Phil McNichol earns two USSA coaches awards

During his acceptance speech after being recognized as the USSA Coach of the Year on Friday night, outgoing men’s alpine head coach Phil McNichol told the crowd he wouldn’t get as emotional in his remarks as he did in March when he first learned he’d won the award at U.S. Nationals.
    “I got a little choked up to say the least,” McNichol said. “Now I’m prepared, and I have a lot of free time. So I’ve actually been able to do a little reading besides rule books and manuals.”
    That line drew a laugh and applause from the crowd of USSA officials, trustees, board members, athletes and more who had gathered at the Yarrow Hotel ballroom for the organization's annual awards dinner during the Congress. McNichol’s speech was still tinged with emotional moments, especially when he recalled hugging an athlete after he steps off the World Cup podium and “you’ve coached them since they’ve been a young teenager.” And then, pointing down to men’s team member Scott Macartney in the audience, McNichol acknowledged how powerful it was to watch the downhiller open his eyes for the first time in a Kitzbühel hospital this past season, emerging from a coma after crashing at high speed during the Hahnenkamm.
    “I’ve never lost one on my watch,” McNichol said with moist eyes. “so I’m leaving, I think, at the right time.”
PARK CITY, Utah — During his acceptance speech after being recognized as the USSA Coach of the Year on Friday night, outgoing men’s alpine head coach Phil McNichol told the crowd he wouldn’t get as emotional in his remarks as he did in March when he first learned he’d won the award at U.S. Nationals.
    “I got a little choked up to say the least,” McNichol said. “Now I’m prepared, and I have a lot of free time. So I’ve actually been able to do a little reading besides rule books and manuals.”
    That line drew a laugh and applause from the crowd of USSA officials, trustees, board members, athletes and more who had gathered at the Yarrow Hotel ballroom for the organization's annual awards dinner during the Congress. McNichol’s speech was still tinged with emotional moments, especially when he recalled hugging an athlete after he steps off the World Cup podium and “you’ve coached them since they’ve been a young teenager.” And then, pointing down to men’s team member Scott Macartney in the audience, McNichol acknowledged how powerful it was to watch the downhiller open his eyes for the first time in a Kitzbühel hospital this past season, emerging from a coma after crashing at high speed during the Hahnenkamm.
    “I’ve never lost one on my watch,” McNichol said with moist eyes. “so I’m leaving, I think, at the right time.”
    During his time as head coach, McNichol saw a number of the men on the team achieve success. Bode Miller and Erik Schlopy took gold and bronze at the 2003 World Championships in St. Moritz. Daron Rahlves and Miller took gold and silver at the 2005 World Championships in Bormio, after which Miller went on to win the first World Cup overall title for U.S. men in 22 years.
Miller, Rahlves, Steven Nyman, Ted Ligety and Marco Sullivan each won World Cups under McNichol’s leadership. And this past season, Ligety won the World Cup GS title, marking the ninth title win under McNichol’s direction.
    McNichol went on to thank his family for their unfailing support over 25 years, and finished by telling the USSA benefactors and coaches in the room to continue to acknowledge and encourage their athletes.  
    “Everyone has greatness in them, and it’s your job to make sure that they become great,” he said.
    McNichol also shared the Alpine International Coach of the Year with departed women’s head coach Patrick Riml. A member of the U.S. Ski Team staff for seven years, Riml led his team to World Cup, World Championship and Olympic success, which most recently culminated with Lindsey Vonn winning the World Cup downhill and overall titles. One of the highlights was Julia Mancuso’s Olympic giant slalom gold in 2006, plus World Championship medals by Mancuso in 2005 and both Vonn and Mancuso in 2007.

Erik Flora wins two cross-country awards
Erik Flora was named USSA Development Coach of the Year for his commitment to the training of athletes as well as his dedication to providing opportunities to nordic skiers everywhere. The head coach at the Alaska Pacific University Nordic Ski Center, Flora has been a key factor in the success of the top nordic skiers in the nation, including the first woman to win a cross country World Cup, Kikkan Randall. He was also named the Cross Country Domestic Coach of the Year. Ironically, Flora missed the awards ceremony because he was officiating Randall’s wedding last Friday night in Alaska.
    Other coaches honored Friday night included Bruce Knoepfel, coach for Iced Out Racing, a program affiliated with Team Summit, as the Alpine Domestic Coach of the Year; Matt Whitcomb, a coach for the U.S. Ski Team’s Continental Cup squad, as the Cross Country International Coach of the Year; Todd Schirman, a freestyle moguls coach on both the NorAm and World Cup levels as the Freestyle International Coach of the Year; Elana Chase, whose Aspen Valley Ski Club athletes achieved 16 Junior Olympic medals — eight of which were gold, and four athletes earned spots to compete in three World Cup events — as Freestyle Domestic Coach of the Year.
    "I’m really an extension of my athletes and their success,” Chase said. “I still can’t believe [what I do] is a job.”  
    Ben Roberts, a U.S Disabled Alpine Team technician for two seasons before turning to a coaching position in 2006, is the Disabled Coach of the Year. Roberts played a key role in the team’s success this season, including Chris Devlin-Young’s World Cup super G title.
    “I want to take a moment to thank the folks in the [USSA] office,” Roberts said Friday night. About three years ago I tried to join the team. Skiing a video camera to a colleague I fell and broke my neck in Switzerland. At the time I didn’t know what to expect of the organization.
    “The bottom fell out, I had a bad injury and the support from the office was incredible. I just want to say thank you to all those folks.”
    Olympic medalist Lasse Ottesen was honored as the Nordic Combined International Coach of the Year. Ottesen, who competed on the World Cup circuit for 11 years, joined the U.S. coaching staff after the 2004 season and took over the nordic combined squad with the 2007 season. Under his direction, Bill Demong reached new heights in American nordic skiing history by finishing third in the World Cup standings — the highest mark achieved by an American nordic skier. Ottesen left the Team after the 2008 season to return to his native Norway.
    A nine-year U.S. cross-country team athlete and the 1980 U.S. Olympic Nordic Team captain, Craig Ward was named the Nordic Combined Domestic Coach of the Year. Ward is currently working with Aspen Valley Ski Club to raise funds for a new jumping complex. In 2002 he petitioned AVSC to re-start a ski jumping program, which continues to grow thanks to his leadership.
    “I want to thank all the people in Aspen at the Aspen Valley Ski Cl
ub because without their support the jumping program would not be going,” Ward said. “We look forward to building three jumps in Aspen in the next couple of years.”
Ward closed his remarks by paying tribute to all the coaches’ spouses who never receive enough recognition for the sacrifices they make.
    Former U.S. Snowboarding athlete and now coach Rick Bower was named the Snowboarding International Coach of the Year. Under Bower’s guidance, Gretchen Bleiler became an X Games gold medalist, Louie Vito had podiums at three major events and became the Chevy U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix champion and Greg Bretz had three World Cup and two Grand Prix podiums.
    Ben Boyd, the snowboarding program director at Ski and Snowboard Club Vail, was named the Snowboarding Domestic Coach of the Year. Boyd, who was asked to start the snowboarding program at the club six years ago, has driven the program from the ground up and had his first athlete named to U.S. Snowboarding with Broc Waring last season.