This story is part of our Quick Hits series. This series will bring you breaking news and short updates from throughout the state.
Teton County skier Breezy Johnson is officially set to compete in the upcoming Winter Olympics in Italy. The games kick off next month on Feb. 6.
Johnson is currently the reigning downhill world champion, after winning gold during the Alpine Ski World Championships in Saalbach, Austria last February. She also placed first in the debut team combined event with fellow skier Mikaela Shiffrin at that same competition.
The 30-year-old was born in Jackson and started skiing up on Teton Pass with her dad when she was three. Johnson made her Olympic debut at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in South Korea in 2018, coming in seventh in the downhill race and 14th in super-G.
She was set to compete in Beijing in 2022, but tore her right knee while training in Cortina, Italy.
Now, she’s returning to compete on the same slopes that derailed her career four years ago.
“They say the third time is the charm right?” Johnson wrote in a post on Instagram. “I never could have guessed at my first Games the journey I would take in this career. Now in my thirties I've changed so much. But my love for this sport has only grown. I feel lucky and honored.”
“But if my past experiences have taught me anything it isn't over until the national anthem plays in the finish,” she continued. “So in many ways this feels like just the beginning. Four years ago this dream ended, now I have the opportunity to bring it full circle.”
Alta freestyle skier Jaelin Kauf will compete in two events in Italy this year, after taking home silver in moguls back in 2022. Teton Village athlete Anna Gibson will make her Olympic debut in the mixed relay for ski mountaineering, which is also making its debut at the games.
