Olympians Head To East Coast And Birthplace Of Freestyle Skiing For 2018 U.S. Freestyle Championships

Next week, 48 years after the first National Freestyle Championships debuted on the slopes of Mt. Tecumseh, New Hampshire’s Waterville Valley Resort will welcome the Nation’s best mogul skiers for the 2018 U.S. Freestyle Championships, March 20-24th.

Waterville Valley Resort, the “Birthplace of Freestyle Skiing,” will host athletes from around the country, including 18 members of the 2018 U.S. Olympic Team, as they compete for national titles in ladies’ and men’s mogul and dual mogul events. Competition returns to the East Coast for the first time since 2012, following aerial events at the Utah Olympic Park.

Of the U.S. Ski Team athletes competing, seven hail from New England including New Hampshire native, Nessa Dziemian, of East Hampstead. Troy Murphy of Bethel, ME and Emerson Smith of Dover, VT will compete against fellow Olympic Team Members including Casey Andringa, who placed 5th in the Pyeongchang Games, claiming the best U.S. men’s Olympic finish since 2010. Olympic Bronze Medalist, Bryon Wilson, will also compete alongside younger brother, Bradley Wilson.

Founded by Olympian, Tom Corcoran, Waterville Valley Resort is no stranger to world-class skiers and events. Waterville Valley Resort became the birthplace of freestyle skiing in 1969 when it began the first organized freestyle skiing program and introduced the sport to the world stage while hosting the World Cup Finals that year. In 1970, alongside Skiing Magazine editor, Doug Pfeiffer, Corcoran organized and hosted the first National Championships of Freestyle Skiing at the Waterville Valley ski area. In recent years, Waterville Valley’s ski club, WVBBTS, has continued to produce world-class athletes including Olympic Moguls Gold Medalist Hannah Kearney and saw six alumni named to the 2018 U.S. Olympic team.

Ladies’ and men’s mogul finals will take place on Friday, March 23rd. Ladies’ and men’s dual moguls will take place on Saturday, March 24th. All events will be held on Lower Bobby’s Run, accessible by skiers with a valid lift ticket or pass, and free for spectators on foot who will receive one free round-trip ride on the Valley Run chairlift to access the event.