Bend, OR (Saturday, May 8, 2004) - The U.S. Ski Team mourned the loss of one of its young athletes Saturday. Shelley Glover, 17, a second-year member of the U.S. Ski Team's Development Team died Saturday at St. Charles Medical Center - Bend, three days following head injuries suffered at an alpine training camp Wednesday at Mt. Bachelor Resort near Bend, Oregon.

"Shelley was a very talented and promising young athlete, and very much on track to become an Olympic ski racer," said U.S. Ski Team President and CEO Bill Marolt. "It's obviously a great loss for her family and friends, and our prayers go out to them.

"It's also a great loss for our Team," added Marolt. "While our athletes are all competitive, we live and train as a team, working toward a common goal. Shelley was a great part of that Team!"

Glover had been flown by Air Life helicopter to the Bend hospital after the resort’s Ski Patrol attended to her following the incident on the hill’s Coffee Run Wednesday morning, officials said. The accident occurred nine days before her 18th birthday.

Glover was taking part in an alpine training camp for Europa Cup and development team athletes when the crash happened.

After the crash, asked about what had occurred, ski team spokesman Tom Kelly said, “She was involved in a regular training session. This was not a high-speed accident. The speeds involved were reasonably moderate to low. It was a typical program to work terrain techniques, with nothing unusual in circumstances at that time. It’s just a very unfortunate situation.”

Glover was wearing her helmet at the time of the crash, according to Kelly. He said she's believed to be the first U.S. Ski Team member to die from a crash in training or competition in 28 years.

Kelly said the training camp has been canceled, ending almost a week early. "We did continue the camp Thursday and Friday," he said, "but as the situation became more and more evident, (we) chose to call it off early."

U.S. Ski Team Development Squad member Shelley Glover, who succumbed on Saturday to injuries sustained in a training run Wednesday on Mt. Bachelor, Oregon. (photo: U.S. Ski Team/Jonathan Selkowitz)

Glover, the 2002 Eastern Junior Olympic giant slalom champion who was in her second year with the development squad, was considered a rising star, enjoying her best season ever last winter. Born in Madison, Wis., she raced for Coach Pat Slattery at Tyrol Basin Ski Area near Madison, before heading east to Vermont to attend the Burke Mountain Academy and joined the U.S. Ski Team's Development Team in 2002.

In her first year with the Ski Team this past winter, Glover worked her way to six top-five finishes in international-level (FIS) races. She also finished in the top 15 all four days at the 2004 NorAm Cup Finals. She displayed continued success in the technical disciplines (slalom and giant slalom), finishing eighth in slalom at the U.S. Alpine Championships in Alaska in March and winning a pair of FIS races in Waterville Valley, N.H., at the end of January. She finished the 2004 season ranked sixth in the NorAm Cup slalom standings.

"Shelley was one of the top junior athletes on the Team," said Alpine Program Director Jesse Hunt. "She had proven herself in the technical disciplines among her peers by achieving top 10 in her age group in slalom in the world. In addition to achieving top results, she was a great athlete off the slopes and was one of our top prospects for the future."

In lieu of flowers, the Glover family has asked that donations be made to either Burke Mountain Academy or to the Shelley Glover Fund, U.S. Ski Team Foundation.

Services were pending and were expected to be held in Madison and at Burke Mountain Academy.