Local Athletes Contending for Olympic Slots
As temperatures drop, Olympic athletes in Utah are heating things up. The road to Sochi, Russia is not an easy trip and competitors training in Utah have given it their all to get there. From the Olympic Legacy Park to the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns, speed skaters, aerialists, and ski jumpers take advantage of our world-class training facilities to prepare for the Games.
Some of these amazing athletes took a moment out of their training schedules to provide some insight into their Olympic journeys.
Dylan Ferguson
A member of the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team competing in aerials, Dylan qualified for the 2010 Vancouver Games, but was sidelined with appendicitis. Just weeks later he took silver in the 2010 U.S. National Championships. Dylan trains in Park City and attends Westminster College. Sadly, Dylan just learned he did not qualify for this year’s Olympic team.
1. What’s your proudest accomplishment?
My top accomplishment is a two-way tie. Making the Olympic team for Vancouver 2010 was definitely one of the most rewarding and proud moments of my life. Though I couldn’t compete in the Games because of illness, making the team was pretty sweet! The second most rewarding experience was my 2nd Place podium at the Deer Valley World Cup in 2012. Deer Valley always holds one of the best World Cups of the season, so I knew I had to throw down some huge tricks for my home crowd, and that’s just what I did!
2. What’s your current training routine?
In the summer we train five days a week at the Utah Olympic Park water ramps in Park City. This is where we learn and qualify new tricks while perfecting our previous tricks. We supplement this with weight training at the Center of Excellence located just down the road. Once we get into winter, we trade off between training at the Utah Olympic Park and training at our different World Cup locations. We usually have 2–3 days before a World Cup to get used to the jump site and make sure we feel super comfortable come competition time.
3. What are your Olympic goals?
I would love nothing more than to win an Olympic gold for my country. Like so many other athletes, it has been a dream of mine since I was little to not just represent my country in the Olympic Games, but to have as much fun as possible doing it!
4. What are your ties to Utah?
I moved to Utah in 2006 when I was 18 years old. The U.S. Ski Team invited me out to Park City for the summer training camps, and after training with them throughout the summer and fall I was named to the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team. I started attending Westminster College in the fall of 2006, and have been living the Mahalo Lifestyle in Park City ever since! Although I grew up on the East Coast and my family still lives in Massachusetts, I consider Park City just as big a part of my life.
5. Describe the motivation or inspiration for starting down the path that led you to the Olympics.
My parents put my older sister Megan and I in the Waterville Valley (NH) freestyle program when I was about 7 years old. I started off doing a combination of ballet skiing and moguls, and at that time halfpipe and slopestyle disciplines were just coming onto the scene. When I was about 10 years old my coach, Nick Preston, put me on the water ramps for the first time where I started off with simple front flips. Until I moved to Park City in 2006, I switched off between boarding school in New Hampshire for half my school year and Waterville Valley Academy for the other half, so I could train and still get an education. My time in Waterville Valley with Nick Preston and his wife Susie not only gave me a strong foundation, but introduced me to the sport and the amazing community I am part of today. Later down the road, seeing my teammate—the late Speedy Peterson—progress the sport and have such a great time doing it was the biggest inspiration I could ask for.
Alissa Johnson
A Park City resident and member of the VISA Women’s Ski Jumping Team, Alissa was in competition for a spot on the Olympic Team, but just learned she did not make it this year . Between 2012 and 2013 she had 16 top 30 finishes on the World Cup circuit. At the 2014 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, held at the Utah Olympic Park on December 29, she came in 3rd.
1.What’s your proudest accomplishment?
I am proud to be a part of the core group of women that pushed hard to get Ski Jumping into the Olympics for women to compete.
2. Explain what goes into training physically, mentally, and emotionally. What kind of endurance does it take to reach the Olympic level?
While our sport obviously takes a serious time commitment on the hill and in the gym, a vast majority of it is mental. It takes years and years of mental work to get yourself to a place where your mind and body can work together on the jump hill. Every year I give my best in the gym and on the hill and I think there isn’t possibly anything left to give. Then every spring I reevaluate and convince myself that there is always just a little bit more. It’s that little bit more that keeps me going year after year.
3. What are your ties to Utah?
I have lived in Park City for almost 22 years. I have been really fortunate to have traveled to 25 different countries before the age of 30, but nothing feels like coming home. I am always amazed when I fly into Salt Lake and see the snow-covered mountains and realize that I’m so fortunate to have them in my backyard.
4. What would people be surprised to learn about you?
I worship my days off and vacation time. I don’t get much of it being an elite athlete, but I take it to a whole new level. I need at least a week-long vacation at a warm beach in April to thaw out before I can consider going back to the gym in May!
Abby Hughes
A Utah native, Abby resides in Park City and attends Westminster College. She’s also part of the VISA Women’s Ski Jumping Team and came in 4th at the recent trials in Park City. Unfortunately, Abby did not qualify for the Sochi Olympic team.
1. What’s your proudest accomplishment?
I’m proud of myself for being a role model for younger girls. I grew up idolizing the guys in ski jumping and when a group of younger girls came up to me and ask for my autograph on their helmet I knew I was making a difference in their lives.
2. Explain what goes into training physically, mentally, and emotionally. What kind of endurance does it take to reach the Olympic level?
Every day counts. Every gym session, every acupuncture appointment, every massage, every night’s rest, every jump, everything I put in my body. Everything I do, I do for ski jumping. My life is consumed by my athletics, and it’s consumed by jumping because I love the sport. You have to be fully committed and dedicated to be the best you can be.
3. What are your ties to Utah?
My parents came to Utah from Pennsylvania to ski. I was born at the University of Utah Hospital and have lived in Park City my entire life. I’m a very lucky girl.
4. What would people be surprised to learn about you?
I am afraid of heights! Not ski jumping, but ski jump towers or tall buildings. I guess I’m mostly afraid of falling. I struggle with being at the top of tall things and looking over the edge. I engage my fear frequently and am working on getting more comfortable with pushing myself to the edge.
Sugar Todd
Originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Sugar is a member of the U.S. Long Track Speedskating Team who now makes Park City her home. She competes in the 500m and 1000m events, and thanks to a fundraising campaign her parents will be able to travel to Sochi to watch her compete.
1. What’s your proudest accomplishment?
I am most excited about making my first Olympic Team. It’s everything I have been working towards.
2. Describe your current training routine.
A typical day consists of an on-ice practice in the morning followed by dry land or weights in the afternoon. We also do a good amount of biking and running to maintain overall fitness.
3. What are your Olympic goals?
Skate fast!
4. What are your ties to Utah?
I moved to Utah in May of 2012 from Milwaukee, Wisconsin to train with the National Team. I live in Park City, and I can’t imagine living somewhere without mountains ever again.
5. What’s your motivation or inspiration for starting down the path that led you to the Olympics?
It simply starts with a desire to be the best. When you’re little you think, “I want to be the best in the world. How do I do that? I go to the Olympic Games.”
Chris Crevling
2014 will be Chris’ first trip to the Olympic Games. He competes in the 1000m and 1500m short track events. Originally from Pennsylvania, Chris now resides in West Jordan, Utah.
1. What’s your proudest accomplishment?
My career has been relatively short so there is one accomplishment that really sticks out: winning the relay at the World Cup Final in Kulomna. This win placed us as the number one team overall going into the Olympics.
2. Describe your current training routine.
I have currently been training primarily on the ice along with off ice training and weight room training twice a week, but usually I train 6 days per week with 5-or 6-hour training days.
3. What are your Olympic goals?
Going into my first Olympics I have big goals! In particular I want to win an individual medal. But ideally I want a gold medal, which would be most likely in the relay event.
4. What are your ties to Utah?
I have lived in Utah for a total of five years. I moved away for school and decided to come back. That makes Utah pretty high up on my list of places I love. Also, I’m a snowboarding fanatic.
5. What’s your motivation or inspiration for starting down the path that led you to the Olympics?
In my early skating career I was not thinking about the Olympics. After I accomplished my goals to be world champion I decided there was something bigger for me out there. That’s when I decided to pursue my dream of becoming an Olympian. My friends who won medals in past Olympics are a big inspiration, but mostly my friends and family back home inspire me to bring home the gold.
