Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026: Vonn Leads US Women's Ski Team Practice In Copper Mountain

Lying breathless on the floor next to a pool table, Mary Bocock pulls a stretchy exercise band in tandem with Keely Cashman. Laughing, they encourage each other to keep going. Next to them, Ava Sunshine cycles through sets of heavy barbell weights in a makeshift gym in the Copper Mountain condo where the U.S. women’s ski team is staying. “When I first came on, I was a little nervous about how it was going to be, but everyone was super welcoming especially the older girls,” says Sunshine, 23, who has been on the team since 2022. “It was very, ‘‘let’s lift up these rookies.’” Veteran racer Nina O’Brien even wrote welcoming notes to all the newcomers. “That was super nice,” Sunshine says. “We have a mentor-mentee program. It’s less getting advice and more like having an automatic friend.”

Updated on: 13 January 2026 4:57 pm

Skier Lindsey Vonn starts on a practice run with members of the U.S. Women's Ski Team during practice at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Skier Lauren Macuga, left, looks at her cell phone with ski technician Rok Javor and skier Jackie Wiles as they take the chairlift up the hill for U.S. Women's Ski Team practice at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Mary Bocock waves at a teammate after arriving for practice with the U.S. Women's Ski Team at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Members of the U.S. Women's Ski Team including Lindsey Vonn, center, with Tricia Mangan, of Buffalo, NY, left, joke together after making a dancing video for social media at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Skier Bella Wright, 28, of Salt Lake City, poses for a photograph by the team photographer in a makeshift studio inside an underground parking garage at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Skier Jackie Wiles, left, of Portland, jumps for a fun photo being taken by skier Bella Wright, 28, of Salt Lake City, between shoots by the team photographer in a makeshift photo studio in an underground parking garage at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Her nails painted in an ode to Japanese nail art, skier Bella Wright, 28, of Salt Lake City, waits for her turn for a portrait by the team photographer at a makeshift photo studio in an underground parking garage at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Skier Jackie Wiles, of Portland, Ore., skateboards while waiting for her turn for a photo shoot by the team photographer in a makeshift photo studio in an underground parking garage at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Members of the U.S. Women's Ski Team have a team meeting with coaches after a full day of practice at Copper Mountain, Colo., Nov. 19, 2025. () | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Skier Lauren Macuga, 23, of Park City, Utah, laughs while playing pool with members of the U.S. Women's Ski Team after practice at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Members of the U.S. Women's Ski Team, Mary Bocock, 22, of Salt Lake City, left, and Keely Cashman, 26, of Strawberry, Calif., right, who is sporting a tattoo of the Olympic rings on her forearm, do arm exercises as part of "dryland training" after ski practice at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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U.S. Women's Ski Team skier Lauren Macuga, 23, of Park City, Utah, is high-fived by U.S. Women's Alpine Speed Team Physical Therapist Shannon Colleton, right, during Macuga's physical therapy session at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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After lunch in the condo they share during training, skiers Jackie Wiles, of Portland, Ore., left, and Bella Wright, of Salt Lake City, leave to meet members of the U.S. Women's Ski Team at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Skier Keely Cashman, 26, of Strawberry, Calif., rides the chairlift up for practice with the U.S. Women's Ski Team at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Skier Allison Mollin, right, watches as Foreste Peterson, a strength coach, demonstrates an exercise during U.S. Women's Ski Team practice in Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Skier Bella Wright, 28, of Salt Lake City, heads down the hill for a practice run with members of the U.S. Women's Ski Team at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Skier Lindsey Vonn chats with fan Lauren Krip, 9, of Puerto Rico, after members of the U.S. Women's Ski Team took a team photo after practice at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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Members of the U.S. Women's Ski Team, including Lindsey Vonn, bottom right, and Breezy Johnson, top left, joke together while gathering for a team photo at Copper Mountain, Colo. | Photo: AP/Jacquelyn Martin

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