Winning the NCAA skiing championship last year came as a bit of a surprise even to U skiing coach Kevin Sweeney, who, by his own admission, is always pretty optimistic about his team’s chances.
In previous years, the team had been in contention, and had come close on a few occasions. But to win its first national title since 1997-the 11th in the program’s history-took a “very special blend,” according to Sweeney.
Behind Ski Racer Magazine Skier of the Year Katrin Smigun and a well-balanced roster that consistently placed athletes in the top 10 in every discipline, the Utes improved with every week throughout the season-a season that peaked with a convincing championship victory in Hanover, N.H.
“There’s no question that [the championship] energizes us,” Sweeney said. “We’ve been in the running for the past four years. But there have been a couple of circumstances that have prevented us from taking it all the way. And so we went back to the drawing board…knowing we had to make some changes. It’s very rewarding to know that those changes were the things that we needed to do. So we feel good, we’re on track.”
But now comes the hard part: defending the crown.
Repeating could be quite a challenge for the Utes, who lost seven seniors-including MWC scholar-athletes Torin Koos an Petra Svet, and Academic All American Jernej Bukovec-from their title-winning squad.
“I have lost some tremendous depth and talent, and people that had really become team leaders,” Sweeney said. “So obviously, for the group that is returning-they need to step up. They need to take over some of those roles. At the same time, I’m going to bring in some new talent that’s hopefully going to give us close to the same depth and consistency that we had last year.”
The losses of the team’s core senior group may leave a sizeable void, but Sweeney and his staff is currently working on their recruiting class, as they hope to replenish the roster as soon as possible and get focused on winning another title.
“I think we’re going to be in there [this year],” Sweeney said. “I think we’re gonna be in the mix. We should be able to mix it up with the top four programs. But whether we can get it going on a roll the way we did last year, and just get better at every meet and win the Regional Championships, and just keep that momentum going and then see it achieve heights that I didn’t even really think we would-that’s where other factors play.”
Like in any organized sport, it’s those other factors that can often make or break a season. For the 2004 Utes, a lot of hope will rest on the ability of the team to make up for the leadership they lost with the departure of their senior class. But the team members are pretty confident they’ve got that intangible covered.
“It’s really a natural progression in the team,” Sweeney said. “In a way, [leadership] is a given. They know that’s part of their role, to keep the tradition of the Utah ski team going, and part of that tradition is to have a strong leadership group. The people that are coming up have all the capabilities, so I just expect that out of them.”
The Utes will have five seniors on the roster this season who will be looked upon to take those roles. But with a large incoming class expected to join the reigning champs this winter, there will be more pressure than ever on the Ute coaching staff to succeed.
“One thing that I couldn’t be more happy about is that I have my full coaching staff returning,” Sweeney said. “That is a huge plus in regard to continuity throughout the whole program. The athletes know us, they know what we expect. We deliver that. And that’s important.”
With the ski season still five months away, Utah has plenty of time to get its roster in order and get ready to defend its title. But there’s no doubt that, come January, expectations for Utah skiing will be as high as they’ve been in years.
“[Winning a title] is a very special moment, and takes a very special blend, and there are circumstances that are out of my control,” Sweeney said.