gauthier
December, 15 2020
Colby Stevenson skiing his way to gold at the 2020 X Games in Aspen, Colo. (ESPN Images - Eric Lars Bakke)
ESPN announced today that X Games Aspen 2021 will return to Buttermilk Mountain in Aspen Snowmass, Colo., for the 20th-consecutive year Jan. 29-31, marking the first elite North American snowboard and freeski event of the season.
The list of invited athletes was nothing short of impressive including U.S. riders and Olympic gold medalists Chloe Kim, Jamie Anderson, Shaun White, and Red Gerard. The roster continues to get deeper with the freeskiers including back-to-back FIS World Champion Aaron Blunck; Olympic medalists Alex Ferreira, Nick Goepper, David Wise; as well as 2019-20 X Games medalists Alex Hall, Colby Stevenson, and Maggie Voisin.
X Games Aspen 2021 will feature men’s and women’s freeski and snowboard competitions in the disciplines of superpipe, slopestyle, big air, and men’s knuckle huck. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, X Games Aspen 2021 will be closed to the public and produced with comprehensive COVID-19 risk mitigation protocols in place for participants and staff.
Following X Games, U.S. Snowboard and Freeski Team athletes are set to continue competition in the United States from Feb. 3-6 at the Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix at Mammoth Mountain, Calif. The famed Unbound Terrain Park will host both slopestyle and halfpipe competition, pending local and state approvals. Meanwhile, U.S. Freestyle Ski Team athletes will take on the world-class moguls and aerials venues at Deer Valley Resort in Park City, Utah, for the 2021 Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International planned for Feb. 4-6 pending local and state approvals.
Double Olympic gold medalist Jamie Anderson competing in the 2020 Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix slopestyle finals at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, Calif. (U.S. Ski & Snowboard - Sarah Brunson)
The world has changed dramatically since the beginning of the 2019-20 winter competition season. However, one thing has remained the same - the unwavering dedication and skill that U.S. riders are prepared to bring to 2020-21 FIS World Cup and elite-level slopestyle, big air, halfpipe, and snowboardcross competition. The U.S. Snowboard Team will field 32 pro-level and 16 rookie and development level riders.
This season will have no shortage of excitement as the U.S. Snowboard Team’s Olympic gold medalists get ready to drop in. Chloe Kim will make her return to the halfpipe competition circuit after a year studying at Princeton University, Red Gerard will take his first steps towards 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games qualification, and veteran Jamie Anderson will set out to continue her timeless and undeniable dominance of the sport.
Although training opportunities were challenging to come by due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, there was tremendous success in running camps at official training sites of Timberline Lodge and Ski Area, Ore., The Stomping Grounds Park in Saas Fee, Switzerland, and Copper Mountain, Colo. this off-season.
The U.S. Snowboard Team is planning to kick off their season on home turf at Copper Mountain, Colo. with men’s and women’s World Cup competition. The 2020-21 Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix is expected to celebrate its 25th anniversary with halfpipe athletes set to compete from Dec. 16-19 at Copper Mountain, Colo. pending local and state approvals. The second annual Visa Big Air presented by Land Rover is also planned for Copper Mountain from Dec.17-19, pending local and state approvals.
From Feb. 3-6, the Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix is set to return to Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, Calif. and the famed Unbound Terrain Parks for slopestyle and halfpipe competition, pending local and state approvals. It’s only fitting that on it’s 25th anniversary, there is something special about the grand prix series. The Grand Prix at Mammoth will serve as the first U.S. Snowboard Olympic Tryout Event and provides a pathway towards qualifying for the 2022 U.S. Olympic Snowboard Team.
“While the World Snowboard Points List plays a significant role within our 2022 snowboard Olympic selection criteria, designated tryout events in 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons will be a pathway to U.S. Olympic Team qualification,” said U.S. Snowboard & Freeski Director Jeremy Forster. “The 2021 Mammoth Grand Prix is the sole tryout event for the upcoming season and will serve as a great kick-off to the U.S. Olympic Team selection process.
While the U.S. Freeski and Snowboard Teams will spend some time competing stateside, the U.S. Snowboardcross Team will spend the bulk of their season in Europe competing in seven World Cups across six countries. Snowboardcross athletes will join the park and pipe crew in Zhangjiakou, China, the site of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games for the 2021 FIS Freestyle, Freeski, and Snowboard World Championships Feb 18-28. Expectations will be high in China with Mick Dierdorff defending his individual title from the 2019 FIS World Championships as well as his team-mixed snowboardcross title earned alongside teammate and six-time world champion Lindsey Jacobellis.
“We weren’t able to get the training block we had hoped for in the southern hemisphere this summer, but we ended up getting some really high quality training in Saas Fee, Switzerland during our September and October block, said U.S. Snowboardcross Team Head Coach Peter Foley. “it feels great to have that in the books and to have the athletes riding at a really good level already in November. We are looking forward to making the trip to China for Worlds. We really want to get familiar with the Olympic course and the whole scene of competing in China.”
NBC’s new streaming platform, Peacock Premium, will live stream the 2020-21 FIS Snowboard World Cup this season. NBC, NBCSN, Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA and NBC Sports’ digital platforms will also air World Cup coverage all season. Snowboard broadcast and streaming listings, including the Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix and Visa Big Air, will be available throughout the season at USSkiandSnowboard.org.
2020-21 U.S. Snowboard Team
(Hometown; Club; USASA Series; Birthdate)
HALFPIPE
PRO TEAM
Men
Chase Josey (Hailey, Idaho; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; Big Mountain West Series; 3/31/95)
Toby Miller (Mammoth Lakes, Calif; Tahoe Select Snowboard Team; North Tahoe Series; 2/14/00)
Taylor Gold (Steamboat Springs, Colo.; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 11/17/93)
Chase Blackwell (Longmont, Colo.; Jim Smith Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 2/27/99)
Learn more about how you can support U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes this season at KeepTheFlameAlive.org
Mikaela Shiffrin
Two-time Olympic gold medalist and eight-time world champion Mikaela Shiffrin began turning heads almost instantly when she finished top 15 in her first two NorAm Cup races.
Jessie Diggins
Three-time Olympic medalist (bronze, silver, and gold), 7x World Champion, 29x World Cup winner (79 podiums), and 2021, 2023 and 2025 overall World Cup Crystal Globe winner, Jessie Diggins of Afton, Minnesota, is one of the most dominant and successful cross country skiers in the world.
NBC Sports to Televise Extensive 2020-21 Winter Olympic Sports Coverage This Season
By U.S. Ski & Snowboard
November, 11 2020
Two-time Olympic champion and Land Rover ambassador Mikaela Shiffrin poses on the podium with Santa Claus after winning the FIS Ski World Cup women's slalom event at the Levi ski resort in Kittilä, Finnish Lapland on November 23, 2019. This year, the first run will stream live on Peacock, while the second will be broadcast live on the Olympic Channel. (Martti Kainulainen - Lehtikuva / AFP)
U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes return to FIS World Cup competition this month, and the networks of NBC will broadcast more than 75 hours of live and same-day coverage in November and December on NBC, NBC Sports Network, and The Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA, from Levi and Ruka, Finland, Lillehammer, Norway, and Copper Mountain Colorado. Coverage begins with the FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup women’s slalom from Levi on Saturday, Nov. 21.
NBC Sports’ presentation of the 2020-21 FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup season begins with the women’s slalom from Levi, Finland, next Saturday, Nov. 21, at 7 a.m. ET live on Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA, NBCSports.com, the NBC Sports app, and OlympicChannel.com. An encore presentation of the race will be presented later in the evening at 12 a.m. ET on NBCSN.
The winningest slalom skier of all time and three-time Olympic medalist Mikaela Shiffrin is expected to make her 2020-21 FIS Ski World Cup competition season debut in Levi, and the Olympic Channel will broadcast the second run slalom event live on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 7 a.m. EST. Mikaela owns four career victories at the World Cup stop in Finland, including winning there in each of the last two seasons. NBC Sports’ Steve Schlanger (play-by-play) will call the action alongside former U.S. Ski Team alumnus speed skier Steve Porino (analyst).
The Olympic Channel will also provide live coverage of the FIS Cross Country World Cup sprint, skiathlon, and team sprint events from Lillehammer, Norway, Dec. 4-6; and same-day coverage of the FIS Freestyle World Cup moguls from Ruka, Norway, on Dec. 5. NBC, NBCSN, and the Olympic Channel will provide live and same-day coverage of the Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix, and the Visa Big Air presented by Land Rover from Copper Mountain, Colo., Dec. 18-19.
Last week NBC announced exclusive streaming of winter Olympic sports has moved from NBC Sports Gold’s “Snow Pass” to Peacock Premium. Peacock Premium will also become the exclusive home to all FIS events held in Austria, beginning with the FIS Freeski World Cup in Stubai, Austria on Nov. 21. Peacock Premium will also provide live streaming coverage of alpine, cross country, freeski, freestyle, ski jumping, nordic combined, and snowboard events throughout the season.
Check out the current television broadcast and streaming schedule for November and December for all sports are available here. Sport-specific broadcast and streaming schedules are available below:
Broadcast and streaming schedules on Peacock Premium will be updated on a weekly basis throughout the season.
Chris Corning Featured In Forbes
By Andrew Gauthier
October, 28 2020
Chris Corning after his victory at the 2019 Visa Big Air presented by Land Rover at SunTrust Park in Atlanta, Ga. (U.S. Ski & Snowboard - Mark Clavin)
Seven-time FIS Crystal Globe champion and U.S. Snowboard Pro Team member Chris Corning was recently featured in a Forbes.com article by Michelle Bruton, where he discussed his career, navigating the Covid-19 landscape, and his aspirations for the 2020-21 competition season. Chris has been a staple on FIS World Cup, X Games, Dew Tour, and U.S. Open podiums for years. Although he's only 21-years-old, he has been riding at a professional level since he was 15, and it's clear he has learned a lot from his experiences.
Chris's dedication and hard work has certainly paid off. Over his career, Chris has earned three slopestyle crystal globes, two big air globes, and two park and pipe overall globes. In addition, he has earned eight World Cup victories and 14 podiums in 27 career starts. Last season, he tied Janne Korpi for the most men's crystal globes ever in park and pipe World Cup history.
“There are a few people around us who know what we put into it," said Chris. "I think it’s not put out there how hard we actually work."
San Clemente, California’s Hailey Langland has excelled in the sport of snowboarding. Before joining the U.S. Team Hailey was part of the Tahoe Select Snowboard Team.
U.S. Snowboard Team takes to Austria for a canyoneering experience. (U.S. Ski & Snowboard)
The U.S. Snowboardcross Team took to the mountains of Austria for their annual team cohesion camp or “Rad Camp” from Sept 16-30. Rad Camp is a series of cross-training activities that lets the riders test their skills, develop a strong team culture, as well as have a ton of fun.
“To be competitive in snowboarding, an athlete has to be able to spend a lot of time outside of their comfort zone," said U.S. Snowboardcross Team Head Coach Peter Foley. “I like to find activities that the athletes might not be as familiar with so that they build up more experience facing uncomfortable situations and finding success in those areas. I feel like this prepares them for when it comes time to face the competitive pressures and straight-up gnarliness of doing what they do at the highest level of their sport.”
U.S. Snowboardcross Pro Team member Hagen Kearney shared the importance of being in the right headspace before strapping into his board.
“Rad Camp was awesome,” said Hagen. “I feel like whenever we do action sport related activities together and get out of our comfort zones, it helps us be in a better mental state going into training on snow. “
In addition to the mental aspect, Peter feels strongly about the physical training benefits related to off-snow activities, especially as it relates to the other gravity-driven sports. This time around the team took on mountain biking, cable park wakeboarding, canyoneering, and hiking.
“We did a bunch of mountain biking, which we feel is super valuable as another training aid,” said Peter. “For the athletes to be negotiating varied terrain, bank turns, jumps, doubles, etc. at speed is a huge benefit. Given the amount of time they can spend in an actual boardercross course during a year is very limited, it’s especially crucial we experience these elements as much as possible. The team also engaged in various activities including a really cool day of hiking in some high Austrian peaks, as well as spent an amazing day canyoneering,”
One new component of Rad Camp this year was the cross-team collaboration that took place at Area 47, the largest outdoor adventure park in Austria located in Ötztal-Bahnhof. Riders across the snowboardcross and the slopestyle teams tackled the cable park, where professional wakeboarder and U.S. Snowboard Rookie Team member Fynn-Bullock Womble put on a clinic.
“We had a super fun day where we teamed up with the slopestyle crew for a session of wakeboarding in a cable park,” said Peter. “It was really cool for the two groups to session it together. Fynn Bullock-Womble is insanely good, so it was rad for everyone to get to ride with him.”
U.S. Snowboard Slopestyle Pro Team member Dusty Henricksen has fully enjoyed getting a taste of Rad Camp and infusing cross-training into his regiment.
“It's been a blast hanging out with the team out here in Austria,” said Dusty. “We’ve been playing games of S-K-A-T-E in the parking lot to pass some time. We've been able to snowboard Hintertux, hit the Banger Park airbags, and go to Area 47, which has every outdoor activity you could imagine. We even had an insane day at the cable park with the snowboardcross team where everyone was ripping.”
Following Rad Camp, Peter and the team settled into Saas-Fee, Switzerland, for a long training block. They are aiming for 16 days of on-course training. Stay tuned for more news from Saas-Fee camp across U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s social media channels.
Hagen Kearney mountain biking during rad camp. (U.S. Ski & Snowboard - Peter Foley)
Nick Baumgartner going big over the U.S. Snowboardcross Team. (U.S. Sk & Snowboard - Peter Foley)
The U.S. Snowboardcross Team canyoneering in Austria. (U.S. Ski & Snowboard)
Mikaela Shiffrin
Two-time Olympic gold medalist and eight-time world champion Mikaela Shiffrin began turning heads almost instantly when she finished top 15 in her first two NorAm Cup races.
Jessie Diggins
Three-time Olympic medalist (bronze, silver, and gold), 7x World Champion, 29x World Cup winner (79 podiums), and 2021, 2023 and 2025 overall World Cup Crystal Globe winner, Jessie Diggins of Afton, Minnesota, is one of the most dominant and successful cross country skiers in the world.
