Nikki Stone '97 is at it again — doing double back flips
several stories in the air before a worldwide audience.
The aerial freestyle skier competes next week in the Olympics in Nagano,
Japan. The elimination round is set for Feb. 16, with finals on Feb. 18.
Stone, who graduated from Union last spring magna cum laude with a
degree in psychology, finished 13th in the
1994 games in Lillehammer, Norway, after a disappointing fall on her last jump. In 1995,
however, the former “Rookie of the Year” won the World Cup. She was hampered
last season by back injuries, but began this Olympic season with a win at the World Cup
opener at Australia's Mt. Buller.
“When I didn't do as well at the ('94) Olympics as I
thought I would, I came back the next year and won the world title and the World
Cup,” she said in a release from the U.S. Ski Team. “So, I want to reverse it
— go from doing poorly at Worlds to the Olympic title this time.”
Stone said her training in psychology at Union has helped her to
visualize her jumps. She also said she was drawn to Union partly because the trimester
schedule allowed her to take winter terms off to travel the World Cup circuit. She did her
senior thesis on “Elite Female Athletes' Retirement from Sports.” She says
she is considering a second career as an investigative TV reporter.
After some summer courses last year at the University of Utah, she is
concentrating on her skiing. “I was on the eight-year plan for graduation,” she
said. “So I owed myself some time off.”
More information on Stone and the Olympic freestyle events is on the
U.S. Ski Team Web page: www.usskiteam.com