Cross Country Gold Team

Now entering its 20th year, the Cross Country Gold Team was created and has been primarily funded by the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation. Composed of a group of the nation’s best post-collegiate athletes, the Gold Team trains year round in the mountains of Idaho, training sites across the United State, and venues around the world. Each athlete has his or her own goals for success on the SuperTour, World Cup, and U23 World circuit, and as a team, we push each other every day to universally attain those goals.

Team InfoTrainingScheduleCompetitionTeamSponsors
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2025/2026

SVSEF Cross Country Gold Team

Ketchum, Idaho

Jake Adicoff
Minocqua, WI

Mia Case
Ketchum, Idaho

John Steel Hagenbuch
Ashland, OR

Will Koch
Sun Valley, Idaho

Sammy Smith
Jackson Hole, WY

Elijah Weenig
Hailey, Idaho

Peter Wolter

Ketchum, Idaho

Jake Adicoff

Age:26

School:Bowdoin

Highlighted Results:Silver Medal Paralympic 10k 2018, 4th place Paralympic Sprint 2018

Goals for Season:3 Individual medals at the 2022 Beijing Paralympics

Favorite place to race:Soldier Hollow or Lake Creek

Favorite place to ski in Sun Valley:Rip and Tear, Galena

Minocqua, WI

Mia Case

Age:21

School/College:College of St. Scholastica

Highlighted Results:8th place in the Skate and classic sprints at the Cable Super Tour 24th in classic sprint, 26th in classic 20km at 2025 Us Nationals.

Goals for Season:Learning what it takes to be on the Pro Racing Circuit

Personal Sponsors:Enjoy Winter, Rossignol

Favorite place to ski or race:Minocqua Winter Park

Other Interests:Knitting, painting my nails, shopping

Ketchum, Idaho

John Steel Hagenbuch

Ashland, OR

Will Koch

Sun Valley, Idaho

Sammy Smith

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Age:19

School/College:Stanford University

Highlighted Results:U.S. Ski Team B Team; World Junior Championships 5th in Classic Sprint; World Cup 14th in Classic Sprint Qualifier in Falun (30th overall b/c of yellow card); World Cup 25th Skate Sprint in Lahti; World Cup 27th Skate Sprint in Tallinn; 2025 Classic Sprint U.S. National Champion.

Goals for Season:Qualify for and compete in Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics; Podium U23s; Make it into a World Cup Sprint Semi-Final; Top 30 World Cup distance race.

Personal Sponsors:Salomon (skis, boots, bindings), Swix (poles), DECKED (headgear), Backwoods Mountain Sports.

Why did you choose the Gold Team?:Sun Valley is my hometown—it’s where I learned how to ski and where I first started competing. There is no other place I would rather compete and train. The coaching and team environment is incredibly high quality. I’m really looking forward to another season on the team!

Favorite place to ski or race:My favorite place to ski is Galena in Sun Valley. My favorite place to race is Falun, Sweden.

Other Interests:Soccer, running, and backcountry skiing.

Jackson Hole, WY

Elijah Weenig

Age:23

School/College:University of Denver, Degree in Mechanical Engineering

Highlighted Results:RMISA Runner Up Freestyle MVP; 2x NCAA Qualifier (2023 and 2025); 1st Place (T.O.D) DU Invitational 10k Pursuit; Member of U23 World Championship Team 2024; 3rd American at US Nationals 2024 Skate 20k; 9x JN All-American

Goals for Season:Podium at a Supertour and Qualify for World Cup finals in Lake Placid.

Personal Sponsors:Atomic

Why did you choose the Gold Team?:Sun Valley feels like a second home to me. The access to mountains and ski trails is amazing and SVSEF has a really strong program and history.

Favorite place to ski or race:Galena on a blue bird day

Other interests:Mountain and Gravel Biking, Mountain Running, Backcountry Skiing, Freestyle Skiing

Hailey, Idaho

Peter Wolter

Age:25

School:Middlebury College

Highlighted Results:3x NCAA All American, 3rd Overall in SuperTour 2022-23 season, 4th place US Nationals Classic 20k, two World Cup starts.

Goals for Season:Tour de Ski starts and North America World Cups

Personal Sponsors:Fischer, Swix, DECKED, The Feed, EnjoyWinter/Swenor

Favorite place to ski or race:Rikert, Middlebury VT

Other interests:Porsche, long walks on the beach, getting ghosted, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and start up brands.

Cross Country Gold Team and Summer Training Group Head Coach

Peter Holmes

Cross Country Gold Team and Summer Training Group Head Coach

Peter Holmes

HOMETOWN / WHERE I GREW UP: Tahoe City, California

EDUCATION:

  • University of New Hampshire, B.S. Sport Studies

WHAT YEAR DID YOU START COACHING AT SVSEF?
2021

COACHING CERTIFICATIONS:

  • USSS Cross Country Level 100

SKIING BACKGROUND:

  • University of New Hampshire Ski Team 2014-2018
  • SVSEF XC Gold Team 2018-2022

WHEN I WAS 5 YEARS OLD, I WAS PRETTY SURE I’D BE A CONSTRUCTION WORKER WHEN I GREW UP.

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING I LEARNED BEFORE HIGH SCHOOL WAS that life is not fair.

HOBBIES AND OTHER INTERESTS THAT FUEL MY SOUL:

  • Mountain biking
  • Sunset walks on the beach

Email:pholmes@svsef.org

Phone:530.721.0684

Team Info

The Gold Team offers year-round programming for elite athletes with goals of domestic excellence and international success in the sport of cross country skiing.

2025/26 Gold Team Roster L-R: Will Koch, Elijah Weenig, John Steel Hagenbuch, Mia Case, Head Coach Peter Holmes, Peter Wolter, Jake Adicoff.

Head Coach: Peter Holmes (view profile)

Athletes must have race results indicative of national excellence and demonstrate the desire to attain international success. Interested skiers should contact head coach Peter Holmes (pholmes@svsef.org) for program information and application procedures. Safesport course completion is required for all athletes who are 18 or will turn 18 during the ski season.

Training

Summer Training
In addition to leading the SVSEF XC Summer Training Group when athletes are in town, the Cross Country Gold Team invites the community to join in a free, weekly, all ages and all abilities cardio, strength, and games-based workout! Mondays from June 16 through August 4 from 5:30-6:30pm. CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS

Winter Training
The Gold Team is based out of the SVSEF Lake Creek Training Center and utilizes the plethora of trails and training venues the Wood River Valley has to offer. Training plans are developed on an individual basis, with the Gold Team meeting for training 4-8 sessions per week. Gold Team athletes also have access to state-of-the-art strength and recovery facilities.

View Training Facilities

Competition

Gold Team skiers take on a demanding race schedule that includes NorAm/SuperTour competitions, U.S. Senior National Championships, the Boulder Mountain Tour, European Alpen Cup race series, and optional marathon races. The competition season concludes with SuperTour Finals.

2025/2026

XC Gold Sponsors

Sponsor Lizzy's fresh coffee logo
Sponsor Toko logo
Zenergy logo