A Libby native has been named to the 2026 U.S. Ski and Snowboard team for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympic Winter Games in Italy.

Konnor William Ralph, who turned 23 today, was selected for the team and will compete in the 2026 Winter Games in men's slopestyle and big air. It's his first time skiing in the Olympics.

Ralph is the son of Chris and Chris Ralph, formerly of Libby and who now live in Helena.

According to his bio on usskiandsnowboard.org, Ralph was all of 2 years old when his parents put him on skis for the first time at a ski hill called Great Divide, northwest of Helena. Today, it’s known as the Great Divide Ski Area.

With passionate skiers as parents, it was only natural Konnor was skiing almost as soon as he could walk. He got into park skiing at about the age of 12, after exhausting all other features on his home mountain. 

Ralph made his first World Cup podium for slopestyle in Tignes, France in 2024 and big air in Aspen in 2025, cementing him as a talent to watch in freeskiing.

Ralph was second at the Visa Big Air event in December before skiing to a fourth-place finish at the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix in January. A little more than a week ago, Ralph finished eighth at the Laax Open in Switzerland.

Ralph won his first big air podium in February 2025 and was later named the most improved skier on the U.S. Freeski team. He's been on the team since 2022.

Ralph said his favorite part of skiing on the Stifel U.S. Freeski Team is the travel he’s been able to do and to have seen so many amazing places around the world at a young age.

According to U.S. Ski & Snowboard, it will send 97 athletes to the Olympic Winter Games, including 73 athletes from the Stifel U.S. Ski Team and 24 athletes from the Hydro Flask U.S. Snowboard Team. 

At the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games, U.S. Ski & Snowboard accounted for more than 40% of Team USA's delegation and brought home 15 of the 25 total Olympic medals won. Of the 97 U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes represented, 48 are first-time Olympians. 

Northwest Montana has another athlete competing in the upcoming Olympics as Whitefish native Jake Sanderson was named to the U.S. Olympic hockey team.

The 2026 Winter Olympics are Feb. 6-22 and will take place at sites across Italy.