Hunt: U.S. alpine team for worlds has the potential

Defending downhill and super G world champion Bode Miller — who has won four World Cup races this season — and Julia Mancuso, who has won three World Cup races in the past month, headline a group of 17 athletes named to represent the U.S. Ski Team at the Alpine World Championships next month in Sweden.
PARK CITY, Utah — Defending downhill and super G world champion Bode Miller — who has won four World Cup races this season — and Julia Mancuso, who has won three World Cup races in the past month, headline a group of 17 athletes named to represent the U.S. Ski Team at the Alpine World Championships next month in Sweden.
    U.S. Alpine Director Jesse Hunt said the group also includes Lindsey Kildow, who has won two World Cup races this season; Olympic champion Ted Ligety; and Steven Nyman, who won his first World Cup race in December. Fourteen Olympians are included in the group of nine men and eight women who comprise the team heading to Are, Sweden, for the championships, Feb. 3-18.
    “This is an extremely talented group of athletes, who have shown this season they’re ready to do well — again — at the World Championships. We came home from the 2005 worlds with six medals,” Hunt said. “We think this group could be just as successful.”
    In 2005, Miller won gold in the downhill and super G in Bormio, Italy; in 2003, he was giant slalom and combined gold medalist and super G silver medalist. Mancuso was bronze medalist in both giant slalom and super G while Daron Rahlves, who retired last spring, was silver medalist in DH and bronze medalist in GS.
    So far this season, U.S. alpine racers have won 10 races and had 11 other top-three results in World Cup races.

U.S. skiers named to the 2007 World Championships team for Are, Sweden:

Men
Jimmy Cochran, 25, Keene, N.H. (2006 Olympics)
Tim Jitloff, 22, Reno, Nev.
T.J. Lanning, 22, Park City, Utah
Ted Ligety, 22, Park City, Utah (2006 Olympics)
Scott Macartney, 29, Redmond, Wash. (2002, '06 Olympics)
Bode Miller, 29, Bretton Woods, N.H. (1998, '02, '06 Olympics; 5 worlds medals)
Steven Nyman, 24, Provo, Utah (2006 Olympics)
Tom Rothrock, 28, Cashmere, Wash., (2002 Olympics)
Marco Sullivan, 26, Squaw Valley, CA (2002, '06 Olympics)

Women
Kirsten Clark, 29, Raymond, Maine (1998, '02, '06 Olympics; '03 super G silver medalist)
Stacey Cook, 22, Mammoth Mountain, Calif. (2006 Olympics)
Jessica Kelley, 24, Starksboro, Vt.
Lindsey Kildow, 22, Vail, Colo. (2002, '06 Olympics)
Libby Ludlow, 25, Bellevue, Wash. (2006 Olympics)
Julia Mancuso, 22, Olympic Valley, Calif. (2002, '06 Olympics; double bronze in '05)
Kaylin Richardson, 22, Edina, Minn. (2006 Olympics)
Resi Stiegler, 21, Jackson Hole, Wyo. (2006 Olympics)

    “A couple of things stand out for me with this group; it’s a smaller team than we named two years ago but that’s because so many skiers are racing in more than one event. It’s a strong team,” Hunt said. “We had that historic stretch before Christmas when these athletes had nine podiums, including five World Cup wins in six days. It was not just one or two athletes, it was five of them … and they were men and women, and they were performing at that high level in all disciplines — slalom, GS, super G and downhill.
    “That’s the kind of talent this group is bringing to Are. It’s a potent group of athletes and we’re looking forward to the excitement and competitive challenge of World Championships.”