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US Paralympics selects team for La Molina

09.02.2013

The US team will feature 13 athletes and two guides for the World Championship event that starts on 18 February.

US sit skier Alana Nichols is on the IPC's Ones to Watch list for the 2012-13 alpine skiing season. © • Malcolm Carmichael / Alpine Canada

By US Paralympics

USA's Tyler Walker won two gold medals in the super-G at the 2012-13 IPC Alpine Skiing NORAM Cup in Colorado, USA. © • Michael Knaus

Laurie Stephens was one of the American stars at the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. © • Getty Images

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“With a little over a year until the start of the next Paralympic Winter Games, I am very excited about the direction of the US Paralympics alpine skiing programme.”

US Paralympics has announced that 13 athletes and two guides will represent the United States at the 2013 IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships from 18-28 February in La Molina, Spain. Ten athletes and two guides will also make up the US team at the 2013 IPC World Cup Finals from 7-12 March in Sochi, Russia, the site of the 2014 Games.

“With a little over a year until the start of the next Paralympic Winter Games, I am very excited about the direction of the U.S. Paralympics alpine skiing program,” said Kevin Jardine, high performance director for US Paralympics alpine skiing.

“We are sending very talented teams to La Molina, Spain, for the World Championships and Sochi, Russia, for the World Cup Final. While some athletes are pursing consecutive titles, others are ready to make the first podium appearances of their international skiing careers. The next couple of months will have a huge part in the road to the Games.”

Highlighting the US roster for the world championships are Alana Nichols, who hopes to defend her two victories from the 2011 IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships in Sestriere, Italy, and Chris Devlin-Young, a Coast Guard veteran and reigning world champion in men’s sitting super-G. Nichols won gold in the women’s sitting downhill and super-G and bronze medals in slalom and giant slalom.

Team USA won three gold medals, two silver medals and three bronze medals for eight medals overall in Sestriere. Nichols led the US medal count with four while Laurie Stephens collected three medals, silver in women’s sitting super-G and downhill and a bronze in women’s sitting super combined.

Following the World Championships, Team USA will head to the World Cup Finals. The competition serves as the alpine skiing test event for the next Paralympic Winter Games.

At the 2012 IPC World Cup Finals in Panorama, Canada, Team USA finished with eight globes and 12 medals, including a gold medal for Tyler Walker. After being ranked sixth in 2011, Team USA won the overall team title at the World Cup Finals with 4,657 points. Russia came in second with 4,151 and France with 4,087.

In Panorama, Nichols wrapped up her alpine skiing season with three gold medals and one silver, as well as a globe trophy for women’s sitting speed events. Stephens, who won the globe in giant slalom, finished with two silver medals in super G events.

US roster for the 2013 IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships

• Mark Bathum (Seattle, Wash.) and guide Jessica Smith (Colorado Springs, Colo.)

• Heath Calhoun (Clarksville, Tenn.), ret., Army

• Ralph Green (Brooklyn, N.Y.)

• Allison Jones (Colorado Springs, Colo.)

• Andrew Kurka (Palmer, Alaska)

• Stephen Lawler (Burlington, Vt.)

• Jon Lujan (Littleton, Colo.), ret., Marine Corps

• Alana Nichols (Farmington, N.M.)

• Laurie Stephens (Wenham, Mass.)

• Danelle Umstead (Park City, Utah) and guide Rob Umstead (Park City, Utah)

• Stephani Victor (Park City, Utah)