Featured Image: Sara Rask. NCAA Photos via University of Denver Athletics.
DENVER – The Denver Pioneers ski team is in week four of the athletes’ pre-season dryland training in preparation for the 2026 winter season. Here in Colorado, the snow will be falling soon and the athletes are working hard with cross-training and in the weight room before strapping on skis.
Women’s alpine graduate student Sara Rask was honored on Saturday afternoon in Beaver Creek at the Colorado Snowsports Museum’s annual Hall of Fame and Awards ceremony as a Collegiate Athlete of the Year. The Stockholm, Sweden, native was only the female athlete nominated and for good reason—she won all eight college races in 2025, swept each of the seven women’s slalom events and completed the national championship double by claiming gold in both slalom and giant slalom at the NCAA Championships in Dartmouth this past March.
Earlier on Saturday, the Nordic team continued a new tradition with a 5K time trial trail run up Mount Falcon—located west of Denver in Morrison. Freshman newcomer Yannick Zellweger and junior Maja Moland were the men’s and women’s winners.
New Nordic head coach Eliska Albrigtsen has been in Denver for the past two weeks after driving nearly five days straight from Fairbanks, Alaska. She recorded a Denver Coaches Radio Show segment recently, and Eliska will debut on the show next Wednesday, Oct. 8 at 6 p.m. MT. You can listen to it live on Denver Sports 104.3 The Fan HD3 or watch or listen to the entire interview the next day on DenverPioneers.com.
More recent news:
New Pioneers
Denver skiing is welcoming nine newcomers to its 2026 squad with Caman Beauregard (Steamboat Springs, Colorado), Elisabeth Creighton (Montreal, Quebec, Canada) and Cecilia Pizzinato (Courmayeur, Italy) joining the alpine squad and transfer-student Eemil Juntunen (Iisalmi, Finland), graduate student Sondre Oestervold (Kristiansand, Norway) and freshmen Synne Bollingmo (Raufoss, Norway), Estelle Darbellay (La Fouly, Switzerland), Ruby Serrouya (Revelstoke, British Columbia, Canada) and Yannick Zellweger (Fex, Switzerland) making up the new Nordic members.
More about the Pioneers’ roster below:
Florian Knopf Went All-In at Denver
DU skiing alum Florian Knopf had high hopes of racing on the World Cup stage and competing at the Olympics for the German National Team, but he found himself in an identity crisis of sorts five years ago.
He rediscovered himself at the University of Denver and his journey helped him get back onto his competitive trajectory in cross country skiing. He now aims to make Germany’s Olympic squad for 2026 in Cortina. Read Full Story
Kirkeng Established Himself as One of the Best DU Skiers Ever
Four years ago, Andreas Kirkeng needed a change. The Lier, Norway, native was on his country’s national junior Nordic team and while he enjoyed the training aspect of cross-country skiing, the passion for the racing side wasn’t the same.
With a desire to further his academics, Kirkeng followed his older brother Ole Marius’ trek to the University of Denver to earn a college degree while also competing in cross country with the renowned ski team. The journey to Denver might have been one of the best decisions he’s ever made.
Kirkeng graduated with two degrees and finished tied for the most individual victories by a men’s skier in school history. Read Full Story
Barbier Become One of First DU Student-Athletes to Earn Fulbright Grant
The University of Denver Department of Athletics has two recently-graduated student-athletes in Sidney Barbier (skiing) and Rylie Mundell (gymnastics) who are heading to Europe during the 2025-26 academic year as a part of the U.S. Department of State’s prestigious Fulbright U.S. Student Program.
Barbier and Mundell are the first two DU student-athletes to earn grants from the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, which was established in 1946. The two former Pioneers are part of a University of Denver single-cycle-record eight DU students who are traveling across the world as part of the program in this academic year. Read Full Story
What DU Skiers Do When the Snow Melts
Picture this: You’re walking the loop of Washington Park and suddenly someone whizzes past you on what look like skis. What they’re doing is called roller skiing, a form of Nordic skiing training that uses cross-country techniques on make-shift roller blades.
The person doing it could very well be a member of the University of Denver skiing team—completing one of their many offseason training activities. Read More on DU Newsroom
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About the Author: Katie Twible
