Vermont Skier Breaks 50-Year Olympic Drought for American Men

Historic Breakthrough on the Slopes

The drought is over. After five decades of waiting, American men finally returned to the Olympic podium in cross-country skiing when 25-year-old Ben Ogden of Vermont won silver in the men's sprint classic, becoming just the second U.S. man ever to win an Olympic cross-country skiing medal . Norwegian Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo won his seventh Olympic gold medal with a time of three minutes and 39 seconds , but Ogden's breakthrough moment came when he realized during the final stretch that "it was just the three of us" in medal contention.

After the medal ceremony, Ogden celebrated by doing a backflip off the podium. "I promised my 15 year old self I would do that if I was ever on an Olympic podium. I got up there and I was like, well, now is the moment." The moment carried extra significance because the last American to medal was Bill Koch, a fellow Vermonter who won silver in 1976, and Ogden actually grew up in the Bill Koch Youth Ski League and has skied with Koch .

From College Champion to Olympic Hero

Before he became an Olympic medalist, Ogden built his base at Vermont, where he became a three-time NCAA champion and developed into the kind of racer who can handle rounds, tactics and pressure. He has also stayed closely connected to Vermont coach Patrick Weaver . The race format played to his strengths, as Ogden was on fire from the start and set the second fastest time in qualifications. In the quarterfinals, he surged from second to first by hitting the gas on the incline and leaving the other skiers behind .

What makes Ogden unique extends beyond skiing. "I ended up buying a Land Rover from 1973 out of his field, which had been sitting there for 12 years. I've rebuilt the motor and the transmission, and I've rebuilt both the axles and the differentials. The reason I embarked on it is because I've always valued having things other than training and racing in my life to balance out the mind. It's absolutely essential to my cross-country career and serves a huge purpose" . He also knits between races and said he planned to return to it to decompress after the medal. "After a day like today, my knitting needles are probably waiting for me" .

A Banner Day for Team USA

Ogden's historic silver was part of a medal-rich Tuesday for American athletes in Italy. Americans Jacqueline Wiles and Paula Moltzan claimed bronze in alpine skiing's women's team combined event, while U.S. skier Alex Hall took silver in men's slopestyle . Team USA secured a silver medal in mixed doubles curling, as Cory Thiesse and Korey Dropkin saw their impressive Olympic run end with a 6-5 loss to Sweden in the gold medal match. The silver marks the United States' first-ever Olympic medal in the mixed doubles curling event .

The U.S. women's hockey team blew out rival Canada, 5-0, in a Group A preliminary matchup , while Breezy Johnson and Mikaela Shiffrin teamed up in women's combined skiing but finished in fourth place , missing the podium by just 0.06 seconds. The day's success lifted Team USA's medal count significantly in the early stages of the Milan Cortina Games.

Inspiring the Next Generation

"I have dreamed about being the one to bring home an Olympic medal for the vermont cross country ski community and here we are," said Ogden. "Its unbelievable. I am so proud. I mean, you think about winning a medal so often, but I can confidently say that nothing prepares you for this" . His achievement carries weight beyond personal accomplishment.

"I hope it gives the future of the sport in the U.S. a big boost. I know that Bill Koch winning his medal gave a big boost to all the young skiers and all the people who dreamed that the U.S. could be champions in cross country skiing. I hope that this will help propel us into the next 50 years" . For American cross-country skiing, Ogden's silver represents more than ending a drought—it signals the beginning of a new era where Olympic podiums are within reach again.