Ryan Jackson

Position:
NORDIC
Height:
5-5
Weight:
null
Class:
Graduate Student
Hometown:
Barrie, Ontario
High School:
Barrie Central
Prev School:
Barrie XC

Updated Jan. 1, 2023

Top Career Classical Finish: 2nd (2020 RMISA Championships)
Top Career Freestyle Finish: 9th (2020 RMISA Championships)

Honors

Two-Time National All-Academic Ski Team (2021, '22; 3.5 GPA, Participation at Regionals)
Two-Time Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll (2021, '22)
Two-Time SAAC Distinguished Service Award (2021, '22)
4.0 Club (2022)
Dr. Pepper Pac-12 Tuition Giveaway Grand Prize Winner (2022)
Three-Time Letterwinner (2020, 2021)

Career—Jackson came to CU not knowing if he’d have more than one season of eligibility and finished his career with three seasons. He skied in 26 of a possible 31 races, finishing all 26 with 19 top 20 and seven top 10 performances including three top five and one podium appearance. His podium, all of his top five and five of his seven top 10 performances all came in classic races. Having struggled earlier in his academic career, he left CU as a multiple time honoree on the National All-Academic Ski Team and Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll and earned a 4.0 Club honor in 2022.

2022 (Senior)—Jackson skied in seven of a possible 10 races in his final collegiate season that also saw him make a push for the Canadian National Team ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympics. He missed the U.S. Nationals, which included three college races, and then slowly improved throughout the rest of the season. He was at his best his last two races at the RMISA Championships, hosted by CU in Steamboat Springs, where he finished 15th in the 10K classic and 13th in the 20K freestyle races. He was able to ski one more season in part due to winning the Grand Prize in the Dr. Pepper Tuition Giveaway, where his story initially won him a $2,500 scholarship but then he won the grand prize of an additional $10,000. He made the most of his extra academic season, earning his first 4.0 Club award while earning mention on the National All-Academic Ski Team and Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll’s for the second straight season. Also an active member of CU’s Student-Athlete Adivsory Committee, he earned the Distinguished Service Award for service in the committee.

2021 (Sophomore)—Jackson opened the 2021 season a bit slowly after having recovered from offseason injuries. Coach Jana Weinberger said prior to the start of the season that he may need to work his way back into shape during races, and that proved true as he improved in each of his first six starts. He opened the season in 20th in the men’s 10K freestyle race at Soldier Hollow as part of the RMISA Invitational at Utah, and then took 16th in the 20K classic race the next day. Later in the week, he took 12th in the 7.5K freestyle race, followed by an 11th place finish in the 10K classic race at Maloit Park as part of the DU Invitational. He was at his best at the CU Invitational, taking 11th in the freestyle sprints and then fourth in the classic race in Aspen. Closing out the season at Solider Hollow, he was eight in classic and 16th in freestyle at the RMISA Invitational at Soldier Hollow and 14th in classic and 13th in freestyle at the RMISA Championships.

2020 (Freshman)—Jackson took advantage of what he thought would be his only season of eligibility by finishing all nine of his races with seven top 20, five top 10 and two top five finishes, which included one podium appearance. A stronger classic skier, both of his top five and four of his five top 10 finishes came in classic. He finished 15th to open his career in the freestyle race in Steamboat Springs and then took fourth in the classic race as part of the CU Invitational. At the DU meet at Maloit Park, he was seventh in the classic and 10th in the freestyle race. He missed the RMISA Nordic Qualifier races traveling back home to Canada to participate in races there. He came back and slowly got back into it, finishing 22nd in the freestyle race at the Utah Invitational at Soldier Hollow and then taking 12th in the classic race. By the RMISA Championships, he was back and had his best meet, taking ninth in the classic race, his season best, and following that up with his first podium by taking second in the classic race by just a half-second. He took 23rd in the freestyle race at the NCAA Championships and was one of the favorites to win the classic race before it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Club—He has skied for three clubs, racing in Canada for Team Hardwood from 2013-16 and Barrie Cross Country since 2017 … He also skied and trained in Norway from 2017-19 for the Asker Skiklubb and Team Norconsult … He has competed in FIS-sanctioned races since 2015 and has 104 starts to his credit with 98 finished races … He has 14 top 20, seven top 10 and six top five finishes with four podiums including three second place finishes … He has 12 North American Cup races to his credit with three top 20 finishes, including a best of 16th in 2017 in a 15K classic race at Canmore … He has 16 Scandinavian Cup starts with a best being 74th in a 30K freestyle races in Vuokatti, Finland … He has 30 races at the National Championship level in Canada, Norway and the United States … His best finish there was a third place podium appearance in the 50K classic race at the Canadian National Championships in Lappe in 2018 where he was the top U23 finisher in the field … He took fifth place in that same race in Nakkertok in 2019 and has one other top five finish, taking fifth in the 10K classic race, also in Lappe in 2018 … He twice represented Canada in the Junior World Championships with a best finish of 10th in the 4x5K classic/freestyle relay in Soldier Hollow, Utah, in 2017.

High School—He graduated from Barrie Central Collegiate High School in Barrie, Ontario, in 2015.

In the Classroom—He is majoring in Geography at Colorado while also pursuing minors in both Education and Ecology & Evolutionary Biology.

Personal—Ryan "R.J." Wah Jackson was born March 11, 1997, in Barrie, Ontario … His parents are Eric and Nancy Jackson and he has one older sister, Jenn Jackson, who races mountain bikes after retiring from cross country skiing … He moved from Canada to Norway for a year-and-a-half to become a better skier … He enjoys mountain biking, hiking, writing, playing video games and basketball … He chose Colorado because of the mountains.