Turin, Italy 2006 Winter Olympic Games

Profile: Competition is everything

Highlights
Vail's Lindsey Kildow is a first-rate four-event ski racer. She's the only American to win at Italy's Trofeo Topolino (the so-called Junior-Junior Worlds - for skids 11-14) and earn Junior Worlds medals and U.S. titles - all of it while a teenager; and then six weeks after she turned 20, Kildow produced her first World Cup victory.

Update
Kildow followed her breakthrough 2004 season (including her first World Cup podium) with an even bigger Winter '05. She collected her first World Cup victory ("My goal for the season was to win, so it was great that I did it in the first [DH] race," she said) adding five other top-3s.

She finished the season ranked sixth in the overall World Cup rankings, which is the best since 1996 when Picabo Street was sixth (Street was fifth in '95). Kildow finished 3rd in the super G ranks, which is best U.S. women's results since Caroline Lalive was sixth in 2002, Kildow ranked sixth in the DH rankings is best ranking since Kirsten Clark was third in 2003 rankings. Her results triggered a confidence transfusion, she said, and upon reflection, Kildow said she may have learned even more in handling the deep frustration of two oh-so-close fourth-place finishes at Worlds Championships. Even greater consistency - which should translate to even greater success - is the primary goal for the Olympic season.

Start-up
Growing up in the Twin Cities area, Kildow was on skis at 2 before moving into Erich Sailer’s renowned program at Buck Hill. She commuted to Vail for a couple of years before the Kildows moved to Vail in the late Nineties. Her father, a three-time U.S. junior champion, hopes his daughter would follow in his footsteps. Lindsey said she wanted the same thing, and remembers “wanting to be the best” since she was 6.

Personal
"Kildon"...She’s an older sister to triplets " two brothers and a sister " and another sister...Mom and Dad are lawyers...She’s lost track of the times she’s seen “Gladiator” (“Definitely the best movie of all time!”)... Loves writing and keeps a journal… For good luck, often wears jewelry her father gave her during races and keeps special shirts to race in that she thinks are fast.