World Champ Miller Keeps U.S. Guessing

The sky is a clear, high blue and the snow a brilliant white. Spectators in the finish area at the U.S. Alpine ski championships clang cowbells and bask in the morning sun, turning the day into as much a festival as a competition.

While they mingle, a voice rings out from the public address system. “Here’s the incomparable rock star of the U.S. ski team, Bode Miller!” it booms, triggering a chorus of tinny bells.

Miller, 2,000 feet up at the start gate, didn’t hear it. That’s just as well. He chafes at being labeled and he answers to no one and nothing but the quest to ski the perfect line.

“I don’t care,” he said of his introduction. “I’ve been called a lot worse than that.”

He has been called headstrong and truculent. Also rebellious, for planning to start a tour that would compete with the international ski federation (FIS), and reckless for his daredevil style. But this season he earned the right to be called the World Cup overall champion, the first U.S. skier to do so since 1983.

In most circumstances, that would have positioned him to become king of the hill next February at the Turin Olympics. Miller, however, is a circumstance unto himself.

The 27-year-old New Hampshire native is deciding if he will compete at the Games and play by other people’s rules for rewards he doesn’t value. The day he defeated Benjamin Raich of Austria for the World Cup title, Miller said he feared success at the Games might put him alongside Michael Jackson and Britney Spears as tabloid fodder, yet a few days later he signed a multiyear deal with Nike, which is never shy about promoting its athletes.

He disdains celebrity yet charmed the audience and host Jay Leno on a “Tonight Show” appearance last week. He hated every second. “It seems really cheap and superficial and all those talk shows are like that,” he said. “There’s nothing that goes on. It’s only there for basic, basic entertainment. Basic laughs.”

His absence from the U.S. ski team next year would be no laughing matter.

Miller’s victories in the downhill and super-giant slalom accounted for two of six medals U.S. skiers won at the world championships. The others were Daron Rahlves’ silver in the downhill and bronze in the giant slalom, and Julia Mancuso’s bronze in the super-G and giant slalom.

Miller and Rahlves, who shared the super-G title at the World Cup final, were the only two Americans in the top 30 of the World Cup standings. They were outnumbered by 11 Austrians, five Swiss skiers, four Italians and three Norwegians.

An Olympic team without Miller, whose silver in the combined and giant slalom at Salt Lake City were the only U.S. Alpine honors, could make a mockery of the team’s motto, “Best in the World.” That doesn’t seem to sway him.

“Obviously it’s something to consider,” he said, “but that’s not a good reason to go and compete in the Olympics, because you don’t want to hurt your team.”

Rahlves, who finished ninth to Miller’s eighth in the downhill Friday and won Saturday’s giant slalom to Miller’s third place, said he thinks Miller is bluffing.

“I’d be really, really surprised if he didn’t show up there. I don’t think that will happen. I think he’s doing it more for a little game, to make a point,” Rahlves said.

“I think Bode is just blowing smoke. He just likes attention. He likes [reporters] hanging around all the time. I think he’s trying to make a point of a lot of issues we’ve talked about. He’s kidding around.”

Mancuso agreed. “I think he’s just talking,” she said.

If he’s not, “I think we’ll be good anyway,” Mancuso said.

Jonna Mendes of Heavenly, Calif., the U.S. women’s downhill winner, said Miller is the U.S. team’s star but isn’t its only asset.

“The U.S. ski team had great results before Bode and we’ll have great results after Bode,” said Mendes, a two-time Olympian and a 2003 super-G world bronze medalist.

“He’s great to have around for all the athletes, for the women, for the men, for the technical skiers, for the speed team. All Alpine athletes can benefit from watching Bode, from being around him. He’s an incredible competitor. He’s like Picabo [Street]. To be able to ski and watch an athlete that’s that amazing, it’s priceless....

“We all hope Bode sticks around. He’s a great asset to our team. But if he doesn’t, we have Daron and Marco Sullivan and we have so many women that are incredible.”

So far, the women’s potential outweighs their results. Lindsey Kildow and Sarah Schleper recorded their first World Cup victories this season, but Kildow was sixth in the World Cup standings, Mancuso ninth and Schleper 17th. That might not pad the U.S. medal count against World Cup overall champion Anja Paerson of Sweden, multi-talented Janica Kostelic of Croatia and a pack of Germans.

Miller’s refusal to commit to Turin has raised hackles among U.S. team officials. Bill Marolt, president and chief executive officer of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Assn., refused to discuss a possible Miller-less team, telling a USSA official, “I don’t want to get into that. I don’t want anyone to get into that. That’s a negative approach.” Jesse Hunt, the U.S Alpine director, was similarly curt.

“Our goal as a team is to produce the best possible team we can and we’re going to just continue to move forward with the programs that we have and toward our goals at Torino,” he said.

If that team lacks Miller, “Again, we’re focused on moving our team forward,” Hunt said. “Obviously Bode is an important piece of our team and it’s important for him to be part of our team in Torino. At the same time, it’s an unpredictable sport and we’ve seen that time and time again. Our goals are going to remain the same and we’re going to shoot for those regardless of what comes out.”

Miller said he’s not leaning either way. “It’s just a process that I’m going through, to figure out why I’d do it if I did, and why I wouldn’t if I didn’t,” he said.

He also said he discussed his proposed tour with the owners of the Assn. of Volleyball Professionals tour and plans more meetings this week; he said he expects the FIS to blacklist skiers who join his tour and try to block their participation at Turin, so he might target a post-Olympic launch.

“Ideally, I don’t want there to be any negative feelings between anybody,” he said.

Alan Ashley, vice president of athletics for the USSA, suggested Miller’s indecisiveness might stem from fatigue after a draining season and said Miller “carries a big burden” by competing in all four disciplines.

“It’s the end of the season and he’s trying to figure out what his next moves are,” Ashley said. “A person of his quality and a person of his talents has options and ideas about what he wants to do.... We’re a team. He’s part of our team, and we’ll work it out as a group. We’ll see how it all shakes out.”

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Bryna McCarty of Concord, Vt., won the women’s super-G title on Saturday. McCarty edged Mancuso with a time of 1:22.44.

Canada’s Allison Forsyth was third with a time of 1:22.66.