U.S. Ski & Snowboard has officially named its 13 freeride ski and snowboard athletes nominated to join the inaugural U.S. Freeride Team roster.

This squad will be the first freeride team recognized by U.S. Ski & Snowboard and comes on the heels of the sport officially becoming an Olympic discipline following the International Olympic Committee’s announcement to include it in the 2030 Alpes Winter Games.  

The US team includes 2026 FIS Freeride World Champion Mia Jones, World Championship medalists Kai Jones and Molly Armanino and Junior World Champion Joey Leonardo.

U.S. Ski & Snowboard announces its teams in two phases, nomination then acceptance. The athletes are formally nominated to the U.S. Freeride Team in August. Pending their acceptance of the nomination and adherence to the team’s expectations, the 13 athletes will be officially announced to the team in October. Congratulations to all these athletes, we will be sure to update when the nominations are confrimed.

Ski Team Women

Molly Armanino (Placerville, CA; University of California Santa Cruz; 5/5/1993)

Lily Bradley (Lake Tahoe, CA; Olympic Valley Freeride Program/University of California Berkeley; 3/7/2002)

Wynter McBride (Ogden, UT; Snowbasin Sports Education Foundation; 1/10/2000)

Ski Team Men

Kelly Hilleke (Glenwood Springs, CO; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; 12/29/2005)

Kai Jones (Jackson Hole, WY; 5/5/2006)

Joey Leonardo (Edwards, CO; Montana State University; 3/3/2003)

Toby Rafford (Sun Valley, ID; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; 3/23/2003)

Ross Tester (Truckee, CA; University of Utah; 1/5/1999)

    Snowboard Team Women

    Mia Jones (Truckee, CA; Palisades Tahoe Pursuit Team; Dartmouth College; 6/21/2005)

    Snowboard Team Men

    Michael Mawn (Bozeman, MT; Montana State University; 11/21/1999)

    Blake Moller (Edwards, CO; Team Summit; 6/14/2000)

    Holden Samuels (Big Sky, MT; University of Colorado Boulder; 11/26/1999)

    Shayne Blue Sandblom (Silt, CO; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; University of Nevada Reno; 2003)

    Tim Konrad is the founder and publisher of Unofficial Networks, a leading platform for skiing, snowboarding, and outdoor adventure. With over 20 years in the ski industry, Tim’s global ski explorations...