Lausanne, Switzerland – The International Ski Federation (FIS) today named the FIS Athlete Role Models (ARMs) for the first edition of the Winter Youth Olympic Games, scheduled for January 13-22, 2012 at Innsbruck, Austria.

The involvement of the Athlete Role Models to mentor the young athletes attending the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) at their first edition in Singapore 2010 was one of the most appreciated features of this new Olympic event. Some recently retired athletes have agreed to serve as the Athlete Role Models for the FIS disciplines in Innsbruck 2012. The list features some of the best athletes of the last decade in their respective FIS disciplines who between them have won nine Olympic medals, 14 FIS World Championship medals, 55 FIS World Cup victories and collected 153 FIS World Cup podium places.

The FIS Athlete Role Models at Innsbruck 2012 will be:

• Cross-Country Skiing – Petra Majdic (SLO)
• Ski Jumping – Andreas Kuettel (SUI)
• Nordic Combined – Samppa Lajunen (FIN)
• Alpine Skiing – Marco Büchel (LIE)
• Freestyle Skiing – Shannon Bahrke Happe (USA)
• Snowboarding – Nicola Thost (GER)

These former top athletes will all be sharing their personal experiences and working with the young participants to pass on the values of the Olympic. The Athlete Role Models will spend time with the athletes, answering their questions and providing tips on everything from healthy eating to training regimens. They also have an additional opportunity to enrich the overall experience away from the competition venues at the YOG 2012 by working through the Innsbruck 2012 Cultural Education Program which is based on five educational themes: Olympism and the Olympic values, skills development, well-being and healthy lifestyles, social responsibility and expression through digital media.

Petra Majdic (Slovenia), Cross-Country Skiing
Petra Majdic participated in her first Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City in 2002. One of her most extraordinary performances was, however, in Vancouver in 2010, where she fought back after a bad fall, claiming a bronze medal with two broken ribs. The positive Slovenian won a bronze medal in her last FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Oslo 2011, and has over 30 FIS World Cup podiums to her name.

Now having time to focus on other things than skiing, Majdic is honored to be nominated as one of the FIS ARMs. “One of the most inspiring moments in my career was, when I was competing at my last Junior Championships in Seefeld (Austria) and at that time, cross-country skiing was not popular in Slovenia,” she said. “Nobody believed that it is possible to reach a top ten position let alone a medal, not even our psychologist. But I and my coach believed it and we did it. In that moment I realized that sky is the limit and that everything is possible only if your will is strong enough.”

Andreas Küttel (Switzerland), Ski Jumping
Andreas Küttel ended his career as a ski jumper in 2011 after the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Oslo, Norway, accepting a job at the Sönderborg Statsskolen in Denmark as a sports teacher. He was a member of the Swiss Ski Jumping National Team from 1996-2001. His main career highlight was becoming the world champion on the large hill at Liberec 2009.

After several top ten placements at the Olympic Winter Games and two World Cup victories, Küttel looks forward being an Athlete Role Model. “I am excited to see how professionally these young athletes prepare for their big events and what goals they pursue,” Küttel said. “The direct contact with these young talents will be a look back at my own situation many years ago. As I had just started ski jumping my dad took me to watch the World Championships in Oberstdorf in 1987. We were standing close to the take-off and I saw the athletes warming up and flying over this big hill. I wanted to do the same!”

Samppa Lajunen (Finland), Nordic Combined
Starting his Olympic career in Nagano, Japan in 1998, the Finn claimed two silver medals at his very first Games. Following this great start, he won all three gold medals in Salt Lake City in 2002, becoming a true Olympic legend. Adding several World Cup podiums and eight Championships medals, Lajunen decided to end his career as a professional athlete in 2004.

Marco Büchel (Liechtenstein), Alpine Skiing
Participating in the Olympic Games since Lillehammer 1994, Marco Büchel is the most experienced athlete amongst the FIS Athlete Role Models. Winning a silver medal in giant slalom at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in Vail/Beaver Creek in 1999 is one of Büchel’s career highlights. A total of 18 podiums in the FIS World Cup adorn his resume, including the final one in Wengen, Switzerland in 2011, where he finished third in downhill.

Büchel retired after the 2010-11 season and is excited to watch the young athletes participate in Innsbruck. “It has always been an honor to represent my country at the Olympic Games. I participated in six Olympics, and every one of them was a unique experience,” he said. “The Olympic spirit caught me from the beginning, and it was fascinating to meet all these different athletes from different nations and sports.”

Shannon Bahrke Happe (USA), Freestyle Skiing

Deciding to end her 12 years of moguls skiing career at the end of the 2010 season, Shannon Bahrke Happe has fulfilled another dream she had; starting her own coffee business, Silver Bean Coffee Co. in Salt Lake City. With a wall filled up with Olympic and World Cup medals, Bahrke Happe has had a long and successful career. A three-time Olympian and two-time Olympic medallist, Bahrke Happe also won a bronze medal at the Vancouver 2010 Games.

No less than 27 podiums over the last 12 years are what this motivated skier accomplished, and she is very enthusiastic about sharing her experiences with the young athletes in Innsbruck. “I guess there are really 3 things I want to share with the athletes at the YOG and they are: Have as much fun as you can, train harder than you think you need to and play as many sports as possible”

Nicola Thost (Germany), Snowboard
Starting snowboarding at the age of 15, Nicola Thost decided to find out how far she could make it after having watched her snowboarding heroes Terje Hakonsen and Nicole Angelrath compete. Nineteen years later, Thost can look back on an impressive career, a success she loves to share with others. Winning the halfpipe competition in Nagano Olympic Games 1998, three World Cup victories and two World Cup podiums, Thost showed that she was a great athlete at an early age.

Thost has since started her own talent program called “Sprungbrett” (springboard) in Germany and is very much engaged with youth’s participation in sports and wants to leave the young athletes with some key learnings. “If you love what you do, success will be with you when it’s time for it! The most important thing is not to win, but to take part,” she said