ASPEN, Colo. – Four years ago, she was a 15-year-old breaking into the top level of her sport. Now Maggie Voisin looks like a serious contender to bring back a medal at the Winter Olympics, and she could be joined by a few other Montanans on the slopestyle course in South Korea.
Voisin clinched a spot on her second straight U.S. Olympic team in slopestyle skiing over the weekend. The Whitefish native made it official with a second-place finish at the Toyota Grand Prix event in Aspen on Saturday. Couple that with a title at Mammoth Mountain California last winter, and she achieved the two podium finishes that secures an Olympic team spot.
Voisin then proved she’s at the top of her sport the next day, taking second place again at another qualifying event on Sunday. She scored 89.0 points in her best run on Saturday, finishing 2.6 points behind Norway’s Johanne Killi. On Sunday, Voisin totaled 87.2 in her second and best run. Switzerland’s Sarah Hoefflin won the event with a score of 89.6.
Voisin was set to become the youngest American Olympian in more than 30 years in 2014, but she fractured her ankle in a practice run in Sochi, Russia, and was not able to compete in the Olympics. The recent great performances make Voisin a serious contender to medal in Pyeongchang, South Korea next month and push her far ahead of all other American women in the Olympic qualifying standings.
Missoula native Darian Stevens still sits in a great spot. She finished in 10th and seventh place over the two weekend competitions, scoring 84.66 points on Saturday, just missing out on finals, and 65.6 points in the finals on Sunday. The 21-year-old Stevens just missed out on an Olympic spot in 2014. She currently ranks third in the U.S. qualifying standings. The U.S. will bring either three or four slopestyle skiers to South Korea.
Another Missoula native burst onto the scene out of nowhere this week. Quinn Wolferman, 20, took ninth place in only his second-ever World Cup event on Saturday, scoring 84.2 points. Then he upped his run even more, finishing fourth on Sunday with a score of 91.6, just .6 points out of a top-three podium finish. Wolferman is now tied for third in the men’s slopestyle rankings, with the final two competitions set for this weekend at Mammoth Mountain.
Men’s Slopestyle Skiing (after 3 of 5 qualifying events)
1. Nick Goepper, 160
2. Gus Kenworthy, 140
T3. McRae Williams, 79
T3. Quinn Wolferman (Missoula), 79
5. Alex Hall, 57
Women’s Slopestyle Skiing (after 4 of 5 qualifying events)
1. Maggie Voisin (Whitefish), 180
2. Devin Logan, 90
3. Darian Stevens (Missoula), 81
4. Julia Krass, 72
5. Taylor Lundquist, 65
