wrote:

It seems to me that the tried and true method of developing skiers in
North America and having them race in North America is not working...
I mean, France beat us!

You still picking on France? France had four in the top 20 at Davos
and Otepaeae in classical and three in freestyle in Nove Mesto,
including winner Vittoz and fifth place, Emmanuel Jonnier.

Agree that the back and forth to Europe is a killer and that training
and competition in Europe is generally more valuable for at least
learning what it takes to be at the top and how to get there. Tough
life, tho, and not everyone is made for it. Remember, Becky Scott was
50th before she was on the podium. The important thing is that there's
a difference between being 50 of 54 vs. 50 of 75.

Gene



How do we fix the problem?

Some ideas;

1) Have our athletes stay, train and race in Europe during the ski
season. If this is too much of a burden for our athletes, then they
probably aren't committed to being the best anyway. Then, have the
National Championships in March when they come home from Europe.
Nationals should set the team for the following year except for those
who are in the Red Group and automatically qualify for expenses paid
etc.

2) Identify athletes who have no chance of placing better than 50th,
even 40th and leave them home. We can't waste valuable monetary
resources on skiers who just don't have it.

3) Focus on Sprint racing and Marathons. France had a guy named Herve
Balland who would ski Worldloppets and then join the French Team to
ski the 50K at the Olympics and World Championships. He won medals...
A skier like Carl Swenson fits that mold. Certain skiers would fit
that category. Sprinters like Christian Zorzi have proven very
effective at going 10K in a Relay. Lets develop speed first. Skiers
like Andy Newell and Torin Koos should ski everything up to 10K in
distance.

4) Identify skiers with huge talent like Kris Freeman and devote those
limited resources to developing them.

Any comments or ideas?

J Tegeder
"Keep training, lycra never lies!" JT