Patrick Deneen (skier)

Last updated
Patrick Deneen
Patrick Deneen crop.jpg
Born (1987-12-25) December 25, 1987 (age 35)
Redmond, Washington
Height5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Overall titlesN/A
Discipline titles0
Medal record
Men's freestyle skiing
Representing the Flag of the United States.svg  United States
World Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2009 Inawashiro Moguls
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2013 Voss Moguls
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2013 Voss Dual moguls

Patrick Deneen (born December 25, 1987) is an American freestyle skier, specializing in moguls. Deneen was the gold medalist at the 2009 International Ski Federation (FIS) Freestyle World Ski Championships. [1] In December 2009, Deneen won the US Olympic trials, held at Steamboat Springs, Colorado, securing a spot on the US Olympic Team for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. [2] In FIS World Cup events, he has reached the podium at 4 events in 25 starts, and was the 2008 Freestyle Rookie of the Year.

Contents

Early life and career

A native of the Snoqualmie Pass area of Washington, Deneen was raised in Cle Elum where his family's ranch remains his home. [3] His family's life revolved around the world of skiing; Deneen's father Pat was part owner and general manager of the Hyak ski area (now part of The Summit at Snoqualmie), where his mother Nancy managed sales. [4] The local ski shop was owned and operated by Deneen's grandfather. [5]

Surrounded by family and friends, Deneen took his first turns on skis at the age of 11 months, two months after he began walking. [3] His father had brought him to a ski shop asking for the smallest skis they had, and had to stuff newspaper in the boots in order for them to fit. "The boot-fitter was just shaking his head," said Deneen's father. [3] After his father found the flattest slope near the lodge, Deneen skied down toward his mother who was at the bottom, turning along the way as people called his name.

Deneen was homeschooled, allowing ample time for skiing pursuits, up to 190 days a year. [4] He began competitive skiing at the age of 7 as an alpine skier, [5] and was a top ranked junior in downhill before starting to freestyle. [4] As a junior downhiller he was a member of the racing team at Silver Mountain, Idaho where he and his family spent winters. [6] His competitive endeavors were not confined to the slopes however, he was also a youth champion in the equestrian sport reining. [3]

At the age of 15, he gave up competitive horse riding to focus on skiing, [4] and began the transition from alpine to freestyle; at one point he won a downhill race and a moguls contest during the same weekend. [6] He developed quickly as a freestyle skier, and was named to the US Junior Ski Team by the age of 16. [7] Deneen made his first FIS World Cup start in January 2005 at Lake Placid, New York; the following year, after returning from an injury, he was bronze medalist at the World Junior Championships at Krasnoye Ozero, Russia. [6]

Professional career

Deneen in action at 2009 Olympic test event at Cypress Mountain Patrick Deneen jump cr.jpg
Deneen in action at 2009 Olympic test event at Cypress Mountain

Deneen had difficulties at the beginning of his professional career; after his World Cup debut, in which he finished 48th, [1] he was forced off the international circuit for a year due to a knee injury. Deneen's bronze medal performance at the 2006 Junior Championships was his first major competition after returning from injury. He spent the following season on the North American Freestyle Circuit (NORAM). With a NORAM dual moguls championship in 2007, he regained his spot on the US Ski Team. [5]

Returning to the FIS World Cup circuit in January 2008, Deneen reached the podium with two straight 3rd-place finishes at Lake Placid, New York. Over the rest of the 2008 season, he started 7 more World Cup events, with another 3rd-place finish at Valmalenco, Italy in March. [1] Deneen's overall performance in 2008, his first full season on the tour, earned him the Rookie of the Year award which is voted on by the international coaches. [7] During that season, Deneen became well known for his speed on the slope, prompting 1994 Olympic moguls champion Jean-Luc Brassard to nickname him "The Rocket". [8]

Deneen's 2009 World Cup season was marked by inconsistent results, including 4 crashes; his finishes ranged from 3rd to 45th and 47th place within the span of one week in January. [1] [3] In February, he finished an American best 4th place at an Olympic test event at Cypress Mountain, the venue for freestyle skiing at the 2010 Winter Olympics. [3] He competed in two other World Cup events in February, finishing 17th and 23rd, [1] before heading to Inawashiro, Japan for the FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships.

During the World Championships, Deneen incorporated a new jump into his two clean runs—the Back X, performing a back flip while crossing skis. [3] His final score of 23.41 beat the closest competitor by more than 1.5 points earning him the gold medal. [1]

The first two events of the 2009–2010 season, Deneen was unable to finish in the top 20; he however rebounded once again at the US Olympic trials at Steamboat Springs, Colorado. On his final run, he landed a back layout and a twisting 720-degree spin, earning a score of 26.68 which bested the runner-up by fifty-seven hundredths of a point. His win at Steamboat secured a spot on the US Team for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia. [9]

In his Olympic debut at the Vancouver Games, after qualifying in 10th place with a score of 23.97, Deneen crashed on his run in the finals. The run was not scored, and he officially finished tied for 19th place.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skiing</span> Recreational activity and sport using snow skis

Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International Ski Federation (FIS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bjørn Dæhlie</span> Norwegian cross-country skier

Bjørn Erlend Dæhlie is a Norwegian businessman and retired cross-country skier. From 1992 to 1999, Dæhlie won the Nordic World Cup six times, finishing second in 1994 and 1998. Dæhlie won a total of 29 medals in the Olympics and World Championships between 1991 and 1999, making him the most successful male cross-country skier in history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daron Rahlves</span> American alpine skier

Daron Louis Rahlves is a former American World Cup alpine ski racer and freestyle skier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billy Kidd</span> American alpine skier

William Winston Kidd is a former World Cup alpine ski racer, a member of the U.S. Ski Team from 1962 to 1970.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hart Skis</span> American downhill ski manufacturer

Hart Ski Corporation is a United States based manufacturer of downhill skis, originally of St. Paul, Minnesota and currently headquartered in Ogden, Utah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mogul skiing</span> Discipline of freestyle skiing

Mogul skiing is a freestyle skiing competition consisting of one timed run of free skiing on a steep, heavily moguled course, stressing technical turns, aerial maneuvers and speed. Internationally, the sport is contested at the FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships, and at the Winter Olympic Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Lee</span> Australian alpine skier

Steven Crikey! Lee is an Australian alpine skier. He competed in the 1984, 1988 and 1992 Winter Olympics, and had a competitive career lasting just on 25 years. He is the second of only 3 Australian skiers ever to claim victory on the Alpine World Cup circuit. He has also done sports commentating for channels 7, 9 and 10, co-owns Chill Factor magazine, and is a national selector and president of Falls Creek Race Club. He has worked in movies with Roger Moore and Jackie Chan.

The FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships is the world championship organized by the FIS for freestyle skiing. It was first organized in 1986 and is now held every odd year. Currently, the disciplines included in the World Championships are Aerials, Moguls, Dual Moguls, Ski cross, Half-pipe, Slopestyle and Big air. Formerly, Acroski and a combined event were held.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shannon Bahrke</span> American freestyle skier

Shannon Bahrke is an American Olympic freestyle skier and entrepreneur. Bahrke was the silver medalist in Moguls at the 2002 Winter Olympics held in Salt Lake City and went on to become the 2003 World Cup Champion. She also won the bronze medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. With her bronze medal in 2010, she became the first US women freestyle skier to win multiple Olympic medals. Bahrke was also the 2009 US National Champion in dual moguls. She has reached the podium twice at the FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships, winning bronze in 2003 and silver in 2007, both in dual moguls.

The freestyle skiing competition of the 2010 Winter Olympics was held at Cypress Mountain. The events took place between the 13 and 25 February 2010, and included a new event for these Olympics, ski cross.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexandre Bilodeau</span> Canadian freestyle skier

Alexandre Bilodeau is a Canadian retired freestyle skier from Rosemere, Quebec, Bilodeau currently resides in Montreal, Quebec. Bilodeau won a gold medal in the men's moguls at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, becoming the first Canadian to win a gold medal at an Olympic Games held in Canada. At the 2014 Winter Olympics, he became the first Olympian in history to defend his gold medal in any freestyle skiing event as well as the first Canadian to defend an individual title since Catriona Le May Doan at the 2002 Winter Olympics. Bilodeau is a three-time FIS World Champion in dual moguls, and is also a two-time Worlds silver medallist in moguls. He was the FIS World Cup champion for the 2008–09 season winning the moguls and overall freestyle skiing title that season. In his final World Cup race, he retired with a win, and in doing so, surpassed Jean-Luc Brassard for the most World Cup medals by a Canadian.

Heather McPhie is an American freestyle moguls skier. She competed for the US Olympic Team at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. McPhie earned the Olympic team spot with a 2nd-place finish at the FIS World Cup event at Deer Valley in January 2010. At the 2007 FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships McPhie finished in 8th place in moguls, and 9th in duals.

Michael Morse is an American freestyle skier who has competed since 1997. His best World Cup finish was third, which was in a moguls event in Norway in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mikaël Kingsbury</span> Canadian freestyle skier

Mikaël Kingsbury is a Canadian freestyle skier and is the most accomplished mogul skier of all time. He achieved eminence early in his career after earning the 2009–10 FIS World Cup Rookie of the Year award. He is a ten-time FIS Freestyle World Cup title-holder for overall moguls and nine-time title-holder for overall freestyle, owning the records for most men's Moguls World Cup titles and Overall Freestyle World Cup titles. He also owns the records for career World Cup moguls victories with 78, and consecutive Freestyle World Cup event wins with 13. He is the first man to have won both the moguls and dual moguls World Championship events, and has won the most medals at the Freestyle World Championships of any male competitor in history, having won a medal in 13 of the 14 events he has competed in. Kingsbury won the Olympic silver medal in 2014 and 2022, and, at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, he won the gold medal in men's moguls.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">K. C. Oakley</span> American freestyle skier

K. C. Oakley is an American freestyle mogul skier and a member of the United States Ski Team. She started competing on the World Cup circuit in the 2011-2012 ski season after finishing first in the NorAm Cup standings at the completion of the 2011 season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Britteny Cox</span> Australian freestyle skier

Britteny Cox is an Australian mogul skier. Growing up in the Victorian alpine resort of Falls Creek, Cox was born into a mogul skiing environment, with her family passionate mogul skiers.

Eliza Shirley Outtrim is an athlete on the U.S. Ski Team; she competes in the freestyle skiing events of moguls and dual moguls.

Jim Moran is an American freestyle skier. He competed in the men's moguls event at the 1998 Winter Olympics. In 1999, he crashed while competing in a race, which lead to the end of his career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cole McDonald (skier)</span> American freestyle skier

Cole McDonald is an American freestyle skier. He joined the US Ski & Snowboard's U.S. Freestyle Ski Team in July 2021. In the same season as his first World Cup, he earned a spot on the U.S. Men's Moguls Team at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, making him the youngest American male mogul skier to participate in the Olympics at 18 years of age. McDonald was named World Cup Rookie of the Year in 2022.

Gustav Legnavsky is a New Zealand freestyle skier who specialises in halfpipe. He represented New Zealand at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Biography – Patrick Deneen". International Ski Federation. Retrieved 17 January 2010.
  2. ↑ "Deneen, Kearney Take Oly Trial Wins". United States Ski and Snowboard Association. December 23, 2009. Archived from the original on 31 January 2010. Retrieved 17 January 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Borzilleri, Meri-Jo (November 11, 2009). "Moguls skier Patrick Deneen ready for big time". USA Today. Retrieved 20 January 2010.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Patrick Deneen – Biography". USSA. Archived from the original on 8 June 2010. Retrieved 17 January 2010.
  5. 1 2 3 "Biography". patrickdeneen.com. Retrieved 21 January 2010.
  6. 1 2 3 "Athletes-Patrick Deneen". United States Olympic Committee. Retrieved 21 January 2010.
  7. 1 2 Swift, Mary (January 4, 2010). "Cle Elum's Patrick Deneen prepares for the Olympics". Daily Record. Retrieved 21 January 2010.
  8. ↑ Stroup, Matt. "Patrick Deneen – Biography". NBC Universal. Retrieved 21 January 2010.
  9. ↑ "Deneen, Kearney wrap up Olympic moguls spots". NBC/Associated Press. December 23, 2009. Retrieved 21 January 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.