Jack Young

Jack Young
Birthplace	United States
Nationality	American
Occupation	Cross-country skier
Known for	U.S. Cross-Country Ski Team member, sprint specialist
Education	Colby College

Jack Young is an American cross-country skier who competes internationally as a member of the United States Ski Team. A graduate of Colby College, Young has emerged as one of the strongest sprint specialists in American cross-country skiing, earning selection to the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan–Cortina, Italy. His path to elite competition was marked by years of patient development rather than early breakout success; as U.S. Ski & Snowboard noted, "his success didn't happen overnight; in fact, it didn't happen for years." Young gained attention on the FIS Cross-Country World Cup circuit during the 2025–2026 season, recording top-five finishes in sprint events and establishing himself as a competitor capable of challenging the sport's established powers. His selection as an Olympian alongside Colby College teammate Maddie Hooker marked a notable achievement for the small liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine, which is not traditionally associated with producing Olympic-caliber winter sport athletes.

Education

Young attended Colby College, a private liberal arts college located in Waterville, Maine, where he competed in cross-country skiing as part of the college's athletic program. He was a member of the Colby College Class of 2025. Colby College, a Division III institution and member of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC), is not a school typically associated with producing elite winter sport Olympians, making Young's trajectory from the college's ski program to the international World Cup circuit and the Olympic Games a distinctive one. His college teammate Maddie Hooker, a member of the Class of 2027, also earned an Olympic berth for the 2026 Winter Games in cross-country skiing, making the pair a rare example of two athletes from the same small college program qualifying for the Olympics in the same discipline at the same Games.

Career

Development and Early Career

Young's rise in cross-country skiing was characterized by a long, gradual trajectory rather than the rapid ascent that typifies some elite athletes. According to a profile published by U.S. Ski & Snowboard in December 2025, Young is "one of the strongest sprinters in the U.S.," but his journey to that level required sustained effort over an extended period of time. The organization emphasized that his success "didn't happen overnight; in fact, it didn't happen for years," suggesting a developmental arc marked by incremental improvement and perseverance through seasons without significant breakthrough results.

A detailed feature article published by FasterSkier in November 2025, titled "Jack Young: Against the Template," profiled Young on the eve of the World Cup season opener in Ruka, Finland. The article's title and framing suggest that Young's path to the highest levels of the sport deviated from the conventional development model for elite cross-country skiers. On the Wednesday before the World Cup season opened in Ruka, the article described Young sitting in a small condo, looking out at over a foot of new snow — a scene that captured both the anticipation of the season ahead and a moment of reflection on the unconventional journey that had brought him there.

Young's background as a product of Colby College, a Division III institution, further underscored the atypical nature of his development. Most American cross-country skiers who reach the World Cup level and the Olympic Games have backgrounds in NCAA Division I skiing programs at institutions such as the University of Vermont, Dartmouth College, or the University of Utah, or have trained extensively within the U.S. Ski Team's established development pipeline. Young's emergence from a NESCAC school placed him outside the conventional template for producing elite American cross-country ski racers.

2025–2026 World Cup Season

Young competed on the FIS Cross-Country World Cup circuit during the 2025–2026 season, with the season opening in Ruka, Finland in late November 2025. He demonstrated his sprint abilities at the highest level of international competition throughout the early part of the season.

One of Young's most prominent results came at the World Cup event in Davos, Switzerland, in December 2025. On December 13, 2025, U.S. Ski & Snowboard reported that Young scored a top-five result in the skate sprint event in Davos. In the same race, American teammate Ben Ogden also finished in the top five — placing fifth — on what was Ogden's 100th World Cup start and his best result of that season. Young's strong performance alongside Ogden indicated a broader upswing for the American men's sprint program on the World Cup circuit.

The Davos sprint result represented a concrete validation of the progress Young had been making. Finishing in the top five of a World Cup sprint placed him among the best sprinters in the world on that day, competing against established athletes from traditional cross-country skiing powerhouses such as Norway, Sweden, and Finland. For an American skier — and particularly one who had come through a non-traditional development pathway — such a result was significant in the context of the sport's competitive landscape.

Young's performances throughout the season were strong enough to earn him a profile on the Team USA website, which listed him as a competitor in cross-country skiing and highlighted his achievements and biography.

2026 Winter Olympics Selection

In early 2026, Young was named to the United States Olympic team for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan–Cortina, Italy, in the discipline of cross-country skiing. The announcement was reported by Colby College in January 2026, which noted that both Young, a member of the Class of 2025, and Maddie Hooker, a member of the Class of 2027, had earned Olympic berths.

Young's Olympic selection was also covered by the Central Maine newspaper in February 2026, which reported that the "pair of Colby College cross-country skiers are ready to test their skills against the best in the world." The article framed the Olympic debut as a culmination of their development as athletes and a point of pride for the Colby College community and the state of Maine.

The 2026 Milan–Cortina Olympics would represent Young's first appearance at the Olympic Games. Given his demonstrated strength in sprint events during the 2025–2026 World Cup season — including the top-five finish in Davos — Young was expected to be a competitive entrant in the sprint events at the Games. As one of the strongest American sprinters, his Olympic debut carried with it the possibility of a meaningful result for the United States in a discipline historically dominated by Scandinavian and Central European nations.

The significance of Young's selection extended beyond his individual achievement. The fact that two athletes from the same Colby College program — a Division III institution — earned spots on the U.S. Olympic cross-country skiing team at the same Games was an unusual occurrence. It drew attention to the quality of the skiing program at Colby and to the broader possibilities for athlete development outside the traditional Division I pipeline in American cross-country skiing.

Personal Life

Young has maintained a connection to Colby College and the Maine cross-country skiing community. He graduated from Colby as a member of the Class of 2025 and continued to be associated with the college's skiing legacy through coverage of his competitive achievements. In February 2026, both Young and fellow Colby skier Maddie Hooker were reported to be preparing for their Olympic debuts, with local Maine media covering their readiness to compete at the highest level of international competition.

The FasterSkier profile of Young in November 2025, titled "Against the Template," offered a glimpse into his personality and approach to the sport, describing a quiet moment of reflection in a small condo in Ruka, Finland, before the competitive season began. The scene — Young looking out at a foot of fresh snow ahead of the World Cup opener — conveyed both a contemplative disposition and a readiness for the demands of elite competition.

Recognition

Young's achievements during the 2025–2026 season earned him recognition from multiple organizations and media outlets. U.S. Ski & Snowboard published a dedicated feature article about his career trajectory in December 2025, titled "Jack Young is On the Rise," which highlighted his development as one of the top American sprinters and the patience required to reach that level. FasterSkier, one of the primary English-language media outlets covering cross-country skiing, published an in-depth feature profiling Young ahead of the 2025–2026 World Cup season, indicating the level of attention his career had attracted within the sport's media ecosystem.

His selection to the 2026 U.S. Olympic team was covered by Colby College's official news outlet, by Central Maine newspaper, and by Team USA's official website, which featured a dedicated athlete profile for Young. The multiple top-five World Cup finishes in sprint events — including the notable result in Davos alongside Ben Ogden — placed Young among the American men capable of competing for podium positions on the World Cup circuit, a level of performance that few U.S. cross-country skiers have achieved in sprint events.

Young's story resonated in part because of its departure from the expected narrative arc for an Olympic cross-country skier. His development through a Division III college program, his gradual improvement over many years, and his late-career breakthrough to the World Cup level offered a counterpoint to the more conventional development pathways in the sport. This narrative dimension was central to the FasterSkier feature article's framing of Young as a skier who had succeeded "against the template."