Lauren Macuga
At the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | July 4, 2002 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Home town | Park City, Utah, US | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Alpine skier ♀ | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Family |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | United States | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Skiing career | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Disciplines | Downhill, Super-G, Giant slalom | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Park City Ski & Snowboard | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Cup debut | December 3, 2021 (age 19) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Olympics | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Championships | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | 1 – (2025) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Medals | 1 (0 gold) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Cup | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Seasons | 4 – (2022–2025) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 1 – (1 SG) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Podiums | 2 – (1 SG, 1 DH) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Overall titles | 0 – (17th in 2025) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline titles | 0 – (4th in DH, 2025) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Lauren Macuga (born July 4, 2002) is an American World Cup alpine ski racer on the US Ski Team who specializes in the speed events of downhill and super-G.
Macuga competed in the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics and made her World Cup debut in December 2021. She achieved her first World Cup victory in January 2025 and won the bronze medal in the super-G at the 2025 World Championships.
Early life
Born in Detroit and raised in Park City, Utah,[1][2] Macuga is the second-born of four children, all of whom are active in competitive skiing.[3] Her older sister Sam is a World Cup ski jumper.[4] Her younger sister, Alli is a mogul skier on the Freestyle World Cup.[5] Their brother Daniel, the youngest of the siblings, is also an alpine skier and raced on the Nor-Am Cup for the 2025–26 season.[6]
Macuga began competing in ski racing at seven years old.[7]
Career
In 2011, Macuga joined the Park City Ski and Snowboard's club team at the age of 8. In the same year, she was invited to participate in NASTAR nationals and championed her age group.[7] Macuga attended Park City Winter Sports School and participates in the Park City Ski & Snowboard Club.[2] Macuga joined the Park City Ski & Snowboard FIS women's team for the first time in 2019, trained by Jay Hey.[7] Because she had no previous racing experience, Macuga had to work her way up from 990th place by participating and placing in various FIS events.[7] Macuga placed third in the last race of the FIS season, giving her enough points to qualify to be a US Team nominee at 445th place.[7] Her place on the team was confirmed a month later by US Ski and Snowboard Alpine development director Chip Knight,[7] and she was one of two women from Utah on the team at that time.[8] Alongside Zoe Zimmerman, Macuga was one of the first two mentees of Alice Merryweather.[9]
On March 19, 2019, Macuga made her debut in the Nor-Am Cup in the downhill at the Sugarloaf ski resort.[10] She continued racing on the Nor-Am circuit for the 2019–20 season, and was named to the US team for the 2020 Winter Youth Olympics in Lausanne, Switzerland.[10][11] She broke her leg there in a crash during the super-G portion of the alpine combined and did not race again that season.[1]
Her World Cup debut came on December 3, 2021 in Lake Louise, Canada, followed by winning the bronze medal in the downhill at the 2022 Junior World Championships.[10][1]
The 2022–23 season saw several more starts on the Nor-Am Cup, Europa Cup, and World Cup, including her first World Cup point in the downhill at St. Moritz and another appearance at the Junior World Championships.[10]
Macuga had particular success in the super-G during the 2024 World Cup season, including three top-ten finishes and qualifying for her first World Cup finals.[2]
Her first World Cup victory came during the 2025 season when she became the first American woman to win the super-G at St. Anton, Austria.[12] In February she competed in her first senior World Championships in Saalbach-Hinterglemm, Austria, and won the bronze in the super-G.[13] This was followed a few weeks later by a second World Cup podium with a second-place finish in the downhill at Kvitfjell, Norway.[14] Due to her breakout season in 2025, Macuga was given 2025 Stifel's Most Improved (Women) and Athlete of the Year (Women) awards at the US Alpine Championships in April.[15]
In November 2025, during pre-season training at Copper Mountain, Macuga injured the ACL of her right knee and missed the World Cup season and 2026 Winter Olympics.[16]
World Cup results
Season standings
| Season | ||||||
| Age | Overall | Slalom | Giant slalom |
Super-G | Downhill | |
| 2023 | 20 | 122 | — | — | — | 49 |
| 2024 | 21 | 43 | — | — | 13 | 33 |
| 2025 | 22 | 17 | — | 43 | 6 | 4 |
| 2026 | 23 | knee injury in November, out for season | ||||
Race podiums
| Season | ||||
| Date | Location | Discipline | Place | |
| 2025 | January 12, 2025 | St. Anton, Austria | Super-G | 1st |
| March 1, 2025 | Kvitfjell, Norway | Downhill | 2nd |
World Championship results
| Year | |||||||
| Age | Slalom | Giant slalom |
Super-G | Downhill | Team combined |
Team event | |
| 2025 | 22 | — | — | 3 | 5 | 4 | — |
References
- ^ a b c Poggi, Alessandro (February 3, 2025). "U.S. skier Lauren Macuga exclusive: 'Winning is the ultimate goal every time'". olympics.com. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ a b c "Lauren Macuga". U.S. Ski & Snowboard. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ Zaccardi, Nick (January 14, 2025). "How Lauren Macuga's skiing family woke up to (and shared in) her first World Cup win". nbcsports.com. Archived from the original on January 16, 2025.
- ^ "Samantha Macuga - Athlete Biography". International Ski and Snowboard Federation. Retrieved February 20, 2026.
- ^ "Alli Macuga - Athlete Biography". International Ski and Snowboard Federation. Retrieved February 20, 2026.
- ^ "Daniel Macuga - Results". International Ski and Snowboard Federation. Retrieved February 20, 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f Ramsey, Ben (June 30, 2019). "Lauren Macuga, 16, makes US Alpine team". parkrecord.com. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
- ^ "Steven Nyman, Ted Ligety headline Utahns named to U.S. Alpine Ski Team for 2020-21". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
- ^ Schwartznau, Karina (November 13, 2020). "Alice Merryweather embraces mentorship on U.S. Ski Team". Ski Racing Media. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ a b c d "MACUGA Lauren - Athlete Information". International Ski and Snowboard Federation. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ "The Next Generation: Winter Youth Olympic Games Lausanne 2020 Team Announced". U.S. Ski & Snowboard. December 17, 2019. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ Lange, Peter (January 12, 2025). "Lauren Macuga Makes History: First U.S. Woman to Win St. Anton Super-G". Ski Racing Media. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ "American skier Lauren Macuga wins bronze in worlds debut". ESPN. Associated Press. February 6, 2025. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ Singer, Jack (March 1, 2025). "Lauren Macuga finishes second in Norwegian World Cup downhill". Park Record. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ Ryder, Sierra. "2025 Stifel Alpine Awards Announced". U.S. Ski & Snowboard. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
- ^ "Lauren Macuga Out for Season After ACL Injury in Training". Ski Racing Media. November 28, 2025. Retrieved December 6, 2025.
External links
- Lauren Macuga at FIS (alpine)
- Lauren Macuga at U.S. Ski & Snowboard
- Lauren Macuga at Olympedia
- Lauren Macuga at InterSportStats
- Lauren Macuga at Ski-DB Alpine Ski Database
- Lauren Macuga at U.S. Ski Team