Lindsey Vonn gives props to ski racing’s next generation at star-studded Colorado Snowsports Hall of Fame celebration in Vail

Breckenridge founders Sigurd Rockne and Trygve Berge, now both in their 90s, attended the Colorado Snowsports Hall of Fame’s 2024 event in person on Saturday to witness Rockne’s induction.

Lindsey Vonn, who needs no introduction, flew in from Los Angeles to be inducted.

Native American speed skier Ross Anderson, the fastest American on skis, held a feather above his head in a clenched fist to symbolize the honor he felt in being inducted.

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Legendary ski racing coach Johno McBride had a fan club in attendance, wearing hats branded with his name.

Warren Miller film star Chris Anthony hosted.

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But it was the speech from Vail local inductee Bjorn Erik Borgen that roused the crowd the most, as Borgen used the opportunity to give the Vail attendees a call to action.

“Let’s get back in the game and make a bid for the 2031 World Alpine Championships,” Borgen said.

The crowd went wild.

Borgen also suggested Vail bring back the American Ski Classic, a pro-am ski racing event that Vail and Beaver Creek held from the 1980s to the 2010s.

Norwegian connection

While the event was a celebration of Colorado skiers and ski industry professionals, it doubled as a celebration of Norwegian Americans, as several of those recognized were of Norwegian descent, including Rockne and Borgen.

In front of a crowd waving miniature Norwegian flags, Borgen told the attendees he had a confession to make.

“I’m only 94.5% Norwegian according to 23andMe,” he said. “But I’m 100% Vail.”

Rockne shared a story of skiing with another Norwegian ski legend, Stein Eriksen, in the downhill at the Norwegian ski championships in Rockne’s hometown of Voss, Norway.

“I had a 2:07.9 and Stein had at 2:08.3, and the next guy had 2:16.9,” Rockne said. “Stein said ‘We could have had a beer on the way down and still beat the No. 3 guy.'”

Past, present and future

Vonn’s speech reflected her talent in one of the new roles she’s embraced after retiring from ski racing, that of a public speaker. Poised and professional with the right touch of humor, the Olympic gold medalist told the crowd she still likes to compete, no matter the circumstances, and in that spirit, she aimed to keep her speech succinct.

“There’s been a lot of great speeches,” said Vonn, who won 82 World Cup races and four overall titles. “But I’m going to be the fastest tonight.”

Vonn’s speech was largely a salute to the Colorado Snowsports Museum and Hall of Fame committee, saying without them, “the history of skiing in Colorado would be lost.”

But she also recognized the next generation of skiing, dedicating time to recognize Mikaela Shiffrin, the only female ski racer to earn more World Cup wins than her.

“No matter what I’ve done, or what we’ve done, what’s even more important is that Colorado has incredibly inspiring people leading it forward, one of them being Mikaela Shiffrin,” Vonn said. “Mikaela has won an insane amount of World Cups and she’s far from being done. It gives me great pride to know the next generation is reaching even higher than I was able to.”

Learn more about the Colorado Snowsports Museum’s Hall of Fame Class of 2024 by visiting SnowsportsMuseum.org/blog/hofclass2024.