Kristen Bourne will replace Kate Johnson as the U.S. Cross Country Ski Team D-Team coach. Photo: U.S. Ski & Snowboard.

PARK CITY, Utah – On Wednesday U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced the hire of Kristen Bourne as the new U.S. Cross Country Ski Team D-Team coach.

Bourne, who has previously worked with the team on several projects as a ski technician and coach, will replace Kate Johnson, who fulfilled the role with the D-Team for the past two seasons.

“It was such a great experience to be with this team for the past two seasons,” said Johnson. “Kristen is an outstanding coach and will make a great addition to the team. I’m looking forward to being a huge supporter of the team from the sidelines.”

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Last season, Bourne joined the team for the Davos, Switzerland, Dresden, Germany, and Lahti, Finland FIS Cross Country World Cups. During that time she had the opportunity to work directly with multiple athletes, in addition to joining the service team for ski testing and preparation.

“We were grateful for those opportunities to work directly with Kristen and to expose her to coaching and (ski) teching at the World Cup level,” U.S. Cross Country Team Director Chris Grover said. “She meshed super well with the team and added immediate value with both her coaching and teching ability.”

“I’m super excited to be joining the team and to hit the ground running,” Bourne said. “I had a couple of opportunities this past year to get a taste of the World Cup with the team and learn the system. Both experiences left me feeling inspired, excited, and ready for more. I’m really looking forward to getting to know all of the athletes better and being part of their pursuit of excellence and success at the highest level.”

Notably, Bourne holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sports Science from Northern Michigan University and is currently working on her Master’s degree in Exercise Physiology from The College of Saint Scholastica.. She is also a former professional cross country athlete having competed in numerous FIS races, and U.S. and Norwegian National Championship events. She was also a two-time member of the U.S. Junior/U23 FIS World Championships Team.

For the past few seasons, Bourne has been the assistant cross country coach at The College of Saint Scholastica, and a U23 coach for the Craftsbury Green racing team in Craftsbury, Vermont. She also served as World Cup ski tech for U.S. athlete Bill Harmeyer in Lahti, Finland, last year.