Nordic skier Joseph Stumpf, a senior, recently became an individual state title winner and qualified for the 2023 US Ski & Snowboard Junior National Ski Championships in Fairbanks, Alaska, March 13-16. 

Stumpf started skiing at a young age with his family, and along with skiing, he also runs cross-country and track. He is a part of the multi-school Ashwaubenon Nordic Ski Team. 

“I’ve been skiing since I was pretty young, like two or three,” said Stumpf. 

While qualifying for nationals is an amazing feat, this is not the first time Stumpf has qualified. He attended nationals in Minnesota last year, as well. Last year he qualified in the U18, and this year the U20.

Nordic skiing is a fairly large and popular sport in Wisconsin, but it is not a part of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association, or WIAA for short. There are numerous club teams spread throughout the state. This is something that Stumpf enjoys most about the sport and how anyone can participate. 

“It’s a club state, so anyone can go for it and compete in state, which makes it kind of fun, and it makes it so there are quite a few skiers there,” he said. 

Along with Stumpf, two other NDA students are members of the Ashwaubenon Nordic Ski Team–Lauren Carleton and Paige Beining. They practice as a team almost every day after school, with a day or two off per week. 

Carlton also qualified for nationals, and this will be her second time attending. She said she had an amazing experience at state and is looking forward to attending nationals, saying “it was a blast” last year. One of Carlton’s favorite things about being on the team is competing against her fellow teammates during the cross-country and track seasons. 

One of Stumpf’s favorite parts about being on a multi-school team is getting to know and befriend people he normally wouldn’t have the chance to meet.

“It’s fun to get to know kind of random people you wouldn’t meet otherwise and spend time with them outside of just your school,” said the senior. 

This will be Stumpf’s first time visiting Alaska, and he is very much looking forward to seeing the state, even though most of the time he will be racing. 

One of the things Stumpf is most looking forward to about nationals is getting to be with people he has grown up skiing and competing with. 

“You get to hang out in a house together with people you’ve been racing against for years at this point, so it’s pretty fun,” said Stumpf.