‘Bigger than my wildest dreams’: Three local athletes share their experience skiing at the Winter Olympics – Aspen Public Radio

Local freestyle skiers Alex Ferreira and Hanna Faulhaber and cross-country skier Hailey Swirbul competed in the Olympic Winter Games in Beijing last month.

Ferreira, who grew up in Aspen, took home a bronze medal for Team USA in the mens ski halfpipe.

To have people rooting for me that I dont know is bigger than my wildest dreams, said Ferreira, 27. Bringing home a medal is like a cherry on top, in my eyes.

In 2018, he won silver in his first Olympic appearance.

Mike Dawson

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U.S. Ski & Snowboard

Basalt resident and Olympic rookie Hanna Faulhaber finished sixth in the womens halfpipe. The 17-year-old has been making waves skiing the superpipe over the past year, starting with her fourth-place finish at the world championships last spring in Aspen.

In December, Faulhaber earned her first major podium, finishing third at the Dew Tour at Copper Mountain. She won bronze in her X Games debut in January.

All of the podiums that I had throughout the season were just shocking, and I dont think that any of them have really hit me yet, she said. Honestly, Im just happy with how I skied and I gave it my all.

Ryan Escandon

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U.S. Ski & Snowboard

El Jebel resident Hailey Swirbul made her Olympic debut last month in three cross-country ski events. The 23-year-old led the first leg of the course on the U.S. womens 4x5-kilometer relay team, which finished sixth. Swirbul's teammates were Jessie Diggins, Rosie Brennan and Novie McCabe.

In Swirbuls first two events, she finished 32nd out of 98 in the womens 10-km classic and 40th out of 62 in the 7.5-km + 7.5-km skiathlon.

A medal was way out of reach for me this year unless it was in a relay-team event, where our team actually did have a shot, she said. Im not leaving disappointed in my efforts or my results.

Ryan Escandon

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U.S. Ski & Snowboard

Aspen Public Radio talked with Ferreira, Faulhaber and Swirbul about their experience competing in the Winter Olympics and growing up skiing with the Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club.

Listen to the conversation above.

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'Bigger than my wildest dreams': Three local athletes share their experience skiing at the Winter Olympics - Aspen Public Radio