Ava Keenan – Freestyle/Mogul Skier Going for the GOLD
Ava is grateful and proud to be a member of the 2022-2023 NBS A Team and a member of the Spyder Class 2 Scholarship Program. As a Freestyle/Mogul skier, she rains four or more days a week and is part of a competitive race program. She competes in multiple events throughout the year and usually attend camps outside of the regular season.
Ava is a member of the NBS Rocky Mountain Region – Slippers-N-Sliders Ski Club. She has been skiing for 10 years and competing for 4 years. She attends the Vail Ski and Snowboard Academy and is in the Vail Ski and Snowboard Club program.
Ava is grateful for the NBS and Spyder scholarships. In her words: The scholarships help to pay for ski camps. With the goals I want to achieve in skiing being at these camps for most of the summer are absolutely needed to get me where I want to go. Because at the camps I work on my tricks which take so long to even make the slightest improvement. I will also be working on my turns which are key to good placing in competitions.
Here are some of her accomplishments:
- 2021 Rocky Mountain Freestyle Rookie of the Year. The first black skier to ever win the award and was youngest competitor in the Rocky Mountain Freestyle (RMF) Competition at only 11 years old
- Featured in Warren Miller’s 2022/23 DayMaker film. She filmed for three days with the Warren Miller film crew in Snowmass, CO
- At age 11, became the first black skier and one of only three 11-year old skiers to ever finish first in a Rocky Mountain Freestyle Competition event
Also, for 2021-2022 season Ava was:
- 1st, 2nd and 3rd in Freestyle Duals
- 1st, 6th and 10th in Freestyle Singles
For the Rocky Mountain Junior Nationals on March 21st, 2022, she got 51st for all ages and was the 2nd youngest competitor and had just come back from a 6 week long injury.
As of January 3, 2023, and at the age of 12 she is currently ranked 28th in the country for all ages. She is the number one ranked athlete in her age division, F13 (Female under 12). She is ranked number 2 for F15 (Females under 15). And she is ranked number 7 in the country for F17 (Females under 17).
Ava’s three other goals for the 2022-2023 upcoming season are:
- To get top 20 in Junior Nationals
- To complete a backflip and a backflip with a cross in competition (accomplished)
- To get a cork 7 on snow (accomplished)
Ava’s long-term goal in her words is simple: I want to be the first black women to win gold in any skiing even at the Olympics
Check her out on her website https://www.avakeenan.