In case you didn’t hear, Michaela Shiffrin just claimed her 100th career World Cup victory on Sunday. Though that wasn’t the only big ski story to come out of the weekend.
Last weekend, the 5C Ski and Board team carved its way through the regional championships at China Peak, California, booking multiple trips to nationals after an impressive showing on the slopes. For a dynamic group of seasoned skiers and first-time racers, this was nothing out of the ordinary.
Hopes were high ahead of the regional championships. Carolyn Coyne PO ’25, who skied in the Giant Slalom (GS) race at the regional competition, described the team’s enthusiasm and confidence for the weekend.
“I think we’re looking pretty good for regionals,” Coyne said. “I feel like we’ll qualify for nationals because we have the past couple years.”
The team did not disappoint, qualifying 19 athletes across alpine, freeski and snowboard events for the national championships at Mount Bachelor, Oregon, next month.
“I just think the more people you have, the more likely it’s going to be that the team is going to be good,” Coyne said.
With a significant increase in membership since its formation less than a decade ago, the team has continued to perform at a high level both regionally and nationally. This season, though, it has proved itself to be especially notable for one reason in particular.
Prior to regionals, the team had the opportunity to compete at the international level. In January, they sent 13 athletes to the FISU World University Games in Torino, Italy, where they competed against some of the world’s top-rated young skiers from various countries.
The 5C representatives likened the experience to their version of the Olympic Games, which will be held in Italy next winter.
While it can be intimidating to compete alongside such esteemed skiers, team captain Cayman Chen CM ’25 talked about how valuable the experience was.
“It was a once in a lifetime experience,” Chen said. “Obviously, the other athletes were like, future olympians. I met one person who was like, yeah, this is just my training for the Olympics next year.”
Aside from exchanging team pins, jackets and shells, Chen said that the team was able to take away many invaluable lessons and perspectives from the experience.
It’s one thing to meet some of these elite athletes, but it’s an entirely different challenge to compete alongside them. For Will Sedo HM ’26, also a team captain, and the rest of the Claremont skiers and boarders, this challenge was indispensable.
“It was a really high level of competition, and I think it helped kind of push all of us,” Sedo said.
And push them it did. The athletes showcased the competitive lessons learned in Italy this past weekend at China Peak.
The results speak for themselves: The women’s freeski combined slopestyle and rail jam team came second, while the men’s team came fourth. The men’s alpine combined GS and Slalom group finished second overall, while the women were fifth. One athlete competing in the men’s snowboard rail jam, Kai Yeung PZ ‘28, was strong enough to place seventh, while the women came out on top as a whole.
The value of the group, however, extends beyond their competitive performances. According to Sedo, the community is a big part of 5C Ski and Board’s appeal.
“Skiing and alpine racing in particular can be a very solitary sport … there’s not a whole lot of the team aspect,” Sedo said. “But we really try and bring that team aspect.”
Coyne also highlighted the importance of community for the team.
“There are a lot of people who join when they are juniors or seniors, and they have so much fun,” she said.
This community is further enhanced by the fact that 5C Ski and Board team membership is well-mixed, offering a welcoming atmosphere to those who may not be as experienced.
For Chen, who was too intimidated to join the team freshman year, the 5C Ski and Board community has made a lasting mark on her college experience.
“People can be a little intimidated about competing,” Chen said. ”It’s a really welcoming environment for people who want to get into that type of skiing, and [we] have a really tight community of people who just like to ski and snowboard.”
It’s not often that a Southern California winter sports team thrives at such a consistent level, and it’s especially less frequent to see that team send winter sport athletes to compete internationally in such large numbers. And yet, according to Chen, the team means more than just the results, as skiers and boarders with less competitive experience are given the space to push themselves to a higher level.
“I wish people knew how easy it is, and how accessible it is, to be able to get into this stuff,” Chen said. “Because once you get here, it’s so fun.”
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