A star-studded group of eight noted skiing athletes and sport builders have been announced as inductees to the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame’s Class of 2017.

They will be formally inducted next April in Olympic Valley, CA, site of the 1960 Olympic Winter Games.

On April 12-15, 2018, Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows will celebrate ski and snowboard history as it welcomes the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame to honor its class of 2017. The event will honor athletes and sport builders with lifelong national and international achievements in the sport. Squaw Valley will provide a fitting backdrop for the various events, with the legacy of the 1960 Winter Games and the long lineage of celebrated athletes, including more current U.S. Ski Team members than any other resort in the country.

This year’s Class of 2017 Inductees was announced at Hall of Fame the in the Upper Peninsula town of Ishpeming Michigan on Friday, September 15, 2017. More details and tickets for the April, 14, 2018 induction will be available at SnowsportHistory.com in October.

Among the inductees are freestyle icon “Airborne” Eddie Ferguson, freestyle’s somersault king Herman Goellner and legendary cross-country coach Marty Hall. Also joining the class are two of the most accomplished ski mountaineers alive – twin brothers Mike and Steve Marolt, along with the late, 130 mph world record holder in alpine speed skiing, Steve McKinnney. Rounding out the Class of 2017 is the local motor sport and snowboard pioneer Shaun Palmer, and Thom Weisel a passionate fund raiser for the U.S. Ski Team whose work over four decades helped to bring home more than 200 Olympic and World Championship medals.

A national voting panel selects the incoming class in the fall of each year. The class of 2017 will be inducted and honored in Olympic Valley, CA, on April 14, 2018 and enshrined the following September at the Hall of Fame in Ishpeming, MI where in 1905 the National Ski Association of America (now U.S. Ski & Snowboard) was formed.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The announcement of the eight members of the incoming class of 2017 was made on Friday, September 15th in Ishpeming, MI.
• Eight people have been elected to the Hall of Fame this year. They are: Ed Ferguson, Herman Goellner, Mary Hall, Mike and Steve Marolt, Steve McKinney, Shaun Palmer and Thom Weisel.
• The new inductees will bring the total to 435 Honored Members in the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame.
• Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows has been selected as the resort site of the 2018 induction ceremony of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame and the Snowsport History Celebration.
• The Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame induction will take place at The Resort at Squaw Creek in the Grand Sierra Ballroom on Saturday, April 14, 2018.
• The induction will be the culmination of four days of activities at the Village at Squaw Valley during the April 12-15 Snowsport History Celebration which attracts hundreds of skiing history enthusiasts and recreational skiers.
• The induction is expected to sell out, with a field of skiing and snowboarding greats. More than 500 are expected to attend the installation of the class of 2017’s 8 inductees.
• The nomination process is open to all, with detailed information available at www.skihall.com.
• Nominees are screened by a Hall of Fame Selection Committee before being listed on a ballot. More than 250 members of the Hall of Fame National Voting Panel elect the newest Honored Members. 
• Ishpeming is the birthplace of organized skiing in America and the site of the founding of the National Ski Association of America in 1905, now the U.S. Ski & Snowboard.
• A formal enshrinement ceremony is held each September in Ishpeming, MI, where the Museum is located.
• The induction ceremony rotates venue locations to major resorts, including Stowe in 2017, Aspen in 2016, Steamboat in 2015 and Park City in 2014.
• The Village at Squaw Valley and The Resort and Squaw Creek will offer special lodging rates to all ticket purchasers.
• $75 lift tickets will be available to all Snowsport History Celebration and induction ticket holders.
• Info and tickets will be available in October at www.SnowsportHistory.com 

Tom Kelly, chairman, U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame, said, “Each year we are again amazed by the stories of those sport builders and athletes who have made our sport what it is today. Honoring these inductees in the shadows of the 1960 Olympic Winter Games venues in Squaw Valley is a fitting recognition for the Class of 2017. “
 
Andy Wirth, president and COO, Squaw Valley Ski Holdings, Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows, stated, “Since Wayne Poulsen founded Squaw Valley in the 1940’s, it has been known worldwide as a spectacular mountain and through the generations, produced a great many legends of our industry and sport. It is a tremendous honor to host this prestigious event here at Squaw Valley to honors legends from across the country. Last season we skied well into July… we will make sure the skiing is beyond epic during this year’s Hall of Fame event! “
 
Justin Koski, executive director, U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame, added, “Each member of the Hall of Fame’s Class of 2017 is a remarkable leader as an athlete or sport builder. We are excited to welcome them into our family of snowsport legends and present them with our sports highest honor.”
 
The mission of the U. S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame is to honor athletes and sport builders for their lifelong national and international achievements in the sport. The National Ski Association of America, now known as USSA, was established in 1905 in Ishpeming, MI, the birthplace of organized skiing in the United States. The Hall of Fame Museum, established in 1954, is located on the Hall of Fame campus in Ishpeming.