Lauren Macuga Is On A Mission To Get More U.S. Girls Into Speed Skiing
In her first-ever World Cup giant slalom race, 22-year-old Lauren Macuga showed off her rapidly improving technical skills—on one of skiing's biggest stages.
The speedster spent the majority of this past offseason training to hone her overall skill set, with the goal of earning her first giant slalom start. Her 15th-place finish on Tuesday at the Sun Valley World Cup finals was high enough to earn her FIS points.
It was a soft launch, if you will, of this discipline for the multifaceted skier. 'Now I can't wait for when I really want to tackle the GS World Cup,' Macuga said Tuesday. 'Like when I'm so set in the speed that I can go tackle that; I can't wait for it.'
Ultimately, however, the speed disciplines—Super-G particularly—are what fill Macuga's cup. 'One run and go and it's done—that's fantastic, so I still love that,' she said.
Saturday's World Cup finals downhill race was called off due to windy conditions, and Macuga took a DNF in Sunday's Super-G—another career first. But it was only because the Park City resident was pushing her limits, no doubt fired up racing alongside her longtime idol, Lindsey Vonn, who returned to ski racing this season five years after retiring.
Vonn took second in Super-G on Sunday, emphatically demonstrating that, at 40, she still belongs at the highest levels of ski racing.
It's been a breakout season for Macuga, who earned her first World Cup win in mid-Janguary, in Super-G in St. Anton, Austria. She then went on to take bronze in her first world championships. Ultimately, Macuga finished fourth in the standings in downhill and sixth in Super-G this season.
Between Vonn, a living legend; 29-year-old Breezy Johnson, who took gold in the downhill at February's alpine skiing world championships; and rising star Macuga, there's a lot to love in the speed department on the U.S. Ski Team.
But there's no question the U.S. women are currently technical specialists. In Tuesday's giant slalom, five of the 30 women on the start list were American.
'We need to get girls back in speed,' Macuga said. 'Yeah, it is scary; don't get me wrong, I cried before my first downhill in Sugarloaf, but now here I am overcoming that and having fun doing it.
'There are so many kids here [in Sun Valley]; I hope they see it and say, 'I want to do that, this looks fun.''
Between now and the Park City Olympics in 2034, where Macuga will be 31 and, she hopes, 'in her prime,' she hopes to see more homegrown downhill and Super-G talent develop in the U.S. And marquee events like the World Cup finals being held on U.S. soil are instrumental in creating that kind of growth.
Lauren may not be the only Macuga going for Olympic gold when the Games arrive in her town. Siblings Sam and Alli are on the U.S. ski jumping and moguls national teams, respectively. Younger brother Daniel is a fellow alpine skier.
What created this family of athletic prodigies? Good genes? A competitive mindset?
Ultimately, the Macugas just find sliding around the snow really fun. And most of all, that's what Lauren hopes to impress upon the next generation.
'Growing up, that's all our mom said; 'If you're having fun, you can go do anything,'' Macuga said. 'But I think she really ingrained in us that we should enjoy it, and I think that's what gotten all of us where we are. '
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San Francisco Chronicle
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- San Francisco Chronicle
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Places with dominant programs whose stars become champions and national heroes in the process. The challenges men's gymnastics faces in the U.S. are many. The number of Division I programs that offer it as a scholarship sport is a fraction of what it was decades ago. And the impact of the recent House settlement could make opportunities at a level that has long served as a feeder system to the U.S. national team even scarcer. At the Olympic level, the men have long competed in the shadow of the star-studded (and highly successful) women's program. Richard has long understood this. He's seen the attrition firsthand. While the uniform didn't stop him from pressing on, he believes he might be the exception, not the rule. Countless young boys dabble in multiple sports growing up, gymnastics included. Richard thinks tweaking the uniform requirements into something he considers more modern could remove what he thinks might be a roadblock to sticking with it for some. 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When the six-man roster for the 2025 World Championships was announced late Saturday night, Richard's name wasn't on it. The decision had nothing to do with Richard's uniform but the uniqueness of this year's world meet, which does not include a team event and is largely designed for event specialists. At his best, Richard is one of the top all-arounders on the planet. Yet even he admitted he was at about '80%' at nationals following a whirlwind stretch that included traveling to places like Uganda. Richard is partnering with the African nation to open a facility for boys there interested in acrobatics. The joy he felt during the trip was palpable. So has the criticism he's received back home for his uniform choice, with some telling him if he wants to look like a basketball player, maybe he should go play basketball. While Richard's modified look wouldn't look out of place on the court, pommel horse specialist Stephen Nedoroscik — who won a pair of bronze medals in Paris and became a breakout star in the process (all while wearing stirrup pants) last summer — agrees with his Olympic teammate that there 'should be a certain level of flexibility' when it comes to uniforms, though he also pointed out that having everyone wear identical outfits is designed to help the judges do their jobs. 'So like, you can't wear like super baggy clothes, obviously,' Nedoroscik said. 'But I do like there should be maybe a little bit of wiggle room.' That's all Richard says he is asking for, though it seems highly unlikely the FIG would eliminate the deduction for a uniform violation anytime soon. That is not going to stop Richard from pressing on. 'I'll wear it for the next 10 years if I have to,' he said. 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