ERIK SCHLOPY

ERIK SCHLOPY

Erik Schlopy’s love for skiing started on the hills of Colden, NY at Kissing Bridge Ski Resort. Where this love took him was much further than the beginnings on those small hills. Schlopy was born and raised in WNY until he was 13, when his family moved to Stowe, VT to further pursue his skiing passion.

While in Vermont, Erik enrolled in Burke Mountain Academy. Attending Burke, he went on to become a force in junior ski racing. At the age of 14, he was the Eastern junior champ, and at the age of 16 he was the junior 1 slalom and giant slalom champ. These early accomplishments propelled him onto the US Ski Team at the age of 18.

In 1992, at the age of 20, Erik competed in his first World Cup event in Italy. His career was almost cut short by a horrific crash on the mountain in 1993 when he broke his back, two ribs, punctured a lung, severed his tongue, and cracked his sternum. He was out for the remainder of that season, but returned in 1994 in time to make the US Olympic team.

Erik competed in three Olympics over his career. In 1994 at the Lillehammer games he placed 34th in the Giant Slalom. After a brief retirement from skiing he came back and skied in the 2002 and 2006 Winter Olympics. At the Salt Lake City games in 2002 he finished 14th in the Slalom, and he then went on to finish 13th in the Giant Slalom at the Torino Olympics in 2006.

Through this span Erik became US National Champion 7 times, took 12 Nor-Am Cup Titles, and was a World Pro Ski Tour Rookie of the Year with a #1 ranking in the US in 1995-96. He was a World Super-G Champion in 1998, took a Bronze medal in Giant Slalom at the World Championships in 2003, and finished 2nd and 3rd in Italy during a World Cup event in 2006.

Erik currently resides in Salt Lake City, with his wife, former Olympic swimmer Summer Sanders, and two children. He has since retired as a professional skier and now works as an Alpine Ski Coach with the US Men’s Alpine Ski Team, grooming the next up and coming ski champions for the United States.

 

The biographies contained on this website were written at the time of the honoree's induction into the Hall of Fame. No attempt has been made to update these narratives to reflect more recent events, activities, or statistics.