Chris Del Bosco, World Champion and three-time Olympian will add a new color to his uniform this season, and it is blue. After 15 unforgettable years with the Canadian Ski Cross Team, in true Del Bosco style, this spring he quietly made plans to make his final competitive runs wearing red, white and blue.

Often touted as the godfather of ski cross racing, he’s kept us on the edge of our seats, for more than a decade. Never one to settle, he sacrificed an easy Olympic bronze medal to attempt gold at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games. Del Bosco grew up in Vail, Colorado. As soon as he could walk, he was in ski boots on the Golden Peak. At the same age, he was also known to ride his mini-BMX bike through the streets of Eagle-Vail.

“I remember him as being very strong and coordinated. He had a great attitude and desire to master the skills. Chris, however, was a little rebellious and wanted to do his own thing,” -Jebbie Brown, long-time Vail ski instructor.

Alpine racing career unravels

No one ever doubted his natural talent and drive. Del Bosco’s list of youth accolades is extensive, including Junior Olympic gold medals, Whistler Cup podiums, and an invitation to represent the U.S.A. in the prestigious Trofeo Topolino Championships. However, his rise to alpine ski racing fame came to a halt 22 years ago at the U.S. National Championships due to two positive THC tests in two consecutive days. Testing positive for a banned substance twice resulted in a two-year suspension from racing and the start of some dark days for Del Bosco.

As time passed, Chris drank every day, and eventually, one December night he woke up in the hospital with no idea of how he got there. The nurses informed him that he was found in a creek with an 83-degree body temperature. Additionally, he had suffered a burst fracture in his neck. His family and friends pleaded with him to seek help, but he always answered, “I’ll figure it out.”

Finally accepting help

Fast forward a few years, Chris spent a couple of weeks with his sister and brother-in-law, Steve in California. Heather and Steve would leave for work and Chris would head for the liquor cabinet. One afternoon, Heather came home to find Chris passed out. She woke him and said, “Honey, it’s time. We can’t go on like this.” This time instead of him saying, “I’ll figure it out,” he said, “I know.” Within 24 hours, Chris was sitting in the intake office of a 90-day treatment program in Dana Point, California.

He flourished in treatment, wholeheartedly accepting his plight and making the most of his days. He found a part-time job at a bike shop in Laguna Beach, where, coincidentally, the head mechanic was one of his first sponsors as a young kid racing bikes in Vail. Things were starting to go Del Bosco’s way and he completed the treatment program on December 31st, 2005.

Ski cross career begins

He returned home to Vail and immediately hit the mountain. He asked his father if he would travel with him to the last chance X-Games qualifier in Sugar Bowl, California.  Chris hadn’t trained, skied or even thought about racing for over nine months. To everyone’s astonishment, Chris won the race and headed to Aspen. He battled through the rounds at X Games and made it to the big final. At the end of the day, he stood on the podium in 3rd place. Not bad for someone who, a few weeks earlier, was in Southern California getting sober.

Del Bosco comments on the experience, “I think I had a bright future in alpine ski racing, but chasing the next party or high became more important. The positive test was the nail in the coffin of my alpine career. I honestly felt like that was the end of my Olympic dream. It’s tough to think about all the opportunities I wasted and what I put myself, my friends, and my family through, but all of that has brought me here and made me who I am today, and I wouldn’t trade that for anything.”  

Canadian father makes national team possible

In 2007 lightning struck – the Canadians recruited Del Bosco and quickly his fortunes changed. The well-funded Canadian program set its sights on gold at its home Olympic Games in Vancouver.   Chris’s late Canadian father, Armando Del Bosco, qualified him for dual citizenship. The team soon found its way to the top and became dominant in the World Cup. The Canadian men’s team swept the podium at the Olympic test event, with Del Bosco taking home gold ahead of teammates Stanley Hayer and Davey Barr.

In February 2010, Del Bosco raced his way into the final heat at the Vancouver Olympic Games, but experienced contact at the start of the race and found himself in 4th place. With the crowd’s roar, he battled his way into the bronze position and it appeared a medal was in the cards. In the last turn, he launched himself off the penultimate jump to go for gold. Unfortunately, his medal hopes came crashing to a halt.  

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“Chris, from day one, was competitive, was driven and had a vision of what he wanted to do and how he would do it. I liked Chris’s, you would say now, “Old school style” which was get in shape, ski hard and have fun. We all knew that having fun was directly linked to winning and that was what he strived for day in and day out.” -Stanley Hayer, Head Coach World Cup – Canada Ski Cross

Del Bosco’s goals never included third place

Del Bosco remembers, “The race ends at the finish line. I was stuck in 4th at the top. Midway down, I moved into 3rd but the top 2 had a bit of a gap. I was reeling them in and thought if I could nail the last couple of turns and scrub the hip jump, I would have a chance to get at least one of them. As I attempted to scrub some speed over the hip jump, my edges set and it was game over.

An emotional and black-eyed Del Bosco explained his intentions at the press conference: “I wasn’t content with just settling, and, I don’t know, 3rd – I guess that’s all right for some people.” Later he expanded on those words: “I’ve never put 3rd on a goal sheet. I felt there was a chance to improve my position, so I went for it, but it didn’t work out.” Del Bosco became one of the bright examples of that Olympics. The nation truly appreciated his gold-or-nothing mindset and never wanting to settle.

Overcoming another setback leads to six podiums and becoming World Champion

Following the heartbreak of 2010, Del Bosco had surgery to repair a partially ruptured patellar tendon, an injury he had been nursing the entire Olympic season, and the initial prognosis was grim. It could be 12-14 months before he was back at the start gate. With true Del Bosco grit and grind, he was back on snow in six months. He found his way to the podium six times in 2011, including earning the biggest title of his career, Ski Cross World Champion in Deer Valley, Utah. It is a feat no North American male has been able to match.

Countless times over his career Del Bosco has shown tenacity. In November 2012, while preparing for the upcoming season and another Olympic selection period, he suffered a crash in training, dislocating and fracturing his shoulder, requiring another surgery. Once again, the outlook looked bleak, but Del Bosco did what he always had done and got to work. Immediately before the Sochi Olympic test event in February, Del Bosco received clearance to ski and then fought his way to a silver medal. In 2017, after a hard landing, something didn’t feel right in his left knee.

Another comeback

He battled through the season, finishing with a podium in Blue Mountain before consulting with his surgeon. He had torn one of the meniscal roots, which holds the meniscus in place. Once again, he went under the knife and was back on the rehab grind. He was again cleared to return early, and at the first World Cup in Val Thorens, he skied his way to the top step of the podium.

“His victory in 2017 in Val Thorens was amazing so deep into his career along with his return to racing after many injuries that just didn’t slow him down.” Stanley Hayer, Head Coach World Cup – Canada Ski Cross

With this World Cup win Chris secured his 3rd Olympic team nomination in Pyeongchang. Time after time, Del Bosco has made astounding comebacks.

The storybook Olympic ending once again eluded Del Bosco in Korea. After setting the fastest times in training on the Olympic track and leading the top split in the seeding run, he crashed. Since only 32 athletes qualify for the Olympics, by finishing Del Bosco secured his spot in the race. His time, however, ranked him last..

In the first round, Del Bosco got off to a good start, but when he neared the section where he crashed in seeding, he dumped too much speed and was passed. He tried to fight his way back into the heat, but upon entering the finish straight, he caught an edge before a jump and skyrocketed into the air. The crowd went silent. He was packaged into a toboggan, and on the way down, he raised his hand to signal he was conscious.

Another almost

“That was a big one. I was so fast all week that I felt like I was the one to beat. In seeding, I sent full gas into a section like every other run, but the speeds were up a bit. I overshot the landing and crashed. Thankfully, I was able to finish the run. For a moment, I thought it might be over before the race even began. I dusted myself off and tried to refocus for the race later that day.”

“In the first heat, I was leading, heading into that section and decided to dump a bit of speed, but it was too much. A couple of guys got by me and I scrambled my way down, trying to catch them. Heading into the final straight, I was pulled a bit deep by the draft on one of the landings, and in the transition, I caught an edge. It pitched me forward and I tried to recover, but it happened too fast. In the air, I was trying to either get to my feet or land flat on my back protector. I had an airbag on, but my rotation speed didn’t trigger the system, so it didn’t inflate.” Del Bosco separated his right sacroiliac joint and pubic symphysis, along with fracturing the left side of his sacrum. And once again, he would work his way back.

Best in the world at coming back

Recovering from addiction and recovering from so many catastrophic injuries requires superhuman powers. The focus on taking each day as it comes and not looking too far ahead has always set Chris apart. Quitting has never really crossed his mind. It’s no secret at this stage that he’s the oldest guy at the start gate. It’s no secret that everyone still pays attention to his technique and lines, and it’s no secret that you can’t count him out. FIS announced his retirement this past spring and he had to call and quickly ask for a retraction.

“No matter where Chris’s career takes him, I hope he knows what he did for the sport, from inventing the “cowboy” to proving that longevity in Ski Cross is possible. Chris deserves the utmost respect from all involved in ski cross for his Canadian career and I am looking forward to seeing what he can do moving forward with the US Ski Cross team.” -Stanley Hayer, Head Coach World Cup – Canada Ski Cross

Finishing career for the U.S.A.

Chris’ long-term goal since his beginning on the Canadian Ski Cross Team was to finish out racing for the U.S.A. He quietly has had plans in motion for months. FIS granted him a nation change with collaboration between Canada and the U.S.A.. He secured training opportunities, new equipment, and a racing suit. It’s been a genuine grassroots effort. Quite frankly, quitting and moving on would have been much easier. Del Bosco has been working hard and training with one of the other lone American ski cross racers, Tyler Wallasch.

“When I started racing World Cup Ski Cross, I always looked forward to heats with Chris. He was someone I always wanted to race head-to-head. Having the chance to race Del was always a challenge, and beating him always carried extra weight to me compared to the rest of the World Cup field (if I was lucky enough to actually beat him),” said Tyler Wallasch. He continued, “With Chris coming back to race for the U.S. this year, I think there might be some shock after spending so many years with the hugely successful and well-funded Canadian team to joining a “team” that hasn’t been an official federation-funded team since 2010. I can’t wait to see him do it in red, white and blue.”

German team sees benefit in collaboration

Together, they face a massive uphill battle this season, but they feel they can finally bring awareness and notoriety to US Ski Cross as teammates. Additionally, the German Ski Cross Team has offered to let them join them this season on the training hill and beyond.

“Chris’s way of talking critically about the development of the sport and always being open for solutions and being cooperative has always impressed me. With this approach, he has had a significant influence on the development of Ski Cross. It was immediately clear to me what an enrichment as an athlete and person Chris will be for our young DSV Ski Cross World Cup Team. We are thrilled to have him and Tyler join us this season.” – Heli Herdt, Sport Director DSV Ski Cross.

Funding an independent program is a continuing challenge

The main struggle is funding. Del Bosco has teamed up with World Cup Dreams Foundation to raise a minimum of $60,000 to compete this season. He’s asking for donations of any size and has set the goal of having 2,023 people donate $23.00 each by January 2023.

Never one to shy away from the impossible, Del Bosco is on a mission to finish his career on a high note and bring his legacy full circle by creating a path for other US athletes to follow. Alongside Chris and Tyler, fellow American Brant Crossan is trying to make his way skiing with Austrians. A promising younger group of racers follows them on the Noram and Europa Cup circuits. Del Bosco believes this group of unsupported athletes has a real chance to put ski cross on the US map.

Looking forward to leading the USA ski cross into a bright future

“My plan all along was to finish off my career racing for my home country. But, more importantly, over the last 15 years, I have watched so many missed opportunities for US ski cross racers. These guys are trying to do it all on their own, and I am ready to step in and lead the way to create a true US ski cross program. There is no doubt in my mind that this program can be up, running and winning by 2024 in Torino.”

With Del Bosco among the world’s top ski cross racers for 15 years, his 26 World Cup podiums, one World Championship gold medal, three Olympic appearances and five podiums in the X-Games, he is currently the most experienced ski cross athlete in the world. Del Bosco’s goals on the hill are clear (to win), his vision for the future of U.S. ski cross is hopeful (to form a winning team) and all that’s left is fundraising. And so, his final season begins, defying the odds once again.