BC Alpine is pleased to announce the 2019 BC Ski Team Summer Training Group. Five returning members are joined by five new talents from around the province for 6 months of intense training and skill development. The 2019/20 BC Ski Team will be officially named in mid-November.
Congratulations to the 2019 BCST Training Group athletes!
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Ella Renzoni (2000) - Whistler Mountain Ski Club
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Francis MacDonald (1999) - Grouse Mountain Tyee Ski Club
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Myles Kowalczyk (2000) - Whistler Mountain Ski Club
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Marcus Athans (2000) - Apex Ski Club/Okanagan Ski Team
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Asher Jordan (1999) - Whistler Mountain Ski Club
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Gerrit Van Soest (2001) – Vernon Ski Club/Okanagan Ski Team
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Nathan Romanin (2001) – Whistler Mountain Ski Club
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Tait Jordan (2002) – Whistler Mountain Ski Club
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Heiko Ihns (2002) – Red Mountain Racers/Kootenay Zone Team
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Dylan Timm (2002) – Fernie Alpine Ski Team/Kootenay Zone Team
“This is a really exciting, dynamic group," said BC Team Head Coach Nick Cooper. "We have a wide range of athletes on this team and will have to be well organized as a staff to give everyone what they need."
“I am especially excited about this team", said BC Alpine VP Johnny Crichton. "I have worked with all these athletes at some major competitions and know they have penchant for competition. They will undoubtedly work together to push each other even further. I am also excited that the staff remains the same and is first class. I am not happy that no new girls qualified for the team, but we will work hard to remedy that for next year."
We are happy to have Asher Jordan (WMSC) back with BC Alpine after a successful 18/19 season on the national development team. ACA has decided not to operate a national "D Team" moving forward; this step is now in the hands of the PSOs, who will be responsible for moving athletes to the national "C Team".
Kyle Alexander (WMSC), BC Ski Team member since 2016/17, had a breakout 18/19 season highlighted by a 16th place finish in downhill at the World Junior Championships. His notable results left him ranked 3rd best junior in the world in both downhill and super-G. He met ACA's "C Team" criteria and is currently training with the national team.
Nicole Mah (Grouse Tyee), BC Ski Team member for the last two seasons, will be joining many BC Alpine alumni at the University of Alaska to continue her ski racing career while pursuing an education.
Preparation for next season is well underway for our training group athletes. They recently wrapped up 8 days of on-snow training on the Whistler T-Bars, and will soon move into a 5-week centralized dryland training block in Whistler, July 2nd to August 2nd. The dryland camp will incorporate a range of lifting skills in the gym, aerobic fitness, mountain biking, swimming, yoga and hiking, along with the obligatory cooking/nutrition classes! After a short visit home they will reconvene in late August for 8 days of follow-up dryland before heading to South America in September and Europe in October.
"What I have already seen from the new members of the team is very promising," said Cooper. "They have come in open to new ideas, willing to change their skiing for the better, and work hard all while keeping a smile on their faces. I’m looking forward to our summer dryland program to really push their limits and have some more fun.”
BC Alpine Head Coach Nick Cooper will be joined again this season by BC Team coaches Ryan Jazic and Morgan Pridy to put these athletes through their paces and prepare them to compete at their best with the help of a professional Integrated Support Team (IST) that includes a team physician, physiotherapy, sport vision testing, nutrition/chef training, yoga, high performance fitness coaching and mental performance support.
"We are proud to support the best alpine ski racers in BC, and of all the successes they have achieved," said Anders Hestdalen, BC Alpine CEO. "The BC Ski Team keeps stepping up to the challenges required to build the foundation for world cup skiers, and BC Alpine is committed to doing everything we can to continue developing world class athletes. Go team!"