A Standout Sprinter on the Snow
Jack Young ’25 is holding his own this spring on the World Cup Nordic ski circuit
For Nordic skiers, the World Cup is the highest level of competition after the Winter Olympic Games. The races in the yearly circuit are opportunities for the best athletes in the world to face off against each other.
Last month, a Colby skier joined the mix and held his own while doing it: Jack Young ’25, a standout athlete from Jay, Vt., competed in his first-ever World Cup race in Canmore, Alberta. In his sprint event, he lined up against Olympic medalists and pushed himself to a finish described as “smoking fast” by online publication FasterSkier.
Young, an education major, placed 11th in the qualifying round of the sprint race, making him the second-fastest American. He placed 23rd in the final round of the Canmore Classic Sprint, a result that he said felt like a validation. A week after the Canmore races, he competed at another World Cup sprint race in Minneapolis, this time finishing 33rd.
“I always have been looking at World Cup results [and wondering], ‘If I were to get this start, where would I be?’ And now, I know that I can mix it up with these guys,” he told FasterSkier in February.
Young made it to the World Cup race by virtue of his performances in sprint events in December and January. His times were so fast he was invited by US Ski & Snowboard, the national governing body for Olympic skiing and snowboarding, to compete for the U.S. Team in February.
He wasn’t the only Mule to ski at Canmore—Erin Bianco ’22 also represented the U.S. in Nordic sprint and distance events.
“This is special,” Tracey Cote, head Nordic ski coach, said before the World Cup event. She described Young as an incredible athlete and a positive leader for the team. “I can’t think of better ambassadors for Colby College and our ski program. We [cheered so] hard back on campus, we hope they [heard] us all the way to Canmore!”
