US Olympic Alpine Team

27th January 2010

Double World Champion Lindsey Vonn (Vail, CO) and two-time Olympic silver medalist Bode Miller (Franconia, NH) join 2006 Olympic gold medalists Ted Ligety (Park City, UT) and Julia Mancuso (Olympic Valley, CA) as the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) announced the 2010 Olympic Alpine Ski Team Monday.  The Team is subject to final review by the U.S. Olympic Committee.

US Olympic Alpine Team

USSA President and CEO Bill Marolt, together with the U.S. Olympic Committee and Team partner Visa, announced the roster of 22 athletes to compete in the alpine events at Whistler Creekside north of Vancouver during the 2010 Winter Olympics. The team is a mix of nine Olympic veterans and 13 first-timers.

Vonn's 2008 and 2009 seasons accounted for five World Cup titles and she set numerous ski racing high marks, yet her genuine approachability by fans and media alike have rocketed her to the forefront of Olympic sport, including a recently announced honor as 2009 USOC SportsWoman of the Year. Vonn has won every World Cup downhill this season and currently leads the overall, downhill, super G and super combined points standings.

Joining Vonn and Mancuso in the Olympic spotlight is World Cup winner Sarah Schleper (Vail, CO) who becomes a four-time Olympian after missing the two seasons directly after the 2006 Games due to injury and the birth of her nearly two-year-old son, Lasse.

Sparked by solid early season finishes in speed events and a January super combined victory in classic Wengen, Switzerland, Miller - also a four-time Olympian and a double silver medalist from 2002 - is poised to charge on North American snow. Ligety's big race success began in 2006 when he became the Olympic combined gold medalist. He has since continued the trend with multiple World Cup wins, a World Cup giant slalom title in 2008 and a World Championships giant slalom bronze in 2009.

Following a series of three World Cup speed races next weekend in St. Moritz, Switzerland, women's speed will train at their European Base at Zell am See-Kaprun, Austria until Feb. 5 before arriving in Vancouver on Feb. 9, while the tech athletes will prepare in Jackson Hole, WY.

On the men's side two giant slaloms and a slalom are set for Kranjska Gora, Slovenia before both men's speed and technical groups move into a pre-Olympic camp in Park City, UT. U.S. men will also arrive on Feb. 9 in time for the first downhill training run set for Feb. 10.

There are a total of five medal events for each gender with downhill, super G, super combined, giant slalom and slalom all on the Olympic calendar.

Men 2010 US Olympic Alpine Team

Will Brandenburg, Spokane, WA, 23, 1/1/87
Jimmy Cochran, Keene, NH, 28, 5/29/81 (2006)
Erik Fisher, Middleton, ID, 24, 3/21/1985
Tommy Ford, Bend, OR, 20, 3/20/89
Tim Jitloff, Reno, NV, 25, 1/11/1985
Nolan Kasper, Warren, VT, 20, 3/27/89
Ted Ligety, Park City, UT, 25, 8/31/84 (2006)
Bode Miller, Franconia, NH, 32, 10/12/77 (1998, 2002, 2006)
Steven Nyman, Sundance, UT, 28, 2/12/82 (2006)
Marco Sullivan, Squaw Valley, CA, 29, 4/27/80 (2002, 2006)
Andrew Weibrecht, Lake Placid, NY, 24, 2/10/86
Jake Zamansky, Aspen, CO, 28, 6/26/81

(name, hometown, age as of opening ceremonies, birthdate, (past Olympics))

Women 2010 US Olympic Alpine Team

Stacey Cook, Mammoth Mountain, CA, 25, 7/3/84 (2006)
Hailey Duke, Boise, ID, 24, 9/17/85
Julia Mancuso, Olympic Valley, CA, 25, 3/9/84 (2002, 2006)
Chelsea Marshall, Pittsfield, VT, 27, 11/15/82
Megan McJames, Park City, UT, 22, 9/24/87
Alice McKennis, Glenwood Springs, CO, 20, 8/19/89
Kaylin Richardson, Edina, MN, 25, 9/28/1984
Sarah Schleper, Vail, CO, 30, 2/19/79 (1998, 2002, 2006)
Leanne Smith, Conway, NH, 22, 5/28/87
Lindsey Vonn, Vail, CO, 25, 10/18/84 (2002, 2006)

(name, hometown, age as of opening ceremonies, birthdate, (past Olympics))

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