FORERUNNER
INDUSTRY REPORT
Alex Hoedlmoser (second from left) is the new women’s alpine head coach; Jim Tracy (far right) is leaving his post.
Tracy leaves U.S. Ski Team;
Hoedlmoser new head coach BY SHAUNA FARNELL
The U.S. Ski Team is doing some rearranging on the women’s alpine side. The biggest
news, which came as a shock to some, is that
women’s alpine head coach Jim Tracy is leaving the organization and former speed coach
Alex Hoedlmoser is stepping into Tracy’s
rather large shoes.
Tracy and his staff coached the U.S. World
Cup team the last two seasons, guiding Lindsey Vonn and Julia Mancuso to their collective four Olympic medals and Vonn’s last two
World Cup overall, downhill and super G
titles.
There’s a lot more those guys want to accomplish and it’s going to take a lot of work to
continue the good things that are happening.
The next chore will be to get the tech side
shorn up. I’m really proud of the work everyone did ... the coaches and the athletes.”
Tracy said he could not comment on the
specifics of his departure from the U.S. Ski
Team but USSA Vice President of Athletics
Luke Bodensteiner said that Tracy has been
a tremendous asset to the organization, particularly in the last two years.
Tracy, who grew up in Mammoth and began
racing at the age of 10, lived in Vail for 24
years, racing and coaching for Ski Club Vail
from 1976 to 1986 before joining the coaching staff of the U.S. Ski Team. He worked
with both the U.S. men’s and women’s teams,
through nine world championships and this
last successful Olympic Games was his sixth
as a coach.
“Jim was brought back two years ago to
lead the team to a great performance at the
Olympics in Vancouver,” said Bodensteiner.
“He leaves knowing that he accomplished
that mission. “He has been an amazing coach
for the women’s team, leading them through
some of the greatest landmarks in U.S. skiing
history.”
He was the women’s speed coach from 1996
to 2004 and after a hiatus, rejoined USSA as
the women’s head coach in 2008 after Patrick
Riml left the organization.
DOUG HANE Y/U.S. SKI TEAM
Tracy, 56, lives in Hood River, Ore., and said
he hasn’t yet decided what his next move will
be. He leaves the U.S. women’s team with
many fond memories and a lot of hope in its
athletes.
“I believe a lot in the athletes,” Tracy said.
“We’ve accomplished a lot of good things.
Hoedlmoser, a former Austrian World Cup
racer and national giant slalom champion,
spent eight years with the Austrian national
team, ending in 1992, and spent another four
years as a pro racer. He also was a coach and
waxing technician with the Austrian women’s
team before joining the U.S. coaching staff
in 1998 when he spent his first year as the
Europa Cup coach before becoming assistant World Cup downhill/super G coach in
the ‘98 Olympic season. The Salzburg native
was named women’s speed head coach in the
2004 season.
BOOKER PROMOTED TO
PRESIDENT OF NORDICA USA
Willy Booker, previously general manager of Nordica
USA, has been named president of the organization.
“I’m very pleased to accept this position and I’m
eager to continue to build upon the great work that
the Nordica team has established in the past year,”
said Booker. “I have exceptionally high expectations
for the brand as I know our customers do, we’ll be
working as hard as we can to meet them.”
Well-known ski coach Mike Day has been tapped to
lead the men’s technical team. The announcement was
made April 13 by head men’s coach Sasha Rearick.
Day replaces Rudi Soulard, who has been appointed
to head the Swedish women’s team coaching staff.
“Mike has shown great leadership in his past coaching positions and will also bring in a strong knowledge of the ski industry from his recent years at
Fisher,” said Rearick.
Day has been coaching for a dozen years starting at
Carrabassett Valley Academy. He moved on to coach
with the Park City Ski Team and worked with the
U.S. Ski Team through the Salt Lake City Olympics in
2002. For the past six seasons he has served at the
U.S. racing director for Fischer USA.
“I’m passionate about ski racing, but coaching and
the athletic side of the sport is what I am most passionate about,” Day said. “I’ve been missing it a lot
and this was a fantastic opportunity to not only get
back to the athletic side of it, but to get back to it at
the highest level.”
MIKE DAY NAMED NEW
U.S. MEN’S TECH COACH
