Last month, Bryan Fish, U.S. Ski & Snowboard Association (USSA) Cross Country Sport Development Manager, visited to Jackson Hole, hosted by the Jackson Hole Ski Club Nordic Program, to deliver a presentation titled “Strides of Success – The Key Factors in USA XC Ski Development Success” on Sept. 15th at Snow King.
Fasterskier.com wrote an informative article about his plans moving forward, how local Ski clubs and the USSA develop and train Nordic athletes into National and Olympic heroes.
One of the main points he emphasized was that the growth of the sport and the ski programs across the country are crucial to the U.S. team’s success. We at JH Nordic happen to agree, even if it isn’t going to drive home a gold medal, seeing more folks interested in the sport is always great, whether it is for leisure or for glory.
Here is an excerpt from the article in which Fish is emphasizing the continuity and importance of youth development across all regions of the country:
“One of the things I’ve been trying to focus on … is taking a deeper look at those steps from what I’ll say, cradle to grave, or from youth all the way to elite, and we’re continuing to recognize and understand that there are gaps in areas, but most importantly, it’s really important that we divide and conquer,” he said. “What I mean by that is that we’re working with our divisions, we’re working with our regions, because they do a lot of the junior racing and youth development, and we do a lot of the national and above. It’s really making sure that we have affiliation agreements with each division and I’ve been looking through those as well and making sure that there’s a clear path and opportunities for junior athletes.”
Read more about Fish’s plan to boost the nation’s XC skiing programs in the full article here: https://fasterskier.com/fsarticle/fish-on-promoting-the-u-s-development-pathway-vs-the-pipeline/
