U.S. Ski & Snowboard is honored to announce that due to the success of the Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund (JSARF) and support from the Shelby Cullom Davis Charitable Fund, the organization will make a one-time COVID-19 hardship payment of $1300 to every named 2020-21 national team athlete. 

The JSARF was created to honor Jeff Shiffrin’s life and legacy in collaboration with the Shiffrin family and a group of generous donors (six families). The fund has contributed to U.S. Ski & Snowboard in sustaining its training and competition schedule as many funding sources were impacted due to COVID-19. This has translated into one of the most successful seasons in history, with 103 podiums, including 27 victories, across all sports which is a direct result of the consistent funding.

“The Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund was able to help us support and sustain athlete funding during the COVID downturn we experienced this year,” said U.S. Ski & Snowboard President and CEO Tiger Shaw. “We are thrilled to be able to award athletes this one-time payment. Many of our athletes have faced a personal loss of income and an impeded earning power due to a reduction in events and other opportunities this season. We know this payment may not make up for every missed opportunity, but we hope that it can alleviate some of the financial hardship.”

“We are so grateful to have had the ability and opportunity to train and compete this year,” added Shaw. “Going into this winter we did not know if we were even going to have a season. Because of the support of our generous donors with initiatives such as the Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund, we were able to keep our athletes on snow and achieved some amazing results. All of our athletes exemplified resiliency this year and I can think of no better way to honor Jeff’s memory than by supporting our athletes in their pursuit of excellence.”

Better days are still ahead, and the thrill and challenge of athletes’ Olympic dreams are worth fighting for. 

For more information about the Jeff Shiffrin Athlete Resiliency Fund, visit keeptheflamealive.org.

U.S. Ski & Snowboard today announced a partnership with Align Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALGN), makers of the Invisalign® clear aligner system, making the Invisalign brand the Official Smile of U.S. Ski & Snowboard, the Olympic national governing body of ski and snowboard sports in the United States. The multi-year, worldwide sponsorship includes development of original Invisalign branded content across social media channels and for the U.S. Ski & Snowboard website. As part of the agreement, U.S. Ski & Snowboard will launch a program for athletes to join the Invisalign Smile Squad and receive Invisalign treatment and then share their Invisalign treatment experiences on their social media profiles.

“Smiles, skiing, and snowboarding go hand-in-hand, so we’re excited to connect with athletes from the U.S. Ski, Snowboard, and Freeski teams and their fans around the world,” said Kamal Bhandal, Align Technology vice president, Global Brand and Consumer Marketing. “Our purpose is transforming smiles and changing lives, and we admire these talented and inspirational athletes and their commitment to being the best in the world.  We look forward to working with U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes on the Invisalign Smile Squad and supporting their Invisalign treatment journeys as they come to life in their stories and experiences shared across media platforms.”

“We’re all smiles in announcing Align’s Technology’s Invisalign brand as our first-ever Official Smile Partner,” said Michael O’Conor, chief revenue officer for U.S. Ski & Snowboard. “Smiling confidently is a feeling our athletes know well, whether on the slopes or the top of the podium. We are excited to partner with a brand committed to using technology to change lives for the better, just as we are committed to supporting our athletes in their pursuit of excellence. We look forward to sharing our Invisalign Smile Squad stories and introducing the Invisalign brand to our fans around the world.”

“We welcome U.S. Snowboard Team athletes Jamie Anderson, Maddie Mastro and Red Gerard, and U.S. Freeski Team athlete David Wise to the Invisalign Smile Squad and are excited to support their Invisalign treatment journey as they join over 9.6 million patients around the world who have used the Invisalign system to improve their smiles,” said Frank Quinn, Align Technology vice president and general manager, U.S. “We’re proud to be the Official Smile of U.S. Ski & Snowboard and to help Invisalign trained doctors transform the winning smiles of these great U.S. athletes.”

At 30-years-old, Jamie Anderson continues to raise the bar in women’s competitive snowboarding and beyond. Anderson is a double-Olympic gold medalist, earned silver in the inaugural 2018 Olympic big air, and is the winningest female X Games athlete of all time, with 19 medals. Most recently, Anderson has proven herself in the world of backcountry snowboarding competing in events like the Natural Selection event and filming her own movie Unconditional. Anderson is thrilled to partner with the Invisalign brand to bring her smile to the next level. “My smile is a reflection of my best self!” said Anderson. “I’m excited to partner with the Invisalign brand so I can give my smile that extra boost. Invisalign treatment will help elevate my confidence on and off the snow.”

Maddie Mastro was an Olympian at the age of 17 and has since medaled at two World Championships. She is the first woman to ever land the "double crippler" both in and out of halfpipe competition, putting her at the forefront of women’s snowboard progression. As an elite athlete always in the spotlight, Mastro is excited to partner with Invisalign in making her smile podium-ready. “I absolutely love my Invisalign treatment and am super excited to be a brand athlete ambassador!” Mastro said. “Invisalign clear aligners work great for an active lifestyle and you can’t even tell you are wearing them, which makes for a winning smile.”

Red Gerard became a household name at the 2018 Olympics where he became the youngest male U.S. Olympian to win a gold in 90 years at the age of 17 with his win in snowboard slopestyle. Gerard went on to earn gold at the 2019 Burton U.S. Open and Bronze at X Games Aspen 2020. Gerard is more than a competition snowboarder, his film Joy won Movie of the Year at the 2020 Snowboarder Awards, and he's a star of the 2020 Burton team video "One World." “My partnership with the Invisalign brand is ideal due to my heavy travel schedule competing and filming all year,” said Gerard. “It’s a quick and simple program that allows me to focus on riding while it focuses on my teeth.” 

David Wise is a husband, father, and the only male freeski halfpipe gold medalist in Olympic history winning the inaugural contest at the 2014 Sochi and 2018 PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games. Wise also has four X Games gold medals, 16 World Cup podiums, and a World Championship victory to his name. Invisalign clear aligners will provide a perfect solution to help Wise work on his smile while keeping up with his busy home and competitive life. “Looking your best helps give you that extra bit of confidence,” Wise said. “In my sport, confidence is everything. While I’ve always wanted a less crooked smile, I’ve been reluctant to use traditional orthodontics. I’m excited to begin Invisalign treatment because it fits my chaotic lifestyle and won’t make me hide my teeth along the way. I look forward to breaking out a new winning smile.”

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About Align Technology, Inc.

Align Technology designs, manufactures and offers the Invisalign® system, the most advanced clear aligner system in the world, iTero® intraoral scanners and services, and exocad CAD/CAM software. These technology building blocks enable enhanced digital orthodontic and restorative workflows to improve patient outcomes and practice efficiencies for over 200 thousand doctor customers, and is key to accessing Align’s 500 million consumer market opportunity worldwide. Align has helped doctors treat over 9.6 million patients with the Invisalign system and is driving the evolution in digital dentistry through the Align Digital Platform, our integrated suite of unique, proprietary technologies and services delivered as a seamless, end-to-end solution for patients and consumers, orthodontists and GP dentists, and lab/partners. Visit www.aligntech.com for more information.

For additional information about the Invisalign system or to find an Invisalign doctor in your area, please visit www.invisalign.com. For additional information about the iTero systems and services, please visit www.itero.com. For additional information about exocad dental CAD/CAM offerings and a list of exocad reseller partners, please visit www.exocad.com.

About U.S. Ski & Snowboard

U.S. Ski & Snowboard is the Olympic National Governing Body (NGB) of ski and snowboard sports in the USA, based in Park City, Utah. Tracing its roots directly back to 1905, the organization represents nearly 200 elite skiers and snowboarders in 2021, competing in seven teams; alpine, cross country, freeski, freestyle, snowboard, nordic combined and ski jumping. In addition to the elite teams, U.S. Ski & Snowboard also provides leadership and direction for tens of thousands of young skiers and snowboarders across the USA, encouraging and supporting them in achieving excellence. By empowering national teams, clubs, coaches, parents, officials, volunteers and fans, U.S. Ski & Snowboard is committed to the progression of its sports, athlete success and the value of team. For more information, visit www.usskiandsnowboard.org

Pending Members

We need your help! We still have almost 1600 members with one or more outstanding requirements. Please help us finish the season strong!! Check the Pending Members tool to see if you or someone you know could use a little nudge! We’re here to help. Instructions for each requirement are noted below. Thank you in advance for your support in ensuring all members have completed these important requirements.

SafeSport Training

Have you completed your SafeSport Training this season? As a reminder SafeSport training is an annual requirement with the core training required every 4 seasons and brief refresher courses required in each of the other three seasons. 

How do I Complete SafeSport Training: 

• Register or login with SafeSport https://safesport.org/authentication/signin
  • Click “SIGN IN” on the top right-hand corner
  • Enter your username or register as a new user
• Please affiliate with U.S. Ski & Snowboard
• Enter your U.S. Ski & Snowboard member ID.
  • Do not include your division code (A, C, E, F, I, N, R or X) when inputting your member ID.
  • Doing so may cause a delay in the updating of your completion status.
• You will receive a confirmation email to activate your account.
  •  Please check your email (including your spam file)
  •  Click the link in the email message.
• For technical assistance please contact SafeSport directly at help.desk@safesport.org.

Coaching Fundamentals

Coaches who have yet to complete Coaching Fundamentals have until April 1 to finish the course. All work done on the course will be cleared out as of April 1. Let’s finish strong! You’re almost there! Just sign into your account on my.usskiandsnowboard.org today. Here are some instructions to help you get started. 

How do I complete the Coaching Fundamentals?

• Login to your U.S. Ski & Snowboard account  https://my.usskiandsnowboard.org/myussa
• If you receive a notice that you cannot enroll yourself, please email membership immediately at membership@usskiandsnowboard.org
• Click the link in the notice at the top of the screen to begin the course. If you are unable to access the course from your account, please click here and sign in with your credentials
• The course takes 3-4 hours to complete
• All 5 sections of Activity 2 must be completed to access the final exam

Introduction to Avalanches

In order to complete Introduction to Avalanches, you need to have an individual my.usskiandsnowboard.org account. Your name and member ID need to appear as the primary member to access the course. If you are not the primary on the account, please log out of this account, open a new page and go to my.usskiandsnowboard.org to create a new account where you are the primary member.

How do I complete the training?

• Login to your U.S. Ski & Snowboard account  https://my.usskiandsnowboard.org/myussa
• Click the link in the notice at the top of the screen to begin the course. If you are unable to access the course from your account, please click here and sign in with your credentials
• The course takes 5-10 minutes to complete 
• If for any reason you are having trouble with course access, please email membership@usskiandsnowboard.org for an alternate means of completing the course. 

Please allow pop-ups for the following website for the course to launch:https://education.usskiandsnowboard.org/. If you need help allowing pop-ups to appear, please click here to find your internet browser and their instructions.

Background Screening

Prior to registering for screening, please check your online account to confirm that you are indeed required to register for screening. If the requirement applies to you, there will be a note at the top of the screen explaining the requirement. Screening is required every two seasons. 

*Please register only once. If you have already registered and are awaiting your screening determination, please disregard these instructions.

How do I register for background screening?

• Please go to NCSI’s Secure Website to register for your background screening. The 8-digit applicant code is 11392848.

Please note you will be required to submit a copy of your valid state/government issued ID (NCSI accepts .jpg, .pdf, .doc, and .png file formats).

• Please allow several weeks for the screening process to be completed. Individual screening times will vary. Foreign screenings may take a month or more.

• Foreign members will be contacted by NCSI, via email, requesting additional documentations and government-issued IDs. Please check your spam folder for this email.
  • verifications@ncsisafe.com
  • clientservices@ncsisafe.com.

 If you have any questions or problems submitting your information, please call NSCI at (866) 833-7100 or by email at clientservices@ncsisafe.com.

U.S. Ski & Snowboard announces the pending resignation of its President and CEO Tiger Shaw effective March 1, 2022, following the Beijing Winter Olympics. Shaw will be named CEO Emeritus upon his resignation and will join the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Foundation Board as a Trustee focusing on several key fundraising priorities including Athlete funding, an initiative that has been a central focus during his eight-year tenure as CEO. The Board will begin a search for its next CEO immediately with the objective of having a new CEO in place in time to overlap with Shaw prior to his departure next March.

Shaw joined U.S. Ski & Snowboard in October 2013 and during his tenure, he will have served through three Olympic Games and 12 World Championships. In addition to many notable athletic accomplishments under his watch, Shaw led U.S. Ski & Snowboard to 32 Olympic and 64 World Championship medals representing 60% of the US medals won across all Winter Olympic sports. Shaw led efforts to dramatically improve athlete funding, to support coach professional development, and to improve the athlete experience thus driving important organizational culture initiatives that will have an impact for years to come. During Shaw’s tenure, the Foundation endowment grew from $36MM to nearly $60MM, enabling $3MM in annual athlete funding, and organizational debt has declined by more than $10MM.

“We have had great leadership under Tiger during his tenure, guiding the organization through both good and difficult times. He leaves a legacy of achievement and change with permanent benefit,” said Board of Directors Chair Kipp Nelson. “While we are saddened by his future departure, we understand his desire to pursue other endeavors and wish him the very best. We are so pleased Tiger will continue his close involvement with U.S. Ski & Snowboard as CEO Emeritus and as a Foundation Trustee undoubtedly championing many of the key initiatives he launched as CEO,” continued Nelson.

“While I look forward to new career challenges, I know I will leave this organization, which I care for so deeply, in great shape with an incredible management team and supportive boards,” said Shaw. “I am excited to manage a seamless transition and to stay very involved as a U.S. Ski & Snowboard Foundation Trustee and CEO Emeritus. I am proud of my accomplishments over the past eight years and our future looks bright. I have a world-class team and know their accomplishments will continue to be amongst the best in the world.”