World Championship medalist Kikkan Randall (Anchorage) was among a group of seven athletes, including six Olympians, named to the 2011 U.S. Cross Country Ski Team. Aspiring future stars in Sun Valley got a chance for a sneak preview of the squad this weekend when the U.S. Ski Team spent an afternoon with young athletes from the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation.
Headlining the Team are three-time World Cup podium finisher Andy Newell (Shaftsbury, VT) and top distance athlete Kris Freeman (Andover, NH), along with 2009 World Championship silver medalist Randall. They were among five athletes named to the A Team along with Olympians Liz Stephen (E. Montpelier, VT) and Morgan Arritola (Ketchum, ID).
"We have a small team with only seven athletes, but everyone has two things in common. First, they are proven athletes who have demonstrated that in Europe, racing at the highest levels. They have what it takes to be the best in the world. Second, they are 'all in,' 100 percent committed to discovering their absolute potential in the sport," said head coach Chris Grover. "This has been a great camp and we're proud to showcase our 2011 U.S. Cross Country Ski Team in Sun Valley."
"It's cool to be able to meet the kids because cross country skiing in the U.S. is a grassroots sport," said the Team's star sprinter Newell, back for his ninth year on the Team. "The clubs around the country are what fuel the talent and what make it so that the next generation's skiers can be better than the ones before them. The Sun Valley Ski Club and the resort have been really helpful in providing us with support so that way we can come in and train with everyone in the community. It's a great motivational boost for the young skiers to see the U.S. Ski Team training, and its cool for us to train and hang out with the youngsters too."
Newell and his teammates wrapped up their training day Saturday by meeting local athletes and signing autographs. The Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation is one of a number of top USSA cross country clubs actively pushing athletes up to the U.S. Ski Team. The Team was in town for a late-summer dryland training camp.
Contributed by skiing.teamusa.org, original article HERE.
