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Danelle D’Aquanni Umstead is an elite athlete, a visually impaired alpine ski racer. Husband Rob Umstead is her guide. Together, they are Team Vision4Gold.

 

Recently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS), Danelle won’t be deterred from her goal: Gold at the 2014 Paralympic Games.

 

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“You Don't Have To See It - To Ski It.”
– Danelle Umstead, Paralympian

 

Winning two bronze medals at the 2010 Paralympic Games, Team Vision4Gold now have their sights set on bringing home gold for the United States in 2014. Sochi, here we come!

 

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Tuesday, 24 January 2012 17:51 Last Updated on Tuesday, 24 January 2012 18:04 Written by Administrator

Jan 17, 2012

Team Vision4Gold is honored to announce Ericsson as one of our new sponsors. Thank you Ericsson for believing in our goals and athletic career. As we continue to compete, and seek out our Vision4Gold in 2014 Sochi, Russia Winter Paralympic Games. We look forward to this partnership and hope it lasts for many years to come.

ski team sponsor

Friday, 10 June 2011 16:34 Last Updated on Friday, 01 July 2011 14:54 Written by Administrator

April 20, 2011

Danelle Umstead

Hood River, OR, 97031

 

RE: Adaptive Athlete of the Year Award

Dear Danelle,

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate you on having won the 2011 Adaptive Athlete of the Year Award. The USSA Athlete of the Year Award is given in alpine, cross country, adaptive, the Year Award freestyle, jumping/nordic combined, and snowboarding to a USSA athlete based on criteria established by that sport. You are to be congratulated on an extraordinary season, and should take pride in being recognized for your efforts by the leadership of your organization.

For your nomination, the following was written, “Visually impaired athlete Danelle Umstead demonstrates all the core values of USSA on a daily basis. She represents her country and team with great enthusiasm. Despite some challenges this season she has persevered to win the overall best female athlete in the 2011 Adaptive Alpine National Championships. Danelle was second overall in the slalom and giant slalom standings for the IPC 2011 World Cup Season. Danelle is currently

ranked number one in the world for visually impaired women in the IPC overall World Cup rankings for 2011. She has been a member of the U.S. Adaptive Alpine Team for the past three seasons. As a member of the 2010 Paralympic team she earned Bronze medals in the Downhill and Super Combined at the Vancouver Paralympic Games." I congratulate you on your success.

Your award will be presented during the USSA Congress 2011 at our Chairman’s Awards Dinner, Friday at 6:30 p.m., May 20 at the Park City Marriott. I hope that you and a guest will be able to join us for the presentation. If not, we will ensure that your award is sent to you.

Again, our congratulations!

Sincerely,

UNITED STATES SKI AND SNOWBOARD ASSOCIATION

Bill Marolt

President & CEO

Wednesday, 29 December 2010 21:07 Last Updated on Tuesday, 01 February 2011 18:47 Written by Administrator

Jan 24, 2011

BACK IN USA!!! Italia was beyond extraordinary.


Fall, 2011

We are working hard getting ready for the 2011 World Champion season.    We spent a good chunk of June and July on snow at Timberline Ski Area in Oregon.  The skiing and training were great.  It was a very cool summer in Oregon and we had winter like conditions for our camps with the US Team.

Now we are back in Park City and training in the Gym at the USSA Center of Excellence.  It is great to be back in that facility.  The staff is very helpful and we could not ask for a better environment to be training in this time of year.  With some snow up on the summits of the mountains around here this morning, it will not be too long before we are back on snow and gearing up for the seasons first races in Colorado.

Of course the highlight of this Winter will be our World Championships in Sestriere, Italy in January.  We were lucky to race on that hill last season and can not wait to get back on the Downhill track again.  It is a really fun course with all sorts of terrain and speed.  We hope to build on the good results we had there last season.


Friday, 01 April 2011 15:24 Last Updated on Friday, 01 April 2011 16:06 Written by Administrator

Apr 1, 2011

In 1998, Danelle lost most of her peripheral vision to Retinitis Pigmentosis (RP), a group of inherited diseases that damage the light-sensitive rods and cones located in the retina, the back part of our eyes. Rods, which provide side peripheral and night vision, are affected more than the cones which provide color and clear central.

Unfortunately Danelle has no central vision or depth perception in both eyes caused by early onset macular degeneration. This makes her situation a lot worse than most. There is no chance of return vision, nor is there a cure. Danelle spent many years feeling sorry for herself, not having a sense of worth to her life. She truly believed without sight she could not do anything.

In 2000 she started adaptive skiing with her father as her first guide in Northern New Mexico. It opened her eyes to a world of opportunities. In 2001, she moved from Plano, Texas to Taos, New Mexico. Now she could be closer to Taos Ski Valley and her family too. She worked at the mountain so she could ski more – with her father, friends, and other employees guiding her.

Danelle said “skiing has given me new meaning and value to life, in more ways than the sport itself”.

Despite her progressively worsening vision Danelle wanted to go steeper and faster the more she skied. Life did a full circle for Danelle, despite the constant struggles that every visually impaired person goes through on a daily basis. Her life was just beginning. Danelle met her best friend and future husband Rob at Taos Ski Valley after a day of skiing with a friend. He was offered a coaching job in Park City, Utah, and asked Danelle to go with him. There she started training with the National Ability Center Ski team, going through several guides.

In Danelle’s first full season of racing in Park City, Utah she competed in Slalom and Giant Slalom. At the 2008 U.S. Disabled Nationals, Danelle and part time guide Sally Tauber won Bronze medals in both events.

One of the biggest struggles with any VI skier is to find a full time guide, and this is a major component to success. A VI ski racer can only make it so far without a guide who can commit to training, traveling and competing full time. To compete at the highest level Danelle needed to have a full time guide with a vested interest in her and the sport.

Danelle’s husband Rob started guiding and training with her full time in the summer of 2008. They competed in 2008-2009 with unbelievable results, and in their first Paralympic Games (2010 Whistler, BC, Canada), took home two bronze medals, in the Downhill and Super Combined.

Danelle now believes without vision you can do anything, it is just done differently.