The Cross Country Skier Podcast Cross Country Skier

Fresh off their Olympic debuts, U.S. Cross Country Ski Team members Hannah Halvorsen and Hailey Swirbul candidly discuss how they deal with performance pressure as elite competitors, the stress it puts on a healthy mindset and their different takes on balancing a desire to win with positive self-worth. The conversation expands on a piece Halvorsen penned for Issue 41.3 of the magazine: “Medals Matter, But They Don’t Define an Athlete.” The skiers also cover topics that range from handling “the high school hallway” of social media and why Norwegian skiers are so good to whether men approach pressure differently and the evolution of team dynamics and role modeling among the U.S. women.
 
This episode of the Cross Country Skier Podcast is possible thanks to the support of Madshus Nordic Skis. It’s also possible thanks to support from our listeners—if you like what you hear and would like to hear more, please make a contribution.

The American Birkebeiner is so much more than a ski race—it provides an opportunity for Nordic skiers of all ages and abilities to unite as a community and celebrate our sport. Cross Country Skier podcast host Peter Graves talks with Birkie Executive Director Ben Popp about what it takes to put on the most iconic cross country ski race in the U.S. They also discuss race founder Tony Wise’s legacy, which included building and operating the Telemark Lodge and its associated alpine and Nordic ski trails. Following the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation’s purchase of the historic property last year, Popp fills us in about the exciting plans for its revival, including the possibility of a World Cup race in 2024. This episode of the Cross Country Skier Podcast is possible thanks to the support of Madshus Nordic Skis. It’s also possible thanks to support from our listeners—if you like what you hear and would like to hear more, please make a contribution.

Veteran sportscaster Peter Graves has been the host of the Cross Country Skier Podcast, but this time we turn the tables on him for a behind-the-scenes look at what’s it like to communicate the action at some of sporting’s biggest events to a worldwide audience. New editor-in-chief Cindy Hirschfeld interviews Graves about his Olympic memories—he’s worked at 13 Winter and Summer Games in both the broadcast booth and in the stadium—plus what attending an Olympics during the pandemic entails and whom we should keep an eye on at the upcoming Beijing Games. We also hear about Graves’s longtime experience announcing another signature event, the American Birkebeiner, and his recent election to the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame.
 
This episode of the Cross Country Skier Podcast is possible thanks to the support of Madshus Nordic Skis. It’s also possible thanks to support from our listeners—if you like what you hear and would like to hear more, please make a contribution.

There’s a lot happening at Paul Smith’s College in the Adirondacks. With new trails designed by John Morton and programs sanctioned by both USA Nordic and U.S. Biathlon, the future looks bright for athletes looking for a training base. To learn what’s afoot in the Adirondacks, we speak with John Morgan, a former National Team bobsledder who is overseeing the program at Paul Smith’s; Tim Burke, who’s competed in four Olympic Winter Games and is the director of athlete development for U.S. Biathlon; and Bill Demong, Vermontville, New York’s five-time Olympian who won a gold medal in Nordic combined at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and serves as executive director of USA Nordic.
This episode of the Cross Country Skier Podcast is possible thanks to the support of Hotel Saranac. It’s also possible thanks to support from our listeners—if you like what you hear and would like to hear more, please make a contribution.

Tom Kelly’s career is rooted in cross country skiing. After covering ski jumping, Kelly found himself working for entrepreneur Tony Wise in the mid ’70s, promoting the American Birkebeiner and World Cup cross country races in Telemark, Wisconsin. Kelly’s 30-plus year tenure as vice president of communications with the U.S. Ski Team culminated trackside with the historic Olympic gold medal of Jessie Diggins and Kikkan Randall at the PyeongChang Olympic Games. That year, he retired from the U.S. Ski Team and was recognized by the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee with its Building Dreams Award before being inducted into the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame in 2019. Even in retirement, he’s remained active in Olympic sport and as one of the U.S. Cross Country Ski Team’s biggest fans.
 
This episode of the Cross Country Skier Podcast is possible thanks to the support of Madshus Nordic Skis. It’s also possible thanks to support from our listeners—if you like what you hear and would like to hear more, please make a contribution.

Fresh off their 2020 FIS Junior World Championships gold medal relay, Ben Ogden and Gus Schumacher join Peter to talk about their standout winter and what’s next for them and America’s other rising stars. Anchorage, Alaska’s Schumacher, from the Alaska Winter Stars program and a Service High School graduate, anchored the gold-medal-winning World Juniors’ relay and also captured a win in the men’s 10km classic. Vermonter Ben Ogden, Schumacher’s World Juniors teammate, closed out his season with a victory for the University of Vermont in the 2020 NCAA Championship men’s 10km.
This episode of the Cross Country Skier Podcast is possible thanks to the support of Craft.