Team USA features five Paralympians and two world championship medalists -World Para Snowboard Championships takes place March 27-31 in Pyha, Finland
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Nine U.S. athletes will compete for world titles at the World Para Snowboard Championships in Pyha, Finland, as announced today by U.S. Paralympics, a division of the U.S. Olympic Committee. Taking place March 27-31, this will mark the first major competition since the Paralympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018.
Highlighting the roster are five Paralympians who combined for eight medals in PyeongChang. Brittani Coury (Durango, Colorado), Mike Minor (Waymart, Pennsylvania), Noah Elliott (St. Charles, Missouri) and Mike Schultz (St. Cloud, Minnesota) each won medals in their Paralympic debuts, while Keith Gabel (Ogden, Utah) took home one medal at his second Paralympic Winter Games. Additionally, four athletes are making their world championship debuts with Team USA, including up-and-comers Zach Miller (Denver, Colorado) and Joe Pleban (Fredericksburg, Virginia), who have had strong world cup seasons.
"Coming off our athletes’ success in PyeongChang, we’re looking to our veterans and newcomers to help lay the groundwork for the next four years of growth and development as we look ahead to Beijing 2022," Kevin Jardine, director of U.S. Paralympics Alpine Skiing & Snowboarding said. "From new talent to Paralympic champions, we have a strong group of proven performers heading to world championships and this will be a great test to see who emerges on the podium from our country."
Team USA had a historic performance in PyeongChang, capturing 13 medals (five golds, five silvers and three bronze) to finish at the top of the snowboarding medal table. Four U.S. athletes were crowned Paralympic champions, including Elliott, Minor and Schultz.
At the last edition of the world championships in 2017, U.S. athletes took home 10 medals with Minor and Schultz each collecting hardware at their first world championships. Minor will seek to defend his snowboardcross world title in Pyha, while Schultz sets his sights on the only title – a world championship – that’s missing from his already impressive resume.
The U.S. heads into world championships with strong momentum with athletes having won 21 medals so far on the world cup circuit. Gabel and Miller lead the world championship team with six medals each.
The 2019 World Para Snowboard Championships will begin with banked slalom on March 27 followed by an off day and training day. Snowboardcross will be contested on March 30 before wrapping up competition with the debut of a new race, the snowboardcross team event, on March 31.
Follow U.S. Paralympics Snowboarding on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for additional updates.
2019 U.S. Paralympics Snowboarding World Championship Team Name Hometown Classification Brittani Coury Durango, Colo. LL2 Noah Elliott St. Charles, Mo. LL1 Keith Gabel Ogden, Utah LL2 Garrett Geros Cartersville, Ga. LL2 Zach Miller Denver, Colo. LL2 Mike Minor Waymart, Pa. UL Joe Pleban Fredericksburg, Va. LL2 Alex Rivera Columbus, Ind. LL2 Mike Schultz St. Cloud, Minn. LL1
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