Boise’s two-sport star wins another national ski title. Are the Olympics next?
A long college soccer season left Sammy Smith little time to qualify for the 2026 Winter Olympics. But the Boise High grad is quickly making her case for a U.S. roster spot by capturing another national cross country skiing championship this week.
Smith finished atop the skate sprint podium Tuesday in Lake Placid, New York, edging Alayna Sonnesyn by .07 seconds for a time of 3 minutes, 12.16 seconds. The national championship follows her title last year in the classic sprint, an Olympic race, which she will defend Friday.
The performance comes at a crucial time for the 20-year-old. She skipped the first portion of the World Cup ski season to lead Stanford to a second-place finish in the NCAA women’s soccer national tournament. Those World Cup races could have earned her a spot on the Olympic roster, or at least increased her chances.
But her national title Tuesday solidified her bona fides as a sprinter for the U.S. cross country team. And she showcased her versatility with a strong showing in a distance event Sunday, finishing third among Americans (fifth overall) in the 10-kilometer classic at 29:47.3.
“I know the selection committee has a lot to consider,” Smith said in a phone interview Tuesday. “But I hope I’m putting my best foot forward and showing I’m a versatile competitor. It’s important to show you can step up when it counts.”
Eight women will represent the U.S. cross country ski team in Milano Cortina. Only one, Jessie Diggins, has clinched a spot so far, with another, Julia Kern, all but assured a spot based on the World Cup standings.
That leaves six open positions for U.S. coaches to select ahead of the Jan. 20 deadline. And Smith’s performance this week makes her an intriguing prospect for a ticket to Italy considering her limited training opportunities and upward trajectory.
Smith started at left back in the NCAA national championship game on Dec. 8, then returned to Stanford for eight hours before heading to Alaska and competing in her first race in nine months Dec. 12. She finished second.
She then headed back to Sun Valley only to find a mountain devoid of snow. So she spent five days on roller skis before the weather finally turned, and hit the road again to Lake Placid with just three weeks of training under her belt.
That limited time on snow didn’t slow her down Tuesday, though. She broke out to an early lead in the finals and held off a pack of skiers also gunning for Olympic spots with a lunge at the finish line.
Smith said she normally runs a more tactical race and picks her moment. But she grew tired of crossing the finish line with more left in the tank. So she took off early Tuesday and set the pace.
“It was such a deep women’s field,” Smith said. “I have a feeling this is one of the deeper national fields in a long time, if not ever. For it to all come together will be something that I remember for a long time.”
But Smith’s international bona fides aren’t limited to the mountain. The Stanford sophomore’s burgeoning soccer career saw her represent the U.S. at the U-17 women’s World Cup in 2022. She won a bronze medal for her country at the 2023 Pan American Games as the U.S. fielded a U-19 squad against senior national teams. And she went to Spain with the U-19 national team again in 2024.
But even as the college soccer season forces her to miss World Cup ski events, Smith said she has no plans to pick one sport over the other.
“The plan is to just keep doing (both) as long as I can do it,” Smith said, “and as long as I enjoy it.”
