Paula Moltzan
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Hometown
Prior Lake, Minn. -
Team
2022 U.S. Olympic Alpine Team , Alpine A -
Years on Team
10 (since 2012) -
Born
04/07/1994 -
Club(s)
Buck Hill Ski Team/Ski and Snowboard Club Vail -
School:
University of Vermont
BIO
Paula Moltzan is a Minnesota girl hailing from Buck Hill Ski Racing Club and Ski and Snowboard Club Vail. A slalom and giant slalom specialist, Moltzan became the first woman to win a slalom gold at Junior World Championships. In 2017 Moltzan joined the University of Vermont’s Alpine Ski Team where she had tremendous success. Moltzan became the fifth UVM female to win the NCAA slalom title and first freshman to do so since 1986. During her tenure she was a two -time NCAA First Team All-American.
Moltzan rejoined the team in 2018 and her slalom and giant slalom skills have only improved. In 2021 Moltzan took her first World Cup podium result in the parallel event in Lech Zuers, Austria. In the 2023 season, Moltzan had her best season to date for giant slalom and slalom. Moltzan secured a second-place result in the Semmering, Austria slalom right behind teammate Mikaela Shiffrin. In 2023 Moltzan was a key member of the gold medal winning team at the World Championships in Courchevel-Meribel.
Moltzan got married in 2022 to her now ski tech Ryan Mooney, they travel to all the World Cup races together. During the summers, she trains by herself in a woodshed and works as a whitewater raft guide on the weekends. She also gardens during the summer - growing almost any vegetables you can think of!
"When I was 11, I joined the Buck Hill Ski Racing Club, where the world-renowned coach Erich Sailer instilled his passion for ski racing in me. He taught me how to train hard while riding the rope-tow almost every night."
8 Things You Didn't Know About Paula Moltzan
- 1. Paula grabbed her first World Cup podium, narrowly missing her first World Cup victory, in Lech Zuers, Austria in the parallel event!
- 2. In just her second World Cup giant slalom start ever, Paula scored a top-10 and the fourth-fastest second run at the season opener in Soelden, Austria, in Oct. 2020. A week later, she got engaged. Woohoo!
- 3. Paula started dreaming about becoming an Olympic ski racer after winning NASTAR Nationals in Park City, and meeting all of the U.S. Ski team members that were setting pace times and hanging with all the athletes.
- 4. During the 2015 season, Paula scored her first World Cup points at Flachau, Austria and then took the momentum to Junior Worlds and became the first American woman to win a slalom gold.
- 5. Paula enrolled in the University of Vermont in 2017, and made an immediate impact on the Cats' ski team roster. During her freshman year, she became only the fifth UVM female to win the NCAA slalom title and the first freshman to do so since 1986. During her UVM tenure, she was also a two-time NCAA First Team All-American and was on the National Collegiate All-Academic Team in 2017.
- 6. Paula credits her father as being her biggest motivator. "My Dad was my coach, my driver, my ski man, and my biggest supporter (with my mom) through every stage of my career as a skier."
- 7. Paula rejoined the World Cup tour in 2018 (representing the Cats), starting in front of a home crowd at Killington, Vermont, landing in 17th in slalom.
- 8. During the summers, she trains by herself in a wood shed and works as a whitewater raft guide on the weekends. She also gardens during the summer - growing almost any vegetables you can think of!
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FIRST TRACKS
“My Mom started me skiing early. I would tag along with her while she was giving other young kids skiing lessons at Buck Hill. By age five I was eager to join Buck’s Development Team. I’m very competitive and had lots of fun winning D-Team races on the weekends at Buck Hill and other local slopes. I think I started dreaming about becoming an Olympic ski racer after winning NASTAR Nationals in Park City and meeting all of the U.S. Ski team members that were setting pace times and hanging with all the athletes.
When I was 11, I joined the Buck Hill Ski Racing Club, where the world-renowned coach Erich Sailer instilled his passion for ski racing in me. He taught me how to train hard while riding the rope-tow almost every night. I can’t even begin to tell you the number of times he told me that I was ‘skiing to slow and that I needed to go faster if I wanted to win.’ Because of Erich, I had great success as a J4 and J3 racer winning Medals at the USSA Junior Olympics, Canada’s Whistler Cup, and Italy’s Topolino Cup.
When I turned 16, I moved to Colorado with my dad to train with Ski and Snowboard Club Vail. While at Vail, coach Dan Strip helped me polish my technical and speed racing techniques. Within the year, just after my 17th birthday, I was invited to the U.S. Ski Team.“