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(We are) Better Than This

The United States has a long history of producing great ski racers. Olympic champions, World Cup overall winners, and some of the sport’s GOATs have carried our flag to the top of the sport. Regardless of what some may say, we ARE an Alpine nation.

This year saw historic firsts, break-out performances and new talent emerging at all levels.

However, we remain in fifth place (fourth in women and sixth in men) in the Nation’s Cup, with the Swiss outscoring us at a pace of nearly 4:1. This placing is one higher than the sixth place we have occupied for seven of the preceding eight years.

In the standings of the Marc Holder Trophy — a nation’s performance at the World Junior Championships — we are in 6th place, the same position we have held four of the last five years.

Notably, from 2002 to 2006, the USA won the Hodler Cup twice, was second once, and was third twice. This outcome overlapped with a period from 2005 to 2007 when the USA was second twice and third once in the Nation’s Cup.

Our only Nation’s Cup win in either gender was in 1983 when the USA women’s team took the title of the best Alpine team in the world.

We enjoy a large talent pool, fantastic resorts and smaller areas with reliable snow conditions, highly competent professional programs and coaches, great race venues, the support of the industry, and the best spring and fall training in the world.

So why do we repeatedly leave our potential as an Alpine ski nation unfulfilled?

By one benchmark, the number of 17-20-year-old skiers ranked in the top 300 in the world is at a historic low. Reviewing data from 2000-2024, we find that our high water mark was in 2004 with 52. In 2020, only 21 athletes met that standard (an uptick has us back up to 30 in 2024). During the same time, Norway had a low of 11 in 2000 and had risen to 34 by 2020.

As a percentage of our FIS athlete population, we underperform every major Alpine nation worldwide for 17-20-year-olds. That is on us, the clubs and academies.

This data indicates we are losing ground, not gaining ground.

We are better than this!

These trends take years, even decades, to develop, unwind, and reverse. The effects of what we undertake today will create outcomes we can observe in five or ten years. We have to play the long game while focusing on the next season and the next Olympic quad.

A great example is right down the hall with the USA Cross Country Team. USA cross-country skiing encounters the same perceived challenges as Alpine skiing. It remains a niche sport, lacks visibility to the public, has limited access to top-notch equipment, is more costly for the USA than our competitors, and is predominantly played overseas.

Steadily and deliberately, the USA has become one of the leading nations over more than 15 years, with consistent American leadership in a Scandinavian-dominated sport. During the 2024 Nation’s Cup, the USA was 4th overall (3rd in women). The USA is a Nordic nation now! Who knew?

The goal of our Alpine community must be to be the strongest Alpine nation in the world.

Measured by the Nations Cup, Olympic and World Championship medals and appropriate benchmarks at every level where the USA competes internationally, we can be the best. We WILL be when we all set that as the goal and work collectively towards it.

NASTAR

It starts with providing accessible ways for kids to sample the sport and offering low-cost options for them to get involved with programming and coaching. Right now, entering a sanctioned ski race is usually only possible by first joining a fee-based club. NASTAR is the vehicle by which most of our current national team members first experienced racing and got the “bug.”

Sadly, NASTAR participant numbers and host areas have declined precipitously over the last twenty years, limiting the opportunity for kids to experience the thrill of running gates. Most areas operate NASTAR as a revenue source to offset relatively modest operating expenses compared to the resources required to build parks, pipes, and jumps, which are made available as a free amenity.

What would most parents choose between a free trip through the beginner terrain park and a race course that costs $5 (or more) for a single run? We need free NASTAR with a ski lift at every area to get as many kids and families as possible to experience ski racing.

PROGRAMS

Unlike other school-age children’s activities, often priced at less than $100, outwardly similar ski or ski racing programs cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars. A parent not already planning to introduce their child to ski racing is unlikely to see the value in a program costing 10X, 20X, or more than what looks like a comparable program in a different sport.

Low or no-cost volunteer-driven programs seldom exist because of our over-professionalization of the sport.

Only wealthier families in our communities, who have access to snow, get their kids started for this reason. Those in the know see the associated costs as kids progress and know the likelihood of success is so low that they steer their families away.

The stark reality is that the outcome is that the vast majority of those starting in ski racing or any other childhood sport or activity will not achieve elite performance or realize a career as a professional. Programs should reflect that by offering accessible opportunities to race and benefit from the essential life lessons learned, friendships made and memories shared. Treating our athletes and expecting them to act like professionals is silly.

THE SYSTEM

A well-defined system with multiple levels, from recreational to performance-focused racing, already exists. We must strengthen sensible standards for advancing from one level to the next when performance indicates a need for increased challenges. Doing so will reduce the unwanted effects of resource application on advancement. A tiny percentage of 1-3% of any population of similarly skilled or experienced athletes need exposure or permanent advancement to the next available level. Racing at an appropriate level enhances achievement, satisfaction and enjoyment.

When athletes emerge to dominate their level, the steps to take are clear. This is where the system’s real work begins. We must ensure that there is as little financial impediment to advancement as possible. The system must support merit-based advancement, whether it is the club, division, region, NGB, or third-party supporters, such as the enormously impactful World Cup Dreams Foundation. We cannot have athletes who can afford the increased cost be the only ones who can take the steps they’ve earned.

Supporting athletes at older ages and higher levels has become increasingly expensive, mainly when clubs aim to provide more professional services and cover all the bases themselves. Programs striving to fully staff their older or more competitive athletes often must attract more athletes, charge higher fees, raise more money, or do all three. The drain from smaller clubs to these larger clubs further reduces their ability to sustain themselves. The undeniable message to families is, “If my child shows some desire and potential, we will need to move to another program.”

If we work towards the common goal of making our country the best in the world, we can reduce the barriers to collaboration. When teams worry about athletes departing and transferring their program fee revenue to support another club, programs feel compelled to send a team of coaches to every competition, offer camps that only a few athletes genuinely need, and organize racing trips that might be a crucial experience for one athlete but are funded by the participation of many.

Our divisions and regions are best equipped to organize out-of-division or out-of-region travel. To keep costs low, the programs and families can share the costs of the necessary staff or call upon the governing entity to support them. Working together towards a common goal will take us further.

Not every athlete’s coach will be there for every trip. That is a “feature,” not a “failure.” During their time involved in the sport, athletes interact with many, if not dozens, of coaches. The longer they stay in the sport and the higher they go, the greater that number will become.

They will only connect with some of them, but athletes must know how to get what they need from all of them. Most importantly, they need to be self-reliant. What are we doing when we put three coaches at the start, roto-brushing all the skis for them, telling them their number is coming up, and then sending them to their first Europa Cup with one coach on course and a radio at the start? That is silly.

We want our young racers to learn to take care of themselves. What happens when the first interview goes poorly, the sale isn’t closed again, and life doesn’t seem fair? Will someone be there to carry their jacket and training skis down? Or do we want them to gain the confidence to learn they can care for themselves??

THE NEXT STEPS

Every youth Ski League or Buddy Werner League kid dreams of becoming a “pro” with the US Ski Team. While the odds are far higher in ski racing than basketball or golf, making it to the national team or Olympics is undoubtedly uncommon. By definition, these are outliers.

Very few become “pros” while still in high school or graduating. As with other sports, individuals not “drafted” right out of high school should enroll in college on time, keep skiing as much as possible, and persist in pursuing their passion and goals.

The national team’s purpose is to aggregate the most exceptional athletes produced by the national system and provide them with the support, resources and experiences necessary to field the best team in the world. Whether at Alpe Cimbra or the Olympics, the team wearing our flag on its sleeve and the USA on its back should have everything it needs to beat the rest of the world.

The standard practice has become to take a PG or “gap” year, sometimes two, three, or even more, in pursuit of the national team or NCAA collegiate racing opportunity. Many college coaches who would like the fastest, strongest, most mature and most experienced recruit encourage taking a year or two. Many club, academy, or private team coaches encourage it to have a higher-level program, be able to take a whole group out of the region or to Nor-Ams, help fund their teams, and provide pacing to younger athletes still in high school.

The NCAA exception to the age eligibility rule available to skiing makes graduating seniors less attractive to college coaches. Many international students occupy these spots, having frequently reached the ceiling in their federation. They are prepared to leverage their hard work and high performance with a US education. The minimum FISU penalties and the perception of “soft” competition in most Nor-Ams enable these athletes to sustain or improve their point profiles while attending school. This allows them to return to their systems with enhanced skills.

Our colleges, universities and collegiate racing circuits are uniquely American opportunities, and we must use them effectively. Lately, athletes from other national federations have used more of our resources as a safety net or to advance their ski racing careers than our homegrown talent. Some of that blame rests in the unusual NCAA rules that allow ski racers in Division I schools to be up to three years older than their basketball and football counterparts. The NCAA should eliminate that exception.

THE COACH SYSTEM

The life of a ski coach is hard.

Life is tough for coaches who’ve dedicated themselves to the sacrifices of coaching the national team or any group of athletes with an extensive travel program. The ski coaching “vagabond” often creates challenging finances and failed relationships.

Yet men and women continue to do these jobs because they are challenging, present the opportunity for growth, are committed to the athletes and have a sense of duty to make our nation competitively strong. As a system, we need to support, nurture, and applaud those willing to sacrifice so much for us.

History demonstrates that our nation’s most successful periods were led by coaches and administrators who personally and professionally vested themselves in hearing our anthem play at the medal ceremony.

Because of the unlimited and unrealized potential clearly evident in the United States, we are fortunate to attract some of the most talented coaches worldwide and benefit from that knowledge and experience. Many have cut their teeth in our system and gone on to significant leadership roles in their native federations or others worldwide to form some of our most formidable competitors.

A systematic plan to identify, develop, and nurture coaches to populate our coaching staff with American talent must become a priority. Once assigned to these demanding roles, we must solve the challenges uniquely faced by American coaches who spend so much time away from home, family and loved ones. Encourage and applaud making time at home; don’t view it as a sign of weakness or lack of commitment. Sharing responsibilities and the ability to “tap out” to normalize life and family responsibilities can be an essential differentiator in our competition for talent. When it all becomes too much, we must cycle coaches into other vital roles in the system and not lose that accumulated knowledge.

THE PLAN

As much as we talk about treating our clubs, programs and organizations as a “business,” this is not a “business.” This is athletics, the development of human potential and passion. Nowhere in business is competition so brutally measured as in the cauldron of international sports competition. There is no medal ceremony for the world’s best surgeon, banker, carpenter, or CEO. In sports, there is no question who the best in the world was on that day, for that season, or throughout an era or a career. The clock is brutally unforgiving. You live and die with that objective measure as an athlete or a coach at that level.

Typical business practices don’t apply. To truly become the best in the world, it takes years of trial, tribulation, and accumulated knowledge to plan and confidently pursue the path to the best in the world. There isn’t an unlimited supply of interchangeable MBAs to draw from, teach the basics of the strategic plan, and set in motion to execute the priorities. To become genuinely remarkable and the best in the world at something takes time.

This is why so many billionaire sports franchise owners fail. It all looks so easy from the outside. In the end, they crown only one champion. Second doesn’t count for much. They’ve never faced such a zero-sum game, even in their highly competitive business ventures.

All our resources are insignificant without a common vision and a shared plan to be the best Alpine nation in the world.

Clearly defining our roles at each stage of the pipeline, eliminating unnecessary redundancies, and working together to benefit all our athletes will create a powerful and insurmountable force. Let’s not shy away from daring to be great.

We are better than this.