The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Associationhas named its largest Olympic team to date, thanks to the addition of several new events, and Vermont is well represented. However, with so many strong alpine racing programs in the state, you may be surprised to learn there’s just one Vermonter on the U.S. Olympic Alpine Team.
Nolan Kasper, of Warren, is one of 11 men named to the alpine team. This will be his second Olympics, having competed in Vancouver in 2010. Kasper has skied for Burke Mountain Academy and Dartmouth College.
Kasper joins five-time Olympic medal winner Bode Miller, of Franconia, NH and another Olympic veteran, Andrew Weibrecht, of Lake Placid, NY in representing the Northeast.
On the women’s team, Mikaela Shiffin has the closest ties to Vermont. Although she’s from Eagle-Vail, Colo., she is a 2013 graduate of Burke Mountain Academy. There are two New Hampshire skiers on the alpine women’s team. They are Julia Ford, of Holderness, and Leanne Smith, of North Conway, who also competed in Vancouver in 2010.
