Julia Mancuso splits her time between Squaw Valley, Hawaii and hotel rooms across the globe. In between, she has captured more major championship medals than any other American woman with eight – three Olympic and five World Championship. As a four-event athlete from the beginning, Mancuso started World Cup racing and was a NorAm champion at 16, competed in the Olympics at 17, set a U.S. mark for Junior World Championships medals before she was out of her teens, and then started her twenties by capturing two World Championships medals.

When you're a rocket ship, blasting off one of the best seasons of your career, why not keep it rolling? That's exactly what Super Jules did in 2013. Here's the CNN-style highlight reel: podiums in four of six Audi FIS Alpine World Cup super G races, finishing second in the standings when the final race of the season was canceled…super G bronze at the World Championships, the fifth Worlds medal of her decorated career…fourth in the World Cup overall standings for the second straight season…and to cap it, a record-extending 16th U.S. title with a giant slalom victory at the Nature Valley U.S. Alpine Championships. Whew!

JULIA SAYS
Super G has been really fun. We’ve had a lot of weather, so we’re used to days like what we had at Finals. It’s definitely unfortunate not to get to battle it out to the last race, but I’m really happy with how I’m skiing and looking forward to next year.

In super G I just feel really confident and we have an amazing group of coaches. That helps a lot with inspection and course report, being able to really nail it on the first run. That’s been my strength the last years. I’m just building off of that confidence and every year is getting a little faster, a little better. I just have to take it one step further and win races.

Our team is just full of a lot of special girls. We have a lot of fun on the road together. We kind of have to be each other’s family because we’re away from home so much. Everyone gets along really well and so we’re lucky.

FIRST TRACKS
Mancuso was on skis at two at Squaw Valley but didn't race until she was eight, and then she started making up for lost time. She was named to the 2000 Development Team (with older sister April) and her World Cup debut came a few months later when she narrowly missed making the top-30 cut in a slalom race at Copper Mountain. She would go on to pillage the next few Junior World Championships, setting a new U.S. record with eight medals (five golds, three bronze).

OFF THE SNOW
Mancuso loves the ocean life in Maui, where she spends most of her time when not traveling around the world. A big fan of stand-up paddling, surfing and yoga, you can follow all her adventures through your favorite social media outlets or on juliamancuso.com. Philanthropy isn't as much of a hobby for Mancuso as it is a way of life. She's continually raising money for various charities, including Right to Play and the High Fives Foundation. She's also jumped into the business world by designing and selling her own line of underwear while also owning and running a gym (Performance by JM) in Lake Tahoe. Mancuso has also been a star in the last two Warren Miller movies…and she’s filming again this winter.