Mancuso wins 16th National Title at Squaw

There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home.

Not when home is Squaw Valley and the US Ski Association sees fit to bring the national championships – officially the Nature Valley US Alpine Championships – right to your doorstep.

What’s a girl to do, but go out and extend the national win record to 16?

Julia Mancuso won her first National Crown (three of them in fact) ten years ago. She was ten days shy of turning 19. She won her most recent – her seventh giant slalom title – today March 21, at home against Mikaela Shiffrin the barely 18 year old who won both the World Cup and World Championship slaloms.

“It’s fun to be at my home mountain,” said Mancuso. “I think that’s the cool thing about records, even if it’s something like Nationals, if you’re pushing for something, or like extending a record, it makes it more fun.” And these days, after a long and arduous racing season, Mancuso is all about fun.

And let’s face it, letting the youngster know who rules National GS, is fun. “I knew it was going to be hard,” said Mancuso, “Mikaela is skiing real good, so I just went for it. I was a little conservative at the bottom, it’s still really icy.”

Mancuso won the first run by four tenths and the second by almost five.

Shiffrin, fresh off the rounds of the NYC television circuit, took the defeat in stride. “I felt good. I love GS and I’m just working on it. … I love to train and I love to improve,” she said. “I’ll try not to lose sight of the fact that I can’t become complacent.”

The Un-teamed Megan McJames won the Nor Am championships at Squaw a few days ago and finished third today with Stacey Cook and Laurenne Ross fourth and fifth.

USSA photo by Mark Epstein