Erik Schlopy           World Cup Ski Racer~ 3 Time Olympian

• Dec 03, 2005 Beaver Creek GS
  Erik finished 4th in a typically exciting race. Afrer breaking his hand in two places during his firt run, Erik raced his second run with his pole casted to his hand. The results of this race saw the US men capturing 1st, 2nd and 4th place-in the best race result in the history of US Mens skiing.
• Dec 04, 2004 Beaver Creek GS
  Erik finished 6th in only his fouth race since injury sidelined him for the 2003-2004 season:
  "Age is only a number next to your name," said Schlopy, who has the number 1972 next to his name. "There needs to be a paradigm shift in the way people think about sports. People can perform for much longer than the general public realizes. I'm going to be the ambassador for that in alpine skiing."
  It is the ninth career top six placing for Erik Schlopy
  

• Back on the course at Solden 2004
  " I’m glad that the first race is over. I’m really psyched. This was my best race ever in Sölden, so I’m officially off to my best start ever in my career. Seventeenth place beats last year. The famous pictures of my crash last year were all over the place, and reporters were asking me about it. Like I told Ski Racing and the Denver Post, it’s a great picture: The photographer who took it got really lucky and that picture deserves a lot of credit, so I’m happy for that guy".
  
  I’m feeling pretty healthy. Not 100 percent yet, but I know that when I am -- I think by December -- I’ll be giving these guys a run for their money. I’ll be pretty much challenging Bode, because he’s beating everyone else, and I know he’s psyched for that. I know he knows that I’ll be there pretty soon. It’s just a matter of getting my knee to 100 percent and getting my new equipment set up the right way.
  
  For me, Sölden is one of the toughest courses on the World Cup. None of my fortés come into play on this hill. My forté is even steepness, and this is maximum flats to maximum steeps. I’m better at the whole middle range (sidehills are fine with me). But this is a tough hill. My knee is a little sore, but that’s just because it’s race day and I was giving it what I had. I took it easy on the second run a little bit.
  

Park City (Nov. 22, 2003): America's Opening World Cup: Schlopy suffers knee injury
PARK CITY -- First came the pop. Then the crash; the toboggan ride; the concerned mutterings of the doctor.   And now the wait.
Erik Schlopy was leading the men's giant slalom at the America's Opening World Cup event Saturday when he felt his left knee "pop" as he was making a turn on a steep pitch high on CB's run. Thrown aloft, he slammed down on his left side and never got up.
"The snow was really aggressive and it just grabbed the ski," said Schlopy. "I could feel [the knee] go."  read more: Salt Lake City Tribune

Solden Autria (Oct. 26,2003): First World Cup  Ski Racing
American Erik Schlopy, the world championship bronze medalist, tumbled after both skis broke but was not hurt.

ARE, Sweden (March 10) - Austrian great Hermann Maier hung up some more big numbers Saturday at World Cup Finals, winning the final giant slalom of the season with Erik Schlopy (Park City, UT) on his tail, finishing second for the second podium of Schlopy's career.

Second 2nd for Schlopy

"It's great," said U.S. Head Coach Bill Egan. "He had a good first run and even though he didn't ski the top extremely well on his second
run, he still had a good one. We're really excited for him."

Schlopy is 15th for the season and his podium, which followed his second-place result behind Christoph Gruber of Austria in the Bormio GS before Christmas, boosted him past the elite 400-point level for the season. He stands third - behind Maier andVon Gruenigen - in GS, 20th in slalom. It's the first time a U.S. skier has been top-3 in GS since 1983 when Phil Mahre edged Stenmark for both the World Cup overall and GS titles (and points were given to just the top 15 skiers).

"This is great. My goal had been for the season had been to be top 15 and now, to be second behind Hermann Maier and to be third overall [in GS] is very special," Schlopy said. "When I have one of these special days, my body knows it and I can go fast, I can be on the
podium...

"I still have some technique to work on, but I keep progressing, keep making improvements," he said.

The Road Not Taken
A more confident Erik Schlopy gains ground on his golden goal after returning from self-imposed exile Erik Schlopy was harboring a secret. It was 1995 and the then 22-year-old alpine racer was already well on his way to claiming a title he would win by season's end: The overall NorAm championship. It's a coveted honor--one that secures the titleholder a starting spot on the World Cup (a realm Schlopy had only dabbled in as of yet) and young Schlopy would soon add it to an already impressive resume that included two U.S national titles in 1992, and a spot on the 1994 Olympic team. see the FULL REPORT on http://www.skiracing.com