USA Nordic is excited to announce that former nordic combined skier and University of Utah ski team alum Nick Hendrickson has been named the Head Coach of the Nordic Combined Team.
“Nick Henrickson stepping into this role speaks volumes about his character to want to lead this young generation and also join the burgeoning generation of young American coaches,” said USA Nordic Executive Director Bill Demong. “He follows in the footsteps of former US athletes like Clint Jones, Jed Hinkley, and Alan Alborn in helping USA Nordic grow the future of the sport.”
Hendrickson brings knowledge from skiing for the University of Utah for two seasons, “I have certainly learned a lot since I finished my own career in nordic combined. Going into two years of cross country racing at the University of Utah taught me a ton about training, recovering, traveling and team culture that I’m grateful for.”
In addition, Hendrickson spent a considerable amount of time with the nordic combined team working on its cross country skiing last summer and fall. Over the winter season, he was the assistant coach for the women’s ski jumping team and traveled on the World Cup circuit. Hendrickson gained a lot from this experience.
“My biggest takeaways were communication, goals, and time management. Both training and competition seasons are busy for everyone. Learning how to balance a finite amount of time and to prioritize was key.”
When asked where he sees the most room for improvement within the team, Hendrickson says, “We are going to focus on closing the gap on the jump hill. There are certainly some things that need work on the XC side, but jumping is still going to be our focus.”
Next season is without World Championships or the Olympics. Typically, this a great time for change and to experiment with new things. Hendrickson has a plan.
“I want to create a sustainable high level of competition for our athletes. It’s always tough to improve throughout the season due to lots of travel and time from home, and I want to create a sustainable system for our athletes to feel comfortable and confident traveling, training, and competing in Europe.”
Hendrickson looks forward to working with fellow nordic combined coach Jan Matura who was competing on the ski jumping world cup just two years ago. “We have a great jump coach, Jan Matura, and I look forward to learning even more from him on the jump hill. The best thing about coaching is continually learning and adapting as a team leader and colleague.”
Hendrickson will bring youth, experience, and a new mindset to USA Nordic as he leads this young group of American nordic combined athletes into the future.
