The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
“Making the WJC team was definitely a long shot, but I always believed it was within reach”
By Than Acuff
Four years ago, Aksel Lindenmeyr made the decision to take his alpine ski racing to the next level and the move appears to be paying off as he was one of eight men under the age of 20 named to represent the U.S. at the 2025 FIS Alpine Junior World Ski Championships in Tarvisio, Italy February 27-March 6. And when the week was done, Lindenmeyr skied to a seventh-place finish in the Super G.
Lindenmeyr raced for the Crested Butte Mountain Sports Team including top 10 results at the Rocky Mountain Division Championships, aka the Prater Cup, as a u14 and u16 racer. He then decided to take his training and racing overseas moving to Tignes, France four years ago to attend and ski with the Apex2100 International Ski Academy. Lindenmeyr graduated in May of 2023 but remained there to continue his ski racing career and a frantic travel schedule on the race circuit competing in FIS races, Nor-Am Cup races as well as the Europa Cup series.
“I’ve continued with Apex, participating in their postgraduate program based out of Pozza Di Fassa, Italy,” says Lindenmeyr. “However, I haven’t had a fixed home base since the race season began in November, as I’ve been traveling non-stop throughout Europe and North America.”
All of that traveling, racing and training four to six days a week came to a head though when he got the nod to the biggest show for junior alpine racers, a nod he wasn’t sure would happen at the start of the season.
“Making the WJC team was definitely a long shot, but I always believed it was within reach,” says Lindenmeyr. “My coach had set the goal at the start of the season, so while it was a surprise to qualify and perform at such a high level, I knew I had the ability to do so.”
The week of racing started off with downhill training and then the downhill races on February 27 where Lindenmeyr finished in 21st place, fourth among the U.S. men. Two days later Lindenmeyr slid into the start gate for the Super G and skied his way to a seventh-place finish, the top result among the U.S. men. That same day he and teammate Sawyer Reed placed seventh in the men’s team combined. Lindenmeyr was unable to finish in the Giant Slalom (GS) event on March 4 but closed out the week strong with a 23rd place in slalom, third among the U.S. men.
“I’m pleased with my results, mainly my seventh-place finishes in the Super G and team combined events,” says Lindenmeyr. “Unfortunately, I didn’t finish the GS, where I had the best starting position, and I would have liked to have done well there. It’s tough to put two solid runs together, especially with such tough competition. However, I was able to move up 40 positions in the Slalom, which was a positive way to finish the week.”
While results are a testament to a successful week of racing, there is so much more to an event of this magnitude for an aspiring alpine ski racer such as Lindenmeyr.
“The atmosphere at WJC was different from my usual races,” says Lindenmeyr. “There were cameras everywhere, even in the start gate as we were pushing out. There was an announcer and a big screen broadcasting the race, which added a unique element to the experience.”
Lindenmeyr is now in the midst of the Alpine Skiing FIS Nor-Am Cup at Sugarloaf, Maine March 10-20 and returns to Colorado for the U.S. Alpine Championships at Vail March 29-April 1.
“My experience at the World Junior Championships (WJC) was incredible,” says Lindenmeyr. “The races themselves were an amazing opportunity to compete against the best in the world, but I also had a great time off the slopes. It was great connecting with my U.S. teammates and with athletes from other nations. The atmosphere was very friendly, and it was great to meet and hang out with competitors from around the world.”
