Marco Sullivan (born April 27, 1980) is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from the United States. Born in Truckee, California,[2] he competed primarily in the speed events of Downhill and Super G.

Marco Sullivan
The U.S. alpine skier Marco Sullivan
Personal information
Born (1980-04-27) April 27, 1980 (age 44)
Truckee, California, U.S.
OccupationAlpine skier
Height183 cm (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Skiing career
DisciplinesDownhill, Super G, Combined
ClubSquaw Valley Ski Team
World Cup debutDecember 7, 2001 (age 21)
RetiredMarch 13, 2016 (age 35)
Websiteamericandownhiller.com
Olympics
Teams4 – (20022014)
Medals0
World Championships
Teams4 – (2003, '07, '09, '13)
Medals0
World Cup
Seasons13 – (2002, '03, '0616)
Wins1 – (1 DH)
Podiums4 – (4 DH)
Overall titles0 – (28th in 2008)
Discipline titles0 – (4th in DH, 2008)
Medal record
Men's alpine skiing
Representing the  United States
Junior World Ski Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2000 Quebec Slalom

Sullivan competed in the 2002 and 2010 Winter Olympics, and four World Championships. He won one World Cup race, a downhill in Chamonix, France, in January 2008.

World Cup

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Sullivan made his World Cup debut in December 2001, and took one victory, the renowned downhill in Chamonix, France, on January 26, 2008.[2][3] He won the race in 2:00.11, ahead of Swiss star Didier Cuche.[4]

In early December 2003, Sullivan injured his knee in a downhill training run at Beaver Creek. It happened at the last jump of the Birds of Prey course and caused him to miss the rest of the 2004 season. While training in France in October 2004, Sullivan injured the same knee again and was out for the 2005 season as well.[5][6]

Sullivan attained his first World Cup podium on November 24, 2007, when he finished second at the season's first downhill at Lake Louise, a good-for-gliders course in the Canadian Rockies. His victory at Chamonix came two months later,[3] and he went on to finish fourth in the World Cup downhill standings, the best seasonal result of his career.[7]

In late December 2010, Sullivan crashed during a training run on the Stelvio course at Bormio, Italy (video). He sustained a concussion which ended his 2011 season, including the World Championships. After two months, he was cleared by doctors to get back on skis in early March.[8]

Season standings

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Season Age Overall Slalom Giant
Slalom
Super G Downhill Combined
2002 21 144 55
2003 22 55 26 20
2004 23
2005 24
2006 25 86 39 31
2007 26 52 24 42
2008 27 26 30 4
2009 28 30 13 15
2010 29 65 25 29
2011 30 167 59
2012 31 93 45 37
2013 32 55 14
2014 33 72 28
2015 34 47 53 19
2016 35 104 37

Top ten finishes

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  • 1 win – (1 DH)
  • 4 podiums – (4 DH)
Season Date Location Discipline Place
2003 7 Dec 2002 Beaver Creek, USA Downhill 6th
2007 1 Dec 2006 Beaver Creek, USA Downhill 10th
16 Dec 2006 Val Gardena, Italy Downhill 4th
2008 24 Nov 2007 Lake Louise, Canada Downhill 2nd
13 Jan 2008 Wengen, Switzerland Downhill 7th
18 Jan 2008 Kitzbühel, Austria Super-G 10th
19 Jan 2008 Downhill 6th
26 Jan 2008 Chamonix, France Downhill 1st
2009 30 Nov 2008 Lake Louise, Canada Super G 5th
19 Dec 2008 Val Gardena, Italy Super G 5th
20 Dec 2008 Super G 4th
17 Jan 2009 Wengen, Switzerland Downhill 3rd
2013 24 Nov 2012 Lake Louise, Canada Downhill 3rd

World Championship results

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  Year    Age   Slalom   Giant 
 Slalom 
Super G Downhill Combined
2003 22 17 24
2005 24 injured – did not compete
2007 26 28
2009 28 DNF 25
2011 30 injured – did not compete
2013 32 DNF

Sullivan took a bronze medal at the Junior World Championships in 2000 in the slalom.[7] He first raced in the World Championships in 2003 and finished 17th in the Super-G and 24th in the Downhill.[2] He missed the 2005 and 2011 events due to injury.

Olympic results

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  Year    Age   Slalom   Giant 
 Slalom 
Super G Downhill Combined
2002 21 DNF 9
2006 25 DNS
2010 29 23 DSQ
2014 33 30

In his Olympic debut in the downhill in 2002, Sullivan finished a surprising ninth on the Grizzly course at Snowbasin, Utah.[9][10][11] He was the 31st racer out of the starting gate and was the sole North American among the top fifteen finishers.

U.S. Ski Championships

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Sullivan was the Downhill champion at the U.S. Alpine Championships in 2007 in the Alyeska Resort in Alaska; he finished more than a full second ahead of runner-up Erik Fisher.[12] He won three national titles in total, having previously won the super-G at Squaw Valley in 2002 and going on to win another downhill championship at Alyeska in 2009.[7]

Arctic Man

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Sullivan and his partner Tyler Akelstad are five-time champions in the extreme ski/snowmachine race in Alaska - Arctic Man. Sullivan and Akelstad hold the record for the men's ski division, having completed the race with a time of 03:52.72. This was the first time that the four minute threshold was broken.[citation needed]

Movies

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SKI Magazine column

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During the 2012 season, Sullivan has written columns for SKI mag.com, giving insight to life on the World Cup circuit, which includes spending Christmas in Bormio.[13][14]

References

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  1. ^ "U.S. Ski Team Athlete Bios – MARCO SULLIVAN". United States Ski Team. Archived from the original on 2008-02-13.
  2. ^ a b c Marco Sullivan at the International Ski and Snowboard Federation
  3. ^ a b "Sullivan breaks through in World Cup downhill". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire services. January 27, 2008. p. D2.
  4. ^ "Sullivan Wins Chamonix Downhill". U.S. Ski Team. January 26, 2008.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ Ski Racing.com – Healthy Marco Sullivan takes giant step forward, finishing downhill training run – 2005-11-23 – accessed 2012-02-06
  6. ^ SKI Mag.com – Sullivan reinjures knee, season over – 2004-10-29 – accessed 2012-02-06
  7. ^ a b c "Marco Sullivan". U.S. Ski & Snowboard. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  8. ^ 3wiresports.com – Marco Sullivan ready to run downhill – 2011-11-30 – accessed 2012-02-06
  9. ^ Layden, Tim (February 18, 2002). "Grizzly Bear". Sports Illustrated. p. 46.
  10. ^ "Strobl's downhill shock". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. February 11, 2002. p. C6.
  11. ^ Pennington, Bill (February 11, 2002). "Austria's downhill dominance returns". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). (New York Times). p. 1E.
  12. ^ "Sullivan wins downhill; Bode Miller 12th". Anchorage Daily News. March 31, 2007. Archived from the original on March 14, 2008.
  13. ^ SKI Mag.com – Marco Sullivan: World Cup season starts with a bang – December 2011
  14. ^ SKI Mag.com – Marco Sullivan: Christmas in Bormio – December 2011
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