The U.S. Alpine National Championships kicked off on Sunday with the men's and women's Super G competition, marking the start of four days of high-caliber racing.
In the super giant slalom, the gates get spread further apart making this the fastest event. Skiers flew down the course at Sun Valley at speeds anywhere from 60 to 70 miles per hour on Greyhawk on the Warm Springs side of the resort.
Two-time Olympian Tricia Mangan won the women's division and Colorado native Kyle Negomir won his first national championship on the men's side racing for the Stifel U.S. Ski Team.
"It is one of the harder hills we compete at all year," said Negomir. "It’s to the advantage of the guys that can ski more technically because it is really windy and really steep, it makes it a lot of fun to ski and pretty unique in all the different races we do."
The U.S. Alpine National Championships is the culmination of the season that started back in November. This is the first time Sun Valley has hosted the event since 2018 and they will do so again next year.
Haley Cutler, who finished fifth in the competition, grew up in Sun Valley and she had an entire cheering section of family and friends at the finish line. She also coaches for the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation.
"It’s so cool to have the support and the whole community of people coming together," said Cutler. "I get to show them what I do and what they get to stand behind."
The competition continues with the slalom on Monday, then it will be the women's giant slalom on Tuesday. The men will finish off the U.S. Alpine Championship with their giant slalom on Wednesday.
Coming up tomorrow we will have more on what hosting this prestigious event means for Sun Valley Resort, the community, and Idaho.
