Utahns make up half of the members of America's World Cup skeleton team.
The team was chosen after selection races a week ago at the Utah Olympic Park and at Lake Placid, N.Y., this past weekend. When the last spray of chipped ice had flown from the skeleton runners, the U.S. Bobsled and Skeleton Foundation announced that a husband and wife from Utah were on the team.
They are Brady and Felicia Canfield, who live in Kaysville. He is an Air Force officer and she is a law student at the University of Utah.
Married team members are "a first of its kind" for U.S. skeleton racers, said Tom LaDue, spokesman for the Lake Placid-based federation. "Both had a great showing during the three selection races that took place in Park City and the two races in Lake Placid."
Tristan Gale, the 2002 Olympic gold medalist from Salt Lake City, was named to the women's team, while Zach Lund, also of Salt Lake City, is on the men's. That makes four Utahns among the eight U.S. World Cup team members.
"She's doing well," Tristan's father, Jim Gale, said Monday. "She's on the World Cup team, and they're on their way to Canada for their first race."
Also named to the men's team were Chris Soule of Trumbull, Conn., and Kevin Ellis of Dallas. Women team members also include Katie Koczynski of Nyack, N.Y., and Natasha Ellison of Albuquerque.
LaDue told the Deseret News the point totals show Gale first in rankings, followed by Koczynski, Felicia Canfield and Ellison. For men, rankings were Soule, Lund, Ellis and Brady Canfield.
The first World Cup races will be in Calgary, Canada, Nov. 20-23. Then focus shifts to Utah Olympic Park, where the preliminary schedule is for women to race on Nov. 30 and men on Dec. 1.
E-MAIL: bau@desnews.com