Chester ski racer to compete in National Alpine Championships

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Ava Anderson, 14, of Chester, has qualified to compete in the U16 National Alpine Championships to be held in Sugarloaf, Maine, from Saturday, April 2 through Wednesday, April 6.Ava, an 8th grader at Stratton Mountain School at Stratton Mountain Resort, has long been a dedicated ski racer and currently races within the Vermont Alpine Racing Association.

Her 2021-22 season was a success, finishing with two 1st place wins, several in the Top 5 and most of her races in the Top 15. During the Vermont State Championships, Ava finished 14th overall in the state. That finish qualified her for U16 Eastern Championships where she competed last week at Burke Mountain against the best skiers in the East. At the completion of the Eastern Championship series, Ava was ranked 12th overall in the East. She finished 12th in the Super G and 6th in Giant Slalom.

As a result, she has qualified for U16 National Championships, where the country’s best U16 girls will compete. Ava is one of the youngest skiers in her age group, competing as a first-year U16, which makes qualifying for the Nationals an even bigger accomplishment.

Ava has been skiing since age 2 at Stratton Mountain, where her dad, Michael is the assistant Ski Patrol director. She made the decision to race at age 8 and has been achieving her goals since she started. Stratton Mountain School is an independent boarding and day school that focuses on college preparatory academics and competitive winter sports. Since 1972, SMS has had 51 Olympians and 119 National team athletes.