Kikkan RANDALL

CAREER

Kikkan Randall is one of the few athletes who can say she made her Olympic debut in her birthplace - born in Salt Lake City and a member of the 2002 Olympic Team in Salt Lake. A promising runner growing up in Alaska, she added "serious” Cross-Country skiing as a counter-seasonal training vehicle, and then became a champion skier, too. She's owner of the best ever U.S. women's results in World Cup - a win in Rybinsk, Russia, a tally she added to in 2011 with two more World Cup wins– and is also the first U.S. woman to ever win a World Championship medal, snagging silver. After finishing eighth in the 2010 Olympic classic sprint, Randall stormed through 2011 completing the first ever podium season for an American woman in the overall World Cup sprint standings, taking third.
The 2012 season was a benchmark for Randall as she parlayed five World Cup podiums, including two wins, into the World Cup sprint title – a first for an American woman. She also dramatically upped the ante in both her classic and distance skiing to finish fifth overall. A three-time Olympian, Randall broke through with an historic win in Rybinsk, Russia in 2008. Using that as a base, she moved up through the ranks finishing third in the season-long sprint battle in 2011 before mounting a strong campaign from the opening race last season to take the title. She capped the season with her 17th U.S. title.

PERSONAL

Her family lived in Salt Lake while her mother attended law school at the University of Utah, but returned to Alaska after Randall's birth. The niece of two Olympians (Uncle Chris Haines, Mom's brother, was a '76 cross country skier and Aunt Betsy Haines was the first racer on-course in the 1980 5K), she was a first-rate high school runner and turned to skiing as a way to continue training in winter. She became one of the top U.S. junior racers; "It's in my blood,” she said with her trademark high-voltage smile. She blends classes at Alaska Pacific University with her Cross-Country training and serves as a key liaison between the U.S. Ski Team and one of the nation's premier club programs, the Alaska Pacific University Nordic Ski Center.
Randall is the lead U.S. Ambassador for Fast and Female. They had three successful U.S. events this year that reached over 350 girls. „I am really passionate about sharing the message of empowerment through sport alongside my good friend and FF Founder Chandra Crawford. I am also enjoying my role as the FIS Athlete Representative for Cross-Country skiing, it’s great to be involved in the process of decision making to make the sport even better,“ commented Randall.

QUICK LINKS

Website: http://www.kikkan.com