On Friday, USSA announced its nominations to the 2015 U.S. Ski Team. The list, determined by published criteria, is led by U.S. Ski Team veteran and defending World Cup Sprint champion, Kikkan Randall. Also renominated to the A-team are Jessie Diggins, Andy Newell and Liz Stephen. Sadie Bjornsen, Sophie Caldwell and Simi Hamilton all made the jump from last season’s B-team to this year’s A-team. Ida Sargent, Erik Bjornsen and Noah Hoffman return to the B-team.
There are also several noticeable differences in the team nominations with the absence of former A-team member Holly Brooks and the addition of a D-team, with Ben Saxton and Patrick Caldwell.
“This is a pretty fantastic opportunity and I’m stoked,” Saxton told FasterSkier. “There are lots of people who I think are at a similar level of development, so this is a great honor. I think what really got me here was my awesome peer group. ”
According to the USSA press release, the list is only preliminary and consists of athletes who have qualified based on published selection criteria. The final U.S. Ski Team roster will be announced in the fall, and the USSA staff “will work individually with nominated athletes to provide education on Team responsibilities and programs leading up to the formal Team announcement.”
A Team Men
Simi Hamilton, SMS T2
Andy Newell, SMS T2
A Team Women
Sadie Bjornsen, Alaska Pacific University NSC
Sophie Caldwell, SMS T2
Jessica Diggins, SMS T2
Kikkan Randall, Alaska Pacific University NSC
Liz Stephen, Burke Mountain Academy
B Team Men
Erik Bjornsen, Alaska Pacific University NSC
Noah Hoffman, Team Homegrown
B Team Women
Ida Sargent, Craftsbury Nordic Ski Club
D Team Men
Patrick Caldwell, Dartmouth Ski Team
Ben Saxton, SMS T2