WSC Alumnus Sasha Rearick Coaches Men’s Alpine Ski Team to Olympic Glory; Former student Seth Wescott also shows WSC pride at the Games
Mar. 2, 2010 -- It’s no secret that Western has seen its fair share of Olympic athletes and coaches on campus.
Seth Wescott, former WSC student, who took the gold medal in snowboardcross at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Photo by: Oliver Kraus
So it comes as no surprise to see a WSC connection at this year’s Winter Olympics in Vancouver with alumnus Sasha Rearick coaching the men’s alpine ski team and former student Seth Wescott winning gold in the snowboardcross.
Rearick, a 2000 alumnus, is the head coach of the U.S. men’s alpine ski team, which raked in four medals – a gold, silver and bronze won by Bode Miller and a bronze won by Andrew Weibrecht. He began his coaching career at Monarch Ski Area while attending Western and also was an instructor at the renowned French Ski School in Tignes, France. After graduating cum laude with a double major in kinesiology and business administration, Rearick coached for three years at Green Mountain Valley School in Vermont. He joined the U.S. Ski Team coaching staff after the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City. Starting as a conditioning and on-hill coach at the Europa Cup level, Rearick moved up the ranks as the team’s head coach. The following season, he was tapped to oversee the men’s World Cup technical team and later became the U.S. Ski Team men's slalom and giant slalom head coach. Rearick was promoted to the U.S. Ski Team men’s alpine head coach in 2008.
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Former student Wescott also is basking in the Olympic spotlight for taking his second gold medal in the men’s snowboardcross. (Wescott was the event’s first gold medalist when it debuted at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy.)
Wescott attended Western from 1994-95 and has fond memories of his time here. In an online photo slideshow at NBColympics.com titled “Cheering for the home team,” Wescott sported a WSC t-shirt and the caption read, “Snowboard cross gold medalist Seth Wescott is proud to represent Western State College of Colorado.”
Wescott himself has quite a fan base. In addition to winning two Olympic gold medals, he is a three-time U.S. champion and a world champion. Wescott also holds the most Winter X Games snowboardcross starts and medals.
Story by: Tracey Koehler, director of public relations and communications
