by Riley Bauling
Daily Lobo
The No.1 ski team recruit in the world is now a Lobo.
Tor Fodnesbergene hits the slopes in the winter for UNM.
"He's ranked the highest of any athlete we've ever had since the '70s," said head coach George Brooks.
His ranking is the highest of any U.S. college skier. Fodnesbergene is ranked No. 69 in the world in the slalom - an Alpine event - and Brooks said it's a feat to get an athlete of Fodnesbergene's talent into school.
"The top 150 (skiers) in the world rarely go to school," Brooks said.
Brooks said the closest-ranked U.S. collegiate skiers are around No. 120 or No. 130 in the world. Fodnesbergene, a Norwegian native, skied for the Norwegian national team last year.
Brooks said Fodnesbergene has a chance to make it to the Olympics someday.
"Usually the Olympics are made up of the top 40 or 50 athletes in the world spread out over the teams, but he has the capability. It just depends on Norway," Brooks said.
Brooks said Fodnesbergene chose UNM because some of his friends go here. Brooks said Fodnesbergene signed a national letter of intent to attend UNM last year, before he was ranked as high as he is now.
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Brooks said one of those friends, Lars Loseth, will compete with Fodnesbergene for the top spot on the Alpine team next year.
"I think he's going to be a tremendous asset to our program, but that's not to say the other guys on the team are not good," Brooks said. "On paper he's better than Lars, but when they race I don't know if he'll beat Lars."
Fodnesbergene was not the only gem the Lobos landed in the recruiting process, according to Brooks. Brooks said the team snagged several recruits for both the women's and men's sides.
The UNM women's Alpine team has two new recruits that Brooks said should help the team compete for a national championship next season.
Those two recruits are Karen Ohlin of Sweden and Amy Beresford, a transfer from the University of Colorado. Ohlin skied for the Swedish Junior National Team last year, while Beresford was an Academic All-American for the Buffaloes.
Brooks said UNM has even more of a chance to win it all, because Denver University, the defending champion, lost some of its top skiers when they graduated.
The women's Nordic team has four new recruits, which Brooks said should help it improve from being "the weakest group during the season."
Those four skiers are Marit Rognmo and Kathrin Alseen of Tromso, Norway, Crystin Jaques of Canmore, Canada, and Melanie Zemp of Entlebush, Switzerland.
The men's Nordic team also has a recruit, Casey Dyck, from Canmore.
"Is this team better than the team that won the national championship? I don't know," Brooks said. "I know that we are at least even now with the other top schools, which is why I say we can compete for the national championship."
