First Paralympics at Cortina: Audrey Crowley on history, steep starts & the Lindsey Vonn pizza

American Paralympic alpine skier Audrey Crowley discusses the special significance of competing at her first Paralympic Games in Cortina, Italy—a venue where she had her first World Cup start. She explains that it's comforting to know she's skied the track before, gotten used to the town and the people, so when she arrives on day one she'll know where she's going with no questions. And yes, she's had the famous Lindsey Vonn pizza there—Cortina has some of the best food she's ever had, which makes the experience even more special.

Cortina holds tremendous history, especially for women's alpine skiing, Audrey says. It's the most well-known speed track across all of Europe, and for good reason—it's hard. Standing at the start, you're looking down one of the steepest starts you've ever seen. For Audrey's first race there, it was her first downhill she'd ever competed in, and she was definitely nervous. Having her teammates there and getting to watch the able-bodied women compete before her was super cool and helped ease those nerves.

Since this will be Audrey's first Games, she's really excited to soak everything in—the opening ceremony, closing ceremony, seeing other sports, and experiencing how the crowds affect the excitement of skiing. But what she's most passionate about is representing her country and the unification that Team USA has across all athletes. Whether it's winter, summer, Olympic, or Paralympic, she believes that camaraderie is a really good example of the power of unification and what can happen when everyone works together.

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