Sophia Shuell Caldwell Hamilton (born March 22, 1990) is a retired American cross-country ski racer who specialized in sprint disciplines.[1] She won two races and achieved a total of 10 podiums in World Cup competition. Since 2019, Caldwell has been married to fellow US cross-country teammate Simeon Hamilton. On March 22, 2021, aged 31, she announced retirement from competitive skiing.[2]
| Sophie Caldwell Hamilton | |
|---|---|
_by_Sandro_Halank%E2%80%93022_Sophie_Caldwell.jpg) Sophie Caldwell during World Cup competitions in Dresden, Saxony, Germany in January 2018 | |
| Country |  United States |
| Born | 22 March 1990 Peru, Vermont, United States |
| Ski club | Stratton Mountain School |
| World Cup career | |
| Seasons | 9 – (2013–2021) |
| Starts | 139 |
| Podiums | 10 |
| Wins | 2 |
| Overall titles | 0 – (19th in 2018) |
| Discipline titles | 0 |
| Updated on 2 November 2021. | |
Biography edit
Early years edit
Sophie Caldwell was born in 1990 in the small town of Peru, Vermont, to Lily and Sverre Caldwell.[3] Her paternal grandfather John Caldwell, uncle Tim Caldwell and cousin Patrick Caldwell (Tim Caldwell's son) are all Olympic skiers. Sophie attended the Stratton Mountain School in Stratton, Vermont, a preparatory high school with specialized skiing programs, where her father Sverre was the Nordic Director.[4] She later majored in psychology at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, graduating in 2012. During her college years, she participated in the NCAA skiing championships. After graduating, she continued skiing professionally and joined the SMS T2 team in Stratton.[5]
Athletic career edit
Caldwell made her debut in FIS Cross-Country World Cup in Quebec's sprints in December 2012 with 14th place in the individual competition. At the 2013 World Ski Championships in Val di Fiemme Caldwell finished 20th in classical style sprint.[1] In 2014 in Lenzerheide, Switzerland, she placed sixth in the freestyle sprint.[1] On March 1, 2014, Caldwell finished third in the Lahti, Finland freestyle sprint World Cup, for her first podium.
At the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, she finished sixth in the freestyle sprint.[1] She was in position to contend for a medal midway through the final when Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen poled between her legs, causing her to crash and taking her out of contention for a medal. She finished 12 seconds behind in sixth place. This is the best ever result by a female American cross-country skier.[6]
Caldwell got her first victory in the World Cup during the 2016 edition of the Tour de Ski. She won the classic sprint in Oberstdorf, Germany on January 5, 2016.[1] With this victory, Caldwell was only the second American woman with a victory in the World Cup, the other being Kikkan Randall. Caldwell is also the first American woman to win a classical World Cup event.[7]
Cross-country skiing results edit
All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation (FIS).[8]
Olympic Games edit
| Year | Age | 10 km individual |
15 km skiathlon |
30 km mass start |
Sprint | 4 × 5 km relay |
Team sprint |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 23 | 30 | — | — | 6 | — | 7 |
| 2018 | 27 | — | — | — | 8 | 5 | — |
World Championships edit
| Year | Age | 10 km individual |
15 km skiathlon |
30 km mass start |
Sprint | 4 × 5 km relay |
Team sprint |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 23 | — | — | — | 10 | — | 8 |
| 2017 | 25 | — | — | — | 6 | — | — |
| 2019 | 27 | 29 | — | — | 14 | — | — |
| 2021 | 29 | — | — | — | 29 | — | — |
World Cup edit
Season standings edit
| Season | Age | Discipline standings | Ski Tour standings | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | Distance | Sprint | Nordic Opening |
Tour de Ski |
Ski Tour 2020 |
World Cup Final |
Ski Tour Canada | ||
| 2013 | 23 | 87 | NC | 53 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2014 | 24 | 23 | 47 | 8 | 64 | DNF | — | 39 | — |
| 2015 | 25 | 53 | NC | 20 | 71 | DNF | — | — | — |
| 2016 | 26 | 27 | 75 | 7 | DNF | DNF | — | — | DNF |
| 2017 | 27 | 33 | NC | 11 | DNF | DNF | — | 36 | — |
| 2018 | 28 | 19 | 61 |  |
39 | DNF | — | 36 | — |
| 2019 | 29 | 21 | NC | 4 | — | DNF | — | 36 | — |
| 2020 | 30 | 25 | 69 | 6 | DNF | DNF | 44 | — | — |
| 2021 | 31 | 32 | NC | 10 | 57 | DNF | — | — | — |
Individual podiums edit
- 2 victories – (1 WC, 1 SWC)
- 10 podiums – (7 WC, 3 SWC)
| No. | Season | Date | Location | Race | Level | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2013–14 | 1 March 2014 |  Lahti, Finland |
1.55 km Sprint F | World Cup | 3rd |
| 2 | 2015–16 | 5 January 2016 |  Oberstdorf, Germany |
1.2 km Sprint C | Stage World Cup | 1st |
| 3 | 2017–18 | 1 March 2014 |  Lenzerheide, Switzerland |
1.5 km Sprint F | Stage World Cup | 2nd |
| 4 | 13 January 2018 | Dresden, Germany |
1.2 km Sprint F | World Cup | 3rd | |
| 5 | 27 January 2018 |  Seefeld, Austria |
1.1 km Sprint F | World Cup | 1st | |
| 6 | 2018–19 | 15 December 2018 | Davos, Switzerland |
1.5 km Sprint F | World Cup | 2nd |
| 7 | 1 January 2019 | Val Müstair, Switzerland |
1.4 km Sprint F | Stage World Cup | 2nd | |
| 8 | 9 February 2019 | Lahti, Finland |
1.4 km Sprint F | World Cup | 2nd | |
| 9 | 2019–20 | 14 December 2019 | Davos, Switzerland |
1.5 km Sprint F | World Cup | 3rd |
| 10 | 2020–21 | 19 December 2020 | Dresden, Germany |
1.3 km Sprint F | World Cup | 2nd |
Team podiums edit
- 4 podiums – (2 RL, 2 TS)
| No. | Season | Date | Location | Race | Level | Place | Teammate(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2015–16 | 24 January 2016 |  Nové Město, Czech Republic |
4 × 5 km Relay C/F | World Cup | 2nd | Bjornsen / Stephen / Diggins |
| 2 | 2016–17 | 5 February 2017 |  Pyeongchang, South Korea |
6 × 1.4 km Team Sprint F | World Cup | 3rd | Sargent |
| 3 | 2017–18 | 13 January 2018 | Dresden, Germany |
6 × 1.3 km Team Sprint F | World Cup | 3rd | Sargent |
| 4 | 2019-20 | 8 December 2019 |  Lillehammer, Norway |
4 × 5 km Relay C/F | World Cup | 2nd | Maubet Bjornsen / Brennan / Diggins |
References edit
- ^ a b c d e Sophie Caldwell Hamilton at the International Ski and Snowboard Federation
- ^ Sophie Caldwell Hamilton (March 22, 2021). "Two-time Olympian Sophie Caldwell Hamilton Announces Her Retirement, Reflects On Impressive Cross-Country Skiing Career". Team USA.
- ^ "Sophie Caldwell". Team USA. Archived from the original on January 28, 2015. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
- ^ Wemyss, Sue (June 7, 2019). "Legendary Sverre Caldwell Announces His Retirement as Nordic Director at Stratton Mountain School". SkyTrax.
- ^ "About Sophie". Sophie Caldwell's personal website. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
- ^ "Sophie Caldwell Falls in Sprint Final, Finishes Sixth.", Washington Post, 2/11/2014.
- ^ "Caldwell Does What She Considered Unthinkable: Wins World Cup Classic Sprint", FasterSkier.com, 1/5/2015.
- ^ "CALDWELL Sophie". FIS-Ski. International Ski Federation. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
External links edit
Media related to Sophie Caldwell Hamilton at Wikimedia Commons