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Paula Moltzan apologized for calling later than planned. It turns out, navigating an airport during a layover, unsurprisingly, can be a little chaotic. Even for the well-traveled.
Such is the life of a professional skier. Certainly for an Olympian. There isn’t a whole lot of time to stop and relax.
“It feels like I’m just going all the time, but it’s OK,” Moltzan said Friday. “... Some things are related to the Olympics and some things are related to sponsor obligations. It’s quite the balance between the two.”
And the last few months have been rather busy. Memorable, too.
In February, the 32-year-old won a bronze medal in the inaugural women’s team combined alpine skiing with Jacqueline Wiles at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. Wiles competed in the downhill portion of the event. Moltzan in the slalom.
Moltzan was back on a podium a month later after earning a sliver in the giant slalom during a 2025–26 FIS Alpine Ski World Cup event in Åre, Sweden. In April, she was honored at a Boston Celtics game and was back in the city Thursday to throw out the ceremonial first pitch for the start of the Red Sox-Yankees four-game series.
“I won’t be on any highlight video, thankfully,” Moltzan said. The Red Sox won 6-3.
On Saturday and Sunday, she’ll be in Taos Ski Valley — one of Moltzan’s sponsors and a place the skier calls a “home away from home” when not in Vermont — where she will meet guests, sign autographs and participate in various activities, which includes a craft’s station where kids can make their own replica Olympic hardware.
Hence, the plane ride.
That all takes place in between and around a constant training schedule and contract negotiations. There might even be a round or two of golf somewhere along the way for some light leisure time. (She shoots between 86 and 92 for those curious.)
“I love my Google calendar,” Moltzan said with a laugh. “That is how I manage my life. Everything is mapped out, like hour by hour on my Google calendar or else I will forget something or not do something. So once a week or every two weeks I go through info on my workouts, import calls, emails that need to be done. It really, truly runs my life.”
Still, it can be a lot. And in many ways it is. But Moltzan wouldn’t trade any part of it, either. She doesn’t see a reason to. Not after a career arc that has looked more like a roller-coaster track at times than a slope she might ski. From the allure of promise to the lows that left her wondering and back up to the celebrations.
Introduced to the sport by her parents growing up, Moltzan qualified for the U.S. national team in 2015 when she was 21. A year later, after limited progress and results, she was cut. It led her to the University of Vermont where she became a national champion in slalom in 2017. By 2019, she worked her way back onto the U.S. squad.
The bumps weren’t ideal. They ended up making her reflective, but more importantly, they made her better.
Moltzan earned her first professional ski medal — a silver in the parallel-g — during a 2020 World Cup event in Austria. She’s earned nine other individual non-Olympic podium spots in either the slalom or giant slalom races since.
There’s also the gold medal she earned during the 2023 team event and a bronze for the season’s giant slalom last year.
It’s a story of perseverance and a willingness to keep chasing a dream. It’s also the part Moltzan enjoys the least. She doesn’t particularly like talking about her skiing career. She will, however, make exceptions for the right people.
“I always tell younger kids that there’s not one way to the top,” Moltzan said. “You can take a lot of different routes, so don’t limit yourself.”
It’s why the bronze she won in Italy felt a little more special.
Moltzan ran her half — the second part — of the team combined event in 45.38 seconds. She and Wiles finished with a total time of 2:21.91, .06 seconds ahead of U.S. teammates Breezy Johnson and Mikaela Shiffrin. Austria took gold. Germany silver. All separated by less than .3 seconds.
Moltzan and Wiles, meanwhile, did what anyone does when they win an Olympic medal. They celebrated, posed for photos and held up their country’s flag. It all seemed surreal and believable at the same time. It still does in some way.
And that medal? It’s safely tucked away.
“I haven’t done anything crazy with it,” Moltzan said. “I’m pretty protective of it. But I have a friend who made me some mini-replicas as (golf) ball markers, which was pretty awesome.”
There’s just the matter of whether or not another Olympic moment will follow.
Moltzan isn’t sure. Whatever happens, she knows it won’t make or break her career.
“I don’t really make a lot of numbered goals,” Moltzan said. “I just want to continue bettering myself. I don’t see a reason to be like, ‘I need to do this to have a successful career’ or ‘I have to be the best in the world to be the happiest and the best athlete.’ That’s not how I define myself as an athlete. For me, I just like to make sure I find the joy in what I’m doing."
It’s what makes everything — the schedule, the training, the traveling and the Google calendar — worth it. There’s no reason now to trade it in.
But Moltzan had to end the call. There was a plane to catch. She had people and places to see.
David Glovach covers New Mexico United and other sports for the Journal. Reach him at [email protected] or via X @DavidGlovach.
Continue reading...
Such is the life of a professional skier. Certainly for an Olympian. There isn’t a whole lot of time to stop and relax.
“It feels like I’m just going all the time, but it’s OK,” Moltzan said Friday. “... Some things are related to the Olympics and some things are related to sponsor obligations. It’s quite the balance between the two.”
And the last few months have been rather busy. Memorable, too.
In February, the 32-year-old won a bronze medal in the inaugural women’s team combined alpine skiing with Jacqueline Wiles at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. Wiles competed in the downhill portion of the event. Moltzan in the slalom.
Moltzan was back on a podium a month later after earning a sliver in the giant slalom during a 2025–26 FIS Alpine Ski World Cup event in Åre, Sweden. In April, she was honored at a Boston Celtics game and was back in the city Thursday to throw out the ceremonial first pitch for the start of the Red Sox-Yankees four-game series.
“I won’t be on any highlight video, thankfully,” Moltzan said. The Red Sox won 6-3.
On Saturday and Sunday, she’ll be in Taos Ski Valley — one of Moltzan’s sponsors and a place the skier calls a “home away from home” when not in Vermont — where she will meet guests, sign autographs and participate in various activities, which includes a craft’s station where kids can make their own replica Olympic hardware.
Hence, the plane ride.
That all takes place in between and around a constant training schedule and contract negotiations. There might even be a round or two of golf somewhere along the way for some light leisure time. (She shoots between 86 and 92 for those curious.)
“I love my Google calendar,” Moltzan said with a laugh. “That is how I manage my life. Everything is mapped out, like hour by hour on my Google calendar or else I will forget something or not do something. So once a week or every two weeks I go through info on my workouts, import calls, emails that need to be done. It really, truly runs my life.”
Still, it can be a lot. And in many ways it is. But Moltzan wouldn’t trade any part of it, either. She doesn’t see a reason to. Not after a career arc that has looked more like a roller-coaster track at times than a slope she might ski. From the allure of promise to the lows that left her wondering and back up to the celebrations.
Introduced to the sport by her parents growing up, Moltzan qualified for the U.S. national team in 2015 when she was 21. A year later, after limited progress and results, she was cut. It led her to the University of Vermont where she became a national champion in slalom in 2017. By 2019, she worked her way back onto the U.S. squad.
The bumps weren’t ideal. They ended up making her reflective, but more importantly, they made her better.
Moltzan earned her first professional ski medal — a silver in the parallel-g — during a 2020 World Cup event in Austria. She’s earned nine other individual non-Olympic podium spots in either the slalom or giant slalom races since.
There’s also the gold medal she earned during the 2023 team event and a bronze for the season’s giant slalom last year.
It’s a story of perseverance and a willingness to keep chasing a dream. It’s also the part Moltzan enjoys the least. She doesn’t particularly like talking about her skiing career. She will, however, make exceptions for the right people.
“I always tell younger kids that there’s not one way to the top,” Moltzan said. “You can take a lot of different routes, so don’t limit yourself.”
It’s why the bronze she won in Italy felt a little more special.
Moltzan ran her half — the second part — of the team combined event in 45.38 seconds. She and Wiles finished with a total time of 2:21.91, .06 seconds ahead of U.S. teammates Breezy Johnson and Mikaela Shiffrin. Austria took gold. Germany silver. All separated by less than .3 seconds.
Moltzan and Wiles, meanwhile, did what anyone does when they win an Olympic medal. They celebrated, posed for photos and held up their country’s flag. It all seemed surreal and believable at the same time. It still does in some way.
And that medal? It’s safely tucked away.
“I haven’t done anything crazy with it,” Moltzan said. “I’m pretty protective of it. But I have a friend who made me some mini-replicas as (golf) ball markers, which was pretty awesome.”
There’s just the matter of whether or not another Olympic moment will follow.
Moltzan isn’t sure. Whatever happens, she knows it won’t make or break her career.
“I don’t really make a lot of numbered goals,” Moltzan said. “I just want to continue bettering myself. I don’t see a reason to be like, ‘I need to do this to have a successful career’ or ‘I have to be the best in the world to be the happiest and the best athlete.’ That’s not how I define myself as an athlete. For me, I just like to make sure I find the joy in what I’m doing."
It’s what makes everything — the schedule, the training, the traveling and the Google calendar — worth it. There’s no reason now to trade it in.
But Moltzan had to end the call. There was a plane to catch. She had people and places to see.
David Glovach covers New Mexico United and other sports for the Journal. Reach him at [email protected] or via X @DavidGlovach.
Continue reading...
