Olympian is finally the fastest

Ted Ligety was not the fastest kid on the block. In fact, some of his earlier coaches remember him as being slow, which in ski-racing terms means always being a couple of gates shy of winning.

He would, however, change all of that — frame by frame by frame — and would go on to become one of the fastest ski racers in the world.

His gold medal in Torino last month made him the first native Utahn to step on the podium in a Winter Olympics and only the fourth to win a gold — Summer or Winter Games. He would, in fact, be the only skier among the elite members of the men's U.S. Ski Team to medal in this Olympics. And, at 21, he would be the youngest American skier to win a gold.

All of which was more than enough to make him a unanimous choice as the Deseret Morning News' Athlete of the Month for February.

Ligety, as most people know by now, was born in Salt Lake City but raised and trained in ski racing in Park City. He started skiing at age 2.

He would be remembered in his earlier years as a good skier but not particularly great. In fact, he was turned down the first time he tried out for the Park City ski team. Finally, at age 11, he was told he could dress in the team uniform.

His father, Bill Ligety, remembered his son as "a good skier, but as a junior he was being beaten by most of the skiers on the team. He worked hard, though, and that was to his advantage . . . It seemed like when other guys would beat him, that's when he'd try to figure it out. He was very driven and he's always loved it. For Ted, it was never too cold; he never wanted a day off."

His mother, Cindy Sharp, described her son as being very analytical, someone who would sit for hours in front of a TV screen analyzing tapes of the world's top ski racers "over and over and over, frame by frame by frame . . . He would look at how to hit a gate and then set up for the next gate. He would analyze every turn, looking for ways to ski faster."

When it came time to enter high school, Ligety was ready to move up to the next level. He chose to transfer from Park City High School to the Park City Winter School, which concentrates on ski racing in the winter and studying in the summer. It was while in high school that coaches started to see some changes in Ligety's skiing.

And it was in his senior year when U.S. coaches started to take notice of Ligety.

Eric LaPearl, a coach with the Park City Ski Foundation, who worked with Ligety for the three years prior to his making the development squad for the U.S. Team in 2004, also remembered Ligety as a good skier, but not particular fast.