Many were competing for spots on the U.S. Paralympic Team for the 2026 Paralympic Games.
Athletes from the U.S., New Zealand, Peru, Canada, Mexico and Israel competed as standing, sitting and visually impaired skiers.
Zach Williams, a sit-ski athlete who races for the National Ability Center, said this event was his first race back in 2022.
“I won the slalom race because no one else finished. I was the only one. Yeah, I was not fast at all. So I was able to make it through the course. So kind of, you know, win by attrition, but had a good experience there.”
He began skiing five years ago in Flagstaff, Arizona, where he fell in love with the sport.
“And so I started thinking about the Paralympics early on, and the guy who taught me how to ski, I asked him, I'm 39, and I've never skied in my life before, ‘Are the Paralympics even a possibility or is this just kind of a pipe dream?’ And he's like, ‘It'll take a lot of work, but it's not impossible.’”
Training brought Williams to the NAC where he got the opportunity to hone his skills. This week, Williams set a personal record earning second place in the GS and a fourth in slalom, one step closer to making the national team.
“This is kind of a feeder team for the US National Team. And this year, criteria is set for the B Team is four results under 120. So I got two this week that are well under that. So that was a big week for me to get in there.”
Points are based on where the athlete finishes in the race, no matter their ability. The first place finish receives the lowest points and it goes up from there depending on the time difference. But, based on the athlete’s abilities, there is a time penalty to keep the field level.
Williams explained the classifications depend on the athlete’s injury and movement.
“The more sensation and the more control you have, you end up in a different classification. And so your clock runs at a different time.”
Next up for Williams and the NAC alpine race team are the U.S. National Championships where the athletes will compete in six races across three events for another chance to get onto Team USA.
