Five-year U.S Ski Team veteran Keely Cashman recently kicked out of her 15th-career World Cup start at Soelden’s season opener. The race marked her return to the World Cup for the 2021-22 season, and she is eager to take the winter by storm. The 22-year-old Squaw Valley native is an all-around alpine skier, hoping to succeed in all four disciplines.

2020-21 season cut short

The 2020-21 season started successfully for Cashman who earned three first-place and nine podium finishes on the NorAm circuit, where she captured the overall title. At the 2020 national championships at Copper Mountain, she finished fifth in the downhill and earned three second-place finishes in the slalom, super G, and giant slalom. Last December, Cashman placed in the top 20 in two downhill races in Val d’Isere and placed 10th in the super-G, a personal best.

“Honestly when I think about it, Val d’Isere was exciting for me because it was my first speed event in Europe,” Cashman reflected. “I didn’t really know where I was going to stack up. I’d been to Val d’Isere when I was 16. So, I kind of new the hill and I think that gave me a little bit of edge. I definitely feed off my teammate’s success, and I think being part of that team at that time inspired me a lot.

“I was getting super relaxed and was just having a good time,” she went on to say. “Not only that, but watching my teammates Breezy [Johnson] get her first podium, Paula [Moltzan] had just gotten her first podium, and the boys were crushing it, so I was just super relaxed and fired up and then, once I got my first result, I had the confidence. And for me having a little bit of confidence really helps.”

Riding high on the heels of her success at Val d’Isere, Cashman was looking forward to the remaining season when, in the waning days of 2020, she suffered a season-ending accident while speed training in Garmisch in advance of the St. Anton races. The accident left her temporarily unconscious and hospitalized for eight days while treating injuries in her knee, hips, and loss of feeling to her foot.

Following her recovery, Cashman had a strong off-season, splitting her time between the gym, speed team, and tech team.

“We started off with our spring camps, which [for me] was the start of the next season even though it was in the spring,” Cashman said.

Returning to the slopes for training after a break of several months proved to be challenging.

“Coming back from an injury feels a little bit different,” Cashman said. “Getting back on snow is something that I had never really experienced before. But that was my return to snow, return to training, and getting back up to speed, and that went really well.”

A minor accident at an April training camp at Mammoth affected Cashman’s confidence but not her spirit. “I think mentally it’s been challenging the last year between the injury and comeback, but I do think it’s making me a lot stronger.”

This was confirmed during a successful pre-season camp in Saas-Fee. “It was my first full up-to-speed downhill training, which I knew was going to be a mental barrier to get over just coming back from my crash [but] overall, it went really well.”

Cashman also focused on the tech disciplines and “was excited to set speed aside for a second and go with the tech team this last month.” Her teammates were an important factor in her comeback. “I think for me, the team environment off the hill is super important. Both on the speed and tech teams … we are really good teammates, and we’re really close to each other. I think having that and being able to help each other out and pushing each other in training is something that’s really helped me. I think that’s part of my success.”

Killington and plans for the season ahead

Cashman, a University of Utah sophomore, is taking a year off from academics to devote her full focus to skiing. She traveled to Copper Mountain in mid-November for speed training. Then it’s on to Killington at the end of the month where she plans to compete in the giant slalom and possibly the slalom. Lake Louise will mark her first foray into the speed events this season, where she is looking forward to building upon her experience in Val d’Isere.

“The feelings, the results, it’s still present even though it was a year ago. I’m hoping I can pick up where I ended last season before I got injured.”

Her coaching staff is also hoping to capitalize on this momentum. “My coaches have made it clear that speed is more of a priority than tech, just based on my performance.” However, the plan is not set in stone. “I’m planning to hit all the races this year, and of course that can change if one [discipline] is going better than the others. Say I’m doing a lot better in GS, then I might prioritize that. But right now, I’m mainly prioritizing speed.”

Cashman has big goals for the future. “I mean, honestly, I really just love doing all of [the disciplines] and I know I can be fast in all of them. I’ve been doing that since I was five years old, and I know I can be fast in each event. My ultimate goal is to win the overall globe and I think to do that you have to ski multiple events. So, it’s definitely tough and not possible for everyone, but I think I can do it. So, I’m going to try.”