Board of Directors
Yuriy Gusev, Wisconsin
Bio: Yuriy has been a key driver in innovative nordic sport development in his longtime capacity as Executive and Athletic Director of Central Cross Country Skiing, overseeing a period of growth in the skier-rich region of the Midwest. In addition to his longtime service on the NNF Board, he also has served stints as a Board member for the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation, and is a member of the US Ski and Snowboard Cross Country Sport Committee.
Matt Whitcomb, Vermont
Bio: Matt Whitcomb currently serves as the Head Coach of the US Ski Team. During a tenure that stretches back to his time as Head Coach of the Women’s Team, Whitcomb has overseen an especially transformative period of success for American skiing on the World Cup and at the Olympics, including the Team’s first World Cup Overall Championships, first Olympic medals in forty years, and numerous World Cup podiums from successive generations of US skiers. Whitcomb continues to be an advocate that behind the Team’s success has been a grassroots movement to create a true sport’s development system through his leadership with NNF.
Laura McCabe, Board Chair, Washington
Bio: Laura McCabe has covered a whole lot of ground in the ski community, first as a 2x Olympian (1994, 1998) and longtime member of the US Ski Team, and now as a coach and mother of two ski racers in Methow Valley, WA. It’s that multiplicity of roles, and her persistent dedication to the sport, that make her an ideal big picture thinker about the future of the US Skiing community as a member of the NNF Board of Directors.
Joey Caterinichio, Alaska
Bio: Joey has been a long committed leader of both her local ski community in Alaska and of American skiing as a racer, a coach, and a sport developer. Just a select few of the many titles she has held over the years include NNF Board President, US Ski and Snowboard Nordic Manager, and Nordic Ski Association of Anchorage Board President. Apart from her work as a sport developer, Caterinichio has also been a longtime coach, and continues to be a leading figure in the Alaskan racing community.
Erika Flowers, Montana
Bio: Erika Flowers was a long-time staple of the pro circuit as a professional skier, and since has established herself as an elite mountain runner. She also serves as a business leader in the skier-rich community of Bozeman, Montana as Managing Director and Partner of the Profitable Ideas Exchange. The unique intersection of her ski and business experience make Flowers an invaluable resource to NNF in its mission to take a innovative approach to nordic skier development.
Kikkan Randall, Alaska
Bio: Put simply, Kikkan Randall is one of the best American skiers ever. The means she went about earning that accolade are telling to her abilities as an innovator and team-first leader. She was the first American Women to win a season-long World Cup classification when she won the Sprint title in 2011-12, the first American women to win a World Championship medal in 2009, and part of the Team Sprint pair, alongside Jessie Diggins, that won the first ever Olympic Gold Medal in cross-country skiing in 2018. Outside of her role as an athlete, Randall has also served as a leader with the International Olypmic Committee, Fast and Female, and Protect Our Winters.
Sophie Caldwell Hamilton, Colorado
Bio: Sophie Caldwell Hamilton’s background spans a big swath of American skiing, from her up-bringing in New England, through two Olympics, World Cup podiums, and now to her current position as Head Coach at the Aspen Valley Ski Club in Aspen, Colorado. Her depth of experience as an international athlete, and continued development as a coach, make her an ideal leader to help forge a vision for US skier development at NNF.
Colin Rodgers, Vermont
Bio: Colin Rodgers currently serves as the Nordic Program Director at the Green Mountain Valley School in Waitsfield, Vermont, where he has developed a junior program that consistently ranks among the best in the country. Prior to GMVS, Rodgers served as Head Coach of Sun Valley’s Gold Team Program, helping develop a program capable of supporting post-graduate skiers towards pursuing their full potential in the sport. His depth of knowledge as a coach and progam director, and community-wide vision are a perfect fit with the mission of NNF to progress all of American skiing development.
Thomas Pearce, Minnesota
Bio: Thomas Pearce is deeply involved with America’s biggest ski community in the Twin Cities, Minnesota, serving as the Minnesota Youth Ski League (MYSL) leader at Hyland Park Reserve. His professional background is as a deeply experienced digital interactive director, where he’s worked with numerous corporate entities to power their growth. His unique blend of passion for growing communities, and his pure love of skiing, make him a vital resource in helping grow NNF as an organization towards its mission to make skier development a first priority among the US ski community.
Dave Jarrett, Utah
Bio: Dave Jarrett first distinguished himself as one of the United States’ best Nordic Combined skiers, competing at two Olympics (1994, 1998) for Team USA. He then went on to coach a generation of Nordic Combined skiers including Billy Demong, Johnny Spillane, and Tod Lodwick, culminating in the Team’s Olympic Gold Medal at the Vancouver 2010 games. He has been a consistent presence in leading the American Nordic Combine community for multiple generations, and with that, is a vital leader to pursue the discipline’s goals as part of NNF.
Gus Kaeding, Utah
Bio: Gus Kaeding is as the Senior Manager of Data and Analytics for US Ski and Snowboard, His journey to that role included an upbringing as a ski racer in Vermont, a coaching career with Central Cross Country Skiing in the Midwest, and finally, a novel approach to bringing data science to help propel high performance with the US Ski Team. With his innovative approach and rich background in nordic skiing, he is a valuable asset to the grassroots development of NNF and its mission.
Craig Ward, Colorado
Bio: Craig Ward has been an advocate for nordic skiing in all its disciplines – jumping, cross-country, and nordic combined – stemming back to his time as a junior athlete growing up in Aspen, Colorado. Ward captained the 1980 Olympic nordic team at Lake Placid, and was a consistent presence on the US Ski Team for a decade. Since then, War has helped build one of the country’s premier nordic communities in Colorado, and brings his experience and passion for the full breadth of nordic skiing to NNF and its mission.
LEADERSHIP: NNF takes a grassroot approach to developing a ski community capable of allowing athletes to reach their dreams, regardless of background. With a grassroots approach comes grassroots leadership. Do you have a love for the ski community and want to work on making it a more equitable, more high-performing place? Contact Reese Brown, [email protected], about joining our leadership team!