Jonna Mendes

Jonna Mendes (born March 31, 1979) is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from the United States. She specialized in the speed events and raced for nine seasons on the World Cup circuit. Mendes competed in two Winter Olympics and four World Championships. She was the bronze medalist in the Super G at the 2003 World Championships in St. Moritz, Switzerland.[3]

Jonna Mendes
Born (1979-03-21) March 21, 1979
OccupationAlpine skier
Height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Skiing career
DisciplinesDownhill, super-G
ClubHeavenly Ski &
Snowboard Fnd
World Cup debutMarch 7, 1997 (age 17)
RetiredMay 2006 (age 27)[1][2]
Olympics
Teams2 – (1998, 2002)
Medals0
World Championships
Teams4 – (19992005)
Medals1 (0 gold)
World Cup
Seasons9 – (19982006)
Podiums0
Overall titles0 – (25th in 2003)
Discipline titles0 – (13th in SG, 2003)
Medal record
Women's alpine skiing
Representing the United States
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place2003 St. MoritzSuper G
Junior World Ski Championships
Silver medal – second place 1999 Pra-Loup Downhill
Silver medal – second place 1998 Megève Downhill

Born in Santa Cruz on the California coast, Mendes began skiing at age four when her family moved to the Lake Tahoe area in the Sierra Nevada mountains. She made her World Cup debut in March 1997 and retired from international competition in May 2006.[2]

Mendes won three U.S. titles: two in giant slalom (2001, 2002) and one in downhill (2004). The first came at The Big Mountain in Whitefish, Montana,[4] but was followed by a broken foot the next day, incurred in a crash near the end of her second run in the slalom.[5] She repeated the next year at her home venue of Squaw Valley,[6] and won the last at Alyeska in Alaska.[7]

After racing

In 2011, Mendes became the recruiting coordinator for the new Sun Valley Ski Academy in Sun Valley, Idaho. She attended college in New York City and had been working with the U.S. Ski Team's national alpine development system for the previous four years.[8][9][10]

World Cup results

Top ten finishes

Season Date Location Discipline Place
2001Nov 30, 2000Lake Louise, CanadaDownhill10th
Dec 1, 2000Downhill6th
2002Dec 1, 2001Lake Louise, CanadaSuper-G10th
2003Nov 29, 2002Aspen, USASuper G10th
Dec 6, 2002Lake Louise, CanadaDownhill9th
Dec 8, 2002Super G9th
Jan 17, 2003Cortina d'Ampezzo, ItalySuper G8th
Jan 18, 2003Downhill5th
Feb 28, 2003Innsbruck, AustriaSuper G8th
2004Dec 20, 2003St. Moritz, SwitzerlandDownhill5th

Season standings

SeasonAgeOverallSlalomGiant
Slalom
Super GDownhillCombined
19981810547
199919774240
20002065442813
200121372917
200222672429
20032325531316
200424645023
200525643526
2006261005850

World Championship results

  Year   Age  Slalom  Giant 
 Slalom 
Super GDownhillCombined
19991926259
20012118209
20032336
20052512

Olympic results

  Year   Age  Slalom  Giant 
 Slalom 
Super GDownhillCombined
199818321714
2002221611

References

  1. "U.S. skier Jonna Mendes retires". Bangor Daily News. Maine. May 3, 2006. p. C5.
  2. "World Championships medalist Jonna Mendes retires after 10 seasons". Ski Racing.com. May 2, 2006. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  3. "Clark, Mendes medal in Super-G". MountainZone.com. (U.S. Ski Team). February 3, 2003. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  4. Corte, Tim (March 28, 2001). "GS victory surprises Mendes". Bangor Daily News. Maine. Associated Press. p. C4.
  5. "Mendes crashes, needs surgery". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Florida. March 29, 2001. p. 3C.
  6. "Mendes wins Giant Slalom title". Fayetteville Observer. North Carolina. wire services. March 19, 2002. p. 6C.
  7. "Freidmann captures downhill title". Star-News. Wilmington, North Carolina. March 20, 2004. p. 3C.
  8. Williams, Eric (October 11, 2011). "Mendes joins Sun Valley Ski Academy staff". Ski Racing.com. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  9. "Jonna Mendes named Ski Academy recruiting director". Idaho Mountain Express. Ketchum. October 14, 2011. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  10. Cordes, Jeff (December 13, 2013). "Ski Academy a good fit for Jonna Mendes". Idaho Mountain Express. Ketchum. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
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