Colorado University Athletics
2015 Skiing Roster
Kasper Hietanen
- Position:
- Alpine
- Height:
- 6-0
- Weight:
- 190
- Class:
- Senior
- Hometown:
- Helsinki, Finland
- High School:
- Kuusamon Lukio/Finish Junior Ski Team
- Top Career Slalom Finish: Third (2015 Colorado Invitational)
- Top Career Giant Slalom Finish: Fifth (2013 Utah Invitational)
Honors
- 2013 Second-Team All-American (Slalom)
Career at Colorado—Competed in the NCAA Championships in three different seasons for the Buffs, helping the squad to a National Championship as a freshman in 2013 with an All-American performance and another National Title in 2015. A solid racer in both disciplines, he finished 51 of 54 races in his career at CU with 15 top 10 performances, 11 in slalom and four in giant slalom.
2016 (Senior)–Competed in 10 races on the season with three finishes inside the top 10 – all three in the slalom. Finished eighth in the slalom at the New Mexico Invitational. Won one slalom run.
2015 (Junior)—Member of CU’s National Championship team where he finished 16th in the giant slalom and 19th in the slalom at the NCAA Championships. Finished 11-of-12 races on the season, placing inside the top 10 three times. His third place finish in the slalom at the Colorado Invitational was his top finish on the year. He finished 15th in the RMISA Alpine Qualifiers in early January in the giant slalom and was also 15th in the discipline at the RMISA Championships for his top GS finishes in 2015.
2014 (Sophomore)—Hietanen had a solid sophomore season that saw him finish 13 of 14 races as he competed for the Buffaloes again at the NCAA Championships. He brought home 12 top 20 finishes including 10 in the top 15 and four top 10s, two each in giant slalom and slalom action. He matched his career best slalom finish of seventh at the New Mexico Invitational, where he also finished eighth in the other slalom race. In giant slalom action, he finished eighth in the GS race at the Utah Invitational and then sixth in the RMISA Qualifier race ahead of the Montana State Invitational. Prior to the season, he participated in the World University Games for his home country of Finland, finishing 27th in the slalom race and 30th in the giant slalom race there. He also finished eighth in an FIS race in Italy before returning home for the college season. After the college season, he had several solid races, bringing home top 10 finishes at Mission Ridge, Wash., Aspen, Vail and Lutsen, Minn. He had three second place slalom performances, one in Mission Ridge and two in Lutsen.
2013 (Freshman)—Hietanen arrived in Colorado in January just prior to the start of the 2013 season and hit the slopes quickly. He participated in all 14 races on the year and finished 13, including the final 12 races of the season. He had five top 10 finishes, highlighted by an eighth place showing in the slalom race at the NCAA Championships to lead the Buffaloes and help them remain in contact with Vermont, setting up the best comeback victory ever seen at the championships. His best meet was at New Mexico where in a pair of slalom races, he finished 10th and then had his season best finish of tied for seventh. He broke out in GS action at the Utah Invitational, where he finished fifth in the discipline. He had one other top 10 in GS action at the DU Invitational and then brought home 11th place at the RMISA Championships. His eighth place finish at the NCAA Championships in slalom earned him a second-team All-America honor. After the college season, he had an impressive seventh place slalom performance in an FIS race at Vail.
Club—Hietanen participated on the Finnish National Junior Ski Team from 2010-11 and has compiled FIS results since 2006, also with the Espoo Slalom team. Prior to coming to CU, he competed in 222 races and completed 144 of them with 89 top 20 finishes, 55 top 10, 31 top five, 19 podium appearances and seven wins. In 2012, he won three races, all slalom, two in Finland at Rovaniemi and one in Sweden at Luleaa. In all he has won four slalom races, two Super G and one Downhill. His top giant slalom finish was at the 2011 Finish Junior National Championships, where he took third place. He won the Super G race at that same competition. He has one World Cup listing, a slalom race in November 2012, but he didn’t qualify for the first run. He has 12 European Cup starts, two in 2009 and 10 in 2012, with two finishes, one Super G and one giant slalom. He has 26 races at the National Championship level in Finland and Sweden since 2007 with seven top 10 finishes. At the 2010 Finish National Championships, he finished ninth in the slalom and eighth in the giant slalom. In the 2012 Swedish National Championships, he finished sixth in the Downhill, ninth in the Super G and 13th in the giant slalom.
High School—Hietanen graduated from Kuusamon Lukio in Kuusamo, Finalnd, in June 2011.
In the Classroom—Hietanen is majoring in Business Finance at Colorado.
Personal—Kasper Erik Hietanen was born April 28, 1991, in Gentofte, Sweden, to Markka and Annika Hietanen. He enjoys all sports recreationally and chose CU because “it’s the place to be for skiing.”
