Innsbruck medalist Jean Saubert dies at 65

Jean Saubert, the first Oregonian to win two medals in the Olympic Winter Games, died Tuesday in Bigfork, Montana, at age 65.
    Saubert grew up skiing in the Cascades, where her father worked as a forest ranger, and became a six-time U.S. champion before making the team that represented the United States in the 1964 Games in Innsbruck, Austria. It was there that Saubert tied for the silver medal in giant slalom and won the bronze in slalom.
JEAN SAUBERT, the first Oregonian to win two medals in the Olympic Winter Games, died Tuesday in Bigfork, Montana, at age 65.
    Saubert grew up skiing in the Cascades, where her father worked as a forest ranger, and became a six-time U.S. champion before making the team that represented the United States in the 1964 Games in Innsbruck, Austria. It was there that Saubert tied for the silver medal in giant slalom and won the bronze in slalom.
    See the related story: Alpine champ Saubert leaves a legacy of dedication.
    Saubert was raised in Cascadia, near Sweet Home, and witnessed her first Olympics as a high school senior when her parents took her to watch the downhill skiing events at the 1960 Games in Squaw Valley, California.
     Saubert served as a guest TV commentator for the 1968 Winter Games in Grenoble, France. She visited the 2000 Summer Games in Sydney as a spectator and was a volunteer for the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, where she moved after retiring from a 32-year teaching career in Hillsboro. In addition to her volunteer duties, she carried the Olympic torch through Logan, Utah, one day before the Salt Lake opening ceremonies.
    Bill Marolt, president and CEO of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association — and a 1964 Olympic teammate of Saubert — said he was saddened by her death. He considered her a good friend, who died too young. “She was a truly outstanding competitor,” Marolt said.
    “In recent years, she was one of the active competitors in our Return of the Champions [alumni event blending medalists with the current U.S. Ski Team],” he said. calling her “a great athlete and fan, who represented all the high values which USSA seeks to embody.”
    Saubert was diagnosed with breast cancer six months before the 2002 Games. She is survived by her sister Joan Cummings and brother-in-law Terry Cummings of Bigfork, Mont. A service is planned for Wednesday in Bigfork, followed by a family memorial service and burial at a time and date to be determined in Florence, where she will rest beside her parents, grandparents and great grandparents.