Bridger Gile’s Race Trajectory Shifts After World Championships
Bridger Gile’s race trajectory has two distinct periods: “BC,” before the World Championships, and “AD,” after delivering results.
While the 25-year-old Aspen native may not define his progress in these nonsecular terms, Gile, first named to the U.S. Ski Team in 2020, experienced a breakthrough after his strong Valentine’s Day giant slalom finish at the 2025 FIS Alpine Ski World Championships in Saalbach-Hinterglemm.
“I feel like a new man,” Gile said. “I finally broke the barrier of getting a second run, even if it was a slightly condensed field and I was finally able to prove to myself that I have the skiing needed to be top 30 in World Cups. So, I will carry that confidence with me the rest of the season.”
The rest of the season starts Saturday, with the men’s giant slalom in Kranjska Gora.
Gile’s Training Focus Turns to Speed
Fabien Munier, Alpine Men’s World Cup Team head giant slalom coach, is in his first year coaching Gile.
“Bridger has evolved by seeking more speed and winning times in training,” Munier said. “Competing against foreign nations with athletes among the world’s top 15 in the discipline has built his confidence, and his European Cup results in January confirmed his level of skiing.”
Gile’s best European Cup finish came in Turnau, Austria, on Jan. 25, when he placed sixth.
“Training well is important, but racing well proves you belong in a World Cup,” Munier said.
Gile admitted to battling self-doubt at times this year but now recognizes what it takes to compete with the world’s best.
“I was definitely starting to question my future as the season went on and I kept failing to get second runs. But after this result in a major event, I am much more optimistic and believe I can do it. But I can’t control or focus on that. All I can do is continue to put the work in and ski the way I did in Saalbach.”
Gile Capitalizes on Better Start Number
Munier agreed Gile took advantage of his improved start number on the big stage. He just missed the Stiffo Bibbo Award—Giovanni Franzoni earned it by jumping from bib 44 to 20th place. Wearing bib 40, Gile finished 19th, the second-best American result, two spots behind River Radamus. The duo also finished first and second in GS last year at the U.S. Nationals.
“The World Championships gave him a better start number, and he delivered a strong race,” Munier said. “Thanks to his performance, he’ll start with a better number at the next World Cup, which is very positive.”
He added that previously high bib numbers contributed to some missed opportunities in Beaver Creek, Val d’Isère, and Schladming.
Regarding their athlete-coach relationship, Gile said he appreciates how Munier, who coached successfully with the French Ski Federation, “keeps everything very simple on the skiing side, which has been really nice.”
Munier responded that “Bridger has excellent GS movement, so we focus on timing and the courage to take bold trajectories. He controls his skis precisely because he’s highly skilled.”
Previously, Gile worked with coach Ian Garner, who he reconnected with in Saalbach while Garner assisted the women’s tech team.
“It was awesome having him there because he has believed in me for a lot of years now, and it was nice to be able to prove him right while he was there,” Gile said.
World Championships Strengthens Team Bond
Saalbach proved a turning point in many ways.
“My takeaways are that World Champs is such a cool event. It’s great to see all the athletes from countries that aren’t ski powerhouses send it down the course,” Gile said.
“But my biggest takeaway is the strong sense of team throughout the event. We stayed in a hotel with the entire U.S. Ski Team, so it was really cool to spend time with the speed team and the women’s teams. Ski racing rarely feels like a team sport, but this did.”
During the championships, Radamus shared a video of the famous “Miracle on Ice” speech from the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey game against the Soviet Union. Gile took inspiration from it, noting that “great moments are born from great opportunity.”
By starting 40th in Saalbach, he seized that opportunity.
“My improved start number in Saalbach gave me the chance to earn a second run.”
Earning His World Championships Spot
No one was more shocked than Gile when coaches informed him he had made the World Championships team for the 48th edition of the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships.
“Yes, I was very surprised. We were training a couple of days after the Schladming GS, and after I finished inspecting the course, the coaches stopped me at the bottom and told me the good news,” he said. “Schladming was the last World Cup race to qualify, and I didn’t think I had done enough to earn a World Champs spot. So, when they told me I was going, I couldn’t believe it.”
Flash forward to Saalbach, where his blazing second run ranked fifth-fastest of the day and left Gile sitting in the leader’s chair for a few glorious minutes.
“Oh yeah, sitting in the leader’s chair was insane. To be able to do that in my first second run—at World Champs, no less—wasn’t something I imagined when I woke up that morning.”
“When I was sitting there, it felt surreal, but it also felt like a reward for all the hard work I’ve put in over the last couple of seasons. That feeling is addicting, and I’ll be chasing it the rest of my career.”
About the Author: Madeleine Osberger
