Tyler joins Mikey Lacroix, class of 2016, on the US Snowboardcross Team.

“I couldn’t be happier to be joining the US Snowboard Team. This is something that I’ve dreamed of since my first USASA competition when I was 7. I would never have expected it to happen so soon at just 16, but this is just the beginning and I can’t wait to see where this opportunity takes me and my career,” says Hamel.

Hamel, along with his younger brother Mason, Class of ’24, joined the Gould Academy Competition Program at Sunday River in 2013 and earned his first USASA National Championship in 2014 in Slalom at the age of nine. In 2018 Hamel won the USASA National Championship in BX. Tyler missed the 2019 USASA National Championships with a broken leg. In fact, Tyler is no stranger to injury having sustained a broken bone in each season until 2019-20, his rookie season as a FIS racer. In that season, Hamel ended up as the 5th highest ranked FIS JR (age 15-20) in the USA and qualified for the FIS Junior World Championships in St. Lary, France. That event was canceled due to the pandemic.

Hamel completed a Covid-challenged 2021 campaign of regional USASA races with three Hole Shot Tour FIS events at Copper, CO. Hamel raced the best in the USA placing 3rd in a talented field in the first two events. On the final day of racing, the US National Championship, Hamel qualified 1st in time trials and did not look back, winning every heat of head-to-head racing and claiming the top step of the podium and the FIS US National Championship.

“Tyler has persevered through seemingly endless injuries and a global pandemic to earn this US team nomination. He has trusted his coaches, worked tirelessly at all aspects of his snowboarding and fitness, and constantly challenged himself to do better. We’re so proud of him and excited for him to wear the USA shield,” commented Gould Snowboard Program Director KC Gandee.

Summer training camps with the US Snowboard Team in  Mt Hood, OR before the upcoming North American Cup season as he continues to develop as an elite athlete.

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“There is something special happening at Gould Academy. If you’re looking to race SX or SBX, then you NEED to check them out.”