Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm actually more surprised that Washington State and Oregon doesn't have more winter olympians given that both states have a huge snowy mountain range (Cascades) and in the case of Washington, more people than Colorado. California surprises me only in that many of the olympians don't live in the mountains, but in places like San Diego or Los Angeles.
I like the discrepancy between New Hampshire and Vermont too when the snow sports are equally accessible from each other. Also shocked that WV has zero residents in the Winter Olympics. I've snowboarded out there before. It's actually quite nice.
I believe it is Vermont that a family has set up a non-profit ski area that has consistently produced more winter Olympian's than any other single area in the US. That no doubt is a big factor in their contribution to this list.
Warroad, MN (pop 1,781) has produced 6 Olympic medalists in its history - three gold and three silver. No US hockey team has ever won gold without a Warroad resident on its team. This year, Gigi Marvin from Warroad is on the women's team, so they have a chance.
Warroad, MN (pop 1,781) has produced 6 Olympic medalists in its history - three gold and three silver. No US hockey team has ever won gold without a Warroad resident on its team. This year, Gigi Marvin from Warroad is on the women's team, so they have a chance.
I checked your claim and while impressive, not quite true. Check the Women's 1998 gold medal team.
Vermont is a hotbed for winter sports. Lake Placid is also close for all their training facilities. Not only are there 15 Vermonters in the Olympics, there are at least that many more participating that have ties to Vermont (mostly college/prep school ties).
Mikaela Shiffrin (from CO but went to Burke Mountain Academy in VT for high school)
Viktor Stahlberg (Sweden, hockey. Played for the University of Vermont)
Ryan Gunderson (USA, hockey. Played for UVM) A Vermont Guide To The Pyeongchang Winter Olympics | Vermont Public Radio
OH..and the ski family mentioned in the previous post are the Cochran's. Their ski area is now a non-profit. https://cochranskiarea.com/
Well, ice skating and hockey are indoor sports and available everywhere. In fact, I learned to ice skate at the Deauville Hotel in Miami Florida in the sixties. There is nothing regional about those sports.
Many of the skiers who are not from parts of the country with big ski areas went to high school there or were on the college teams. They were inspired by vacations to ski areas.
Lots of kids caught a sport fever and were sent off to school where they could get an education and sports training at the same time. Skiing Is like that.
These States have no ski areas:
Georgia: last one closed 10 years ago
Texas: Ski Apache is overrun with Texans
And so it goes.
Well I'm a Floridian and I ice skated for the first time in the Ober Gatlinburg indoor ice rink in Tennessee (though I rollerbladed for the first time in Miami in the late 90s ) but you can't say that the ice skating culture in Tennessee and especially Florida compares to a state like Minnesota or Michigan. When you're from a state where those activities are not only more accessible but a part of the local lifestyle, you're more likely to be involved in it especially from an early age. Its no surprise that most NFL players seem to be from the South and most NHL players are from the Upper Midwest. (Though football can be played anywhere in any weather, the South has the strongest high school football culture)
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
