Bill Demong is feeling pretty good these days.
After all, the U.S. Nordic combined athlete (a sport combining ski jumping and cross-country skiing) is carrying around a gold medal from the 2009 World Championships in his pocket. OK, well maybe he doesn’t always have it with him, but it’s a source of pride and accomplishment that has made this season his best. The Lake Placid native, who now calls Park City home, went from a relatively slow start this year, finishing as far back as 14th, to putting himself back on the top. He landed on the podium numerous times with five World Cup victories and the topper — a World Championship gold medal in Liberec, Czech Republic.
Among the victories was the last one may have been the best one, in Norway, where Demong won his fifth World Cup of the season and earned the King’s Cup one of the highest honors in the sport.
Last year, Demong took third overall in the World Cup standings, not the first place he had hoped for after a very strong season, and ended the season on a bit of a low note. So this year’s steady rise to a stellar finish has him riding high.
“I met all my goals for my season and put myself in position to do it,” he said. “Last year, I started high and ended low.”
When Demong learned that there would be a whopping 30 races scheduled over the season, the goal of winning the overall title was out. Instead, he designed his season to put him in the best position to win selected World Cups and a World Championship.
“This year, I looked at how I wanted to train”‘ he said. “I focused on winning certain races and took time off when we needed it.”
That included a short break in early February, where Demong came back to Park City and trained and rested before the World Championships. It was a formula that obviously worked now that he has his World Championship gold.
Now, he alternates between reflecting on the Nordic team’s incredible season and their potential for next year’s Olympic season. To say that this was a banner year for the U.S. Nordic Ski Team is an understatement. Fellow Nordic combiner Todd Lodwick returned to the sport this year after a short hiatus to win two World Championship gold medals. Women’s ski jumper Lindsey Van won gold in the first World Championship women’s competition. On the cross-country side, Kikkan Randle won a silver medal in Liberec and Andy Newell took fourth.
“It was the perfect storm,” Demong said. “In the past, we would have been happy with medals, but this year we were striving for gold.”
Demong was ecstatic over how well the Nordic team performed. In the previous 100 years, the U.S. had only won four World Championship medals. Two of them belong to Demong and fellow American Nordic combiner Johnny Spillane.
“That (2009) was our biggest success ever,” Demong said.
Demong’s World Championship medal was a test of patience as he watched Lodwick collect gold in the first two Nordic combined events. In the first race Demong had a strong showing in the cross-country portion of the event and expected to stay on top in the jumping portion. Then Lodwick had one of his best jumping days ever. In the next event the jumping was first and Demong again had a good day, but Lodwick qualified 30 seconds ahead for the cross-country start. Demong knew he wouldn’t be the winner and settled for bronze.
“In any other situation, I would know I could win,” he laughed.
Then Demong was disqualified in the Nordic combined team event after losing his bib and took the U.S. out of contention. His hopes for a medal began looked dim But Saturday, the last day of competition, Demong looked unfazed as he fought his way to victory.
“To come back Saturday was huge,” he said. “It’s hard to have patience. It wasn’t until the last day that I got my opportunity.”
Demong said that the success across the board has really raised the expectations of the American team. Their competitors seem happy to have new blood and energy in the sport and the U.S. Team is now locked in and looking for a strong presence at the Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.
It also raises the expectations of the younger athletes in the sport. Back home, the kids in the Park City Nordic Club and around the country now have something much bigger to shoot for. Demong said that when he was growing up things were different. When he watched Lodwick in 1994 Olympics, he was thrilled to see him take 13th. Today’s American kids believe that they can win gold.
It also helps to raise the national consciousness about the often-forgotten Nordic sports. After a longtime playing second fiddle to Alpine, people like Demong, Van and Lodwick finally got some national attention.
“I think this helps increase our popularity,” he said.
Hopefully that popularity will go up again if the team can make the same impact at the Olympics. Demong said that he and his teammates consider the Vancouver Games like a home Olympics. There is only a little adjustment to culture and atmosphere and family and friends will be able to easily travel there. He’s hoping that translates to a home advantage and some big results.
“We’re really looking forward to it,” he said.
The team heads to Whistler this week for end-of-season training at the Olympic venue. Demong made a quick stop at home to celebrate his season with Alpine phenom Lindsey Vonn at the U.S. Ski Team headquarters before going to Canada and will soon be back home for a much-needed break. Ever the overachiever, he is planning on doing some elite-level bike racing in the off-season. And then it’s right back to fulfilling his next Nordic combined goal.