Shiffrin, other Vail locals named to U.S. squad for 2020-21 ski season
Vail Daily
Pier Marco Tacca/AP | AP
VAIL — If Mikaela Shiffrin keeps at it, she just might make a career out of this skiing thing.
The queen of alpine racing officially got re-invited to the U.S. Ski Team for the 2020-21 season, as the squad announced its roster for the upcoming campaign on Wednesday. This was obviously a no-drama moment for the three-time World Cup champion.
We’re forecasting that Shiffrin has a spot as long as she wants it, and probably well after that. Wednesday was, however, a big day for some Vail locals as Allie Resnick and Trent Pennington got their first invites to the team.
Resnick is a familiar name to the team. Emma, 17, was already on the development squad, and now here comes Allie, 18. Both sisters grew went through Ski & Snowboard Club Vail.
Pennington, 17, is from Shalimar, Florida, and found his way to SSCV.
There is quite the local flavor on the squad at all levels. The B Team includes Bridger Gile, Kyle Negomir and River Radamus for the gents and Alice McKennis, Paula Moltzan and Nina O’Brien for the ladies. O’Brien is fresh off earning all-American honors in slalom at Montana State University.
Nicola Rountree-Williams, of Edwards, is a C teamer. Jacob Dilling and Kellen Kinsella returned to the devo team.
Up on the A team, there are no surprises. Travis Ganong, Ted Ligety and Steven Nyman are back. Tommy Ford’s there too after earning his first World Cup win at the Birds of Prey slalom here in December.
Shiffrin will be attempting a comeback season of sorts. Most racers would love to be trying “to rally” from a season with six World Cup wins. Of course, Shiffrin’s season was ultimately cut short by the death of her father, Jeff, on Feb. 2 and the onslaught of COVID-19, which wiped out the final two stops of the tour in Are, Sweden, and Cortina, Italy.
Like the rest of the world of sports, the World Cup is waiting to see how the coronavirus situation evolves. The season traditionally opens in Soelden, Austria, with women’s and men’s giant slaloms in October.
Birds of Prey, the men’s stop at Beaver Creek, is tentatively set for Dec. 4-6. The FIS Alpine World Ski Championships are in Cortina from Feb. 8-21, 2021.
