HCR 215

R-262  Page 1 of 1
2026
No. R-262. House concurrent resolution congratulating Ben Ogden of Landgrove on
winning two 2026 Winter Olympics cross-country skiing silver medals.
                                         (H.C.R.215)
   Offered by Representatives Morrow of Weston and Pinsonault of Dorset
   Whereas, since 1976, when Vermonter Bill Koch won the silver medal in the cross-
country Olympic skiing competition in Innsbruck, Austria, no American had podiumed in
this sport, and Ben Ogden, who ended this half-century hiatus, expressed a “hope to …
inspire a culture that values a strong work ethic, humility, and fun in all the communities
that I am a part of,” and of whom Bill Koch observed, “it couldn’t have happened to a
nicer guy,” epitomizes the Olympic ideal, and
   Whereas, Ben Ogden is a fourth-generation Landgrove resident, and he competed with
the memory of his father, John Ogden, a former Middlebury College ski racer and Bill
Koch Youth Ski League coach, who died in 2023 of cancer at 56 years of age, in
mind, and
    Whereas, as a teenager, Ben Ogden proved his cross-country skiing prowess as a
member of the 2018 FIS Nordic Junior World Ski Championship silver medal team, the
first American team to medal, and, in 2019, he contributed to the team’s gold medal
triumph; at the University of Vermont, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in
mechanical engineering, he was a leading member of the cross-country ski team,
compiling an impressive record, including two individual NCAA championships; and, on
three occasions, he has ascended a World Cup podium, and
   Whereas, Ben Ogden is a member of both the Stifel U.S. Cross Country Ski Team and
the elite Stratton-based SMS T2 cross-country ski team, which Bill Koch cofounded, and
   Whereas, skiing in his second Olympics, Ben Ogden’s performance at the 2026
Winter Olympics in the cross-country sprint classic was breathtaking, as he narrowly
finished in second place by one second at 3:40 to the gold medalist, Norwegian Johannes
Høsflot Klaebo, whom Ben Ogden observed was “a dream to race against,” and
  Whereas, cheering him on at the race site were his mom, Landgrove’s Assistant Clerk,
Town Treasurer, and Trustee of Public Funds Andrea Ogden, and many friends from his
hometown and across Vermont, and
    Whereas, in a historic coda to his fantastic individual triumph, on February 17, 2026,
in tandem with Alaskan Gus Schumacher, Ben Ogden won a silver medal in the cross-
county ski sprint team freestyle competition, as they became the first Americans ever to
medal in this Winter Olympics event, now therefore be it
   Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives:
  That the General Assembly congratulates Ben Ogden of Landgrove on winning two
2026 Winter Olympics cross-country skiing silver medals, and be it further
  Resolved: That the Secretary of State be directed to send a copy of this resolution to
Ben Ogden, Andrea Ogden, Bill Koch, and Gus Schumacher.
                                                                             VT LEG #388025 v.1