TJ Lanning Obituary: U.S. Ski Racing Coach and Former Racer Dies at 41
TJ Lanning, a former U.S. Ski Team alpine racer known for his fearless approach to speed skiing and later work as a coach, has died at age 41. Ski Racing Media confirmed the news with people close to him.
Lanning was remembered as one of the most promising American speed skiers of his generation, an athlete whose courage on the hill was matched only by the toughness he showed through years of injury.
Early Promise on the World Stage
Thomas “TJ” Lanning was born on August 27, 1984, in Helena, Montana. He learned to ski at a young age and quickly rose through the junior ranks, competing at the FIS Junior World Ski Championships in both 2001 and 2002. His talent carried him to the senior level, and in 2007, he represented the United States at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in Åre, Sweden.
Lanning built his career around downhill, super G, and combined events, disciplines that reward speed and nerve above all else. His aggressive, all-in style made him one of the more exciting American racers to watch during his years on the circuit.
Over the course of his World Cup career, he scored points nine times and posted three top ten finishes. His strongest results came in the winter of 2008, with a ninth-place finish in downhill at Lake Louise in Canada and a tenth-place finish in Val Gardena, Italy. He also placed tenth in the super combined at Beaver Creek in 2007.
That same year, Lanning claimed the U.S. downhill title. During the 2008-09 season, he qualified for the World Cup Finals in downhill, a mark of legitimate elite status in one of ski racing’s most punishing disciplines. He closed that season ranked 25th in the world in downhill and 33rd in super G.
A Career Cut Short, A Legacy That Continued
Injury was a constant companion throughout Lanning’s racing life, and it ultimately ended it. His final World Cup start came on November 28, 2009, in the downhill at Lake Louise. He crashed in the high-speed section near the timing flats, dislocating his left knee and fracturing a vertebra in his neck. He never returned to World Cup competition.
Rather than step away from the sport, Lanning shifted into coaching, joining the U.S. Ski Team’s staff and passing along the hard-won knowledge from his own racing days to a new generation of speed skiers. Colleagues and former teammates have described him as generous with his time and honest in his feedback, someone who cared as much about the people around him as he did about results.
Tributes have poured in from across the ski racing world since news of his death broke. The U.S. Ski and Snowboard team shared its condolences publicly, and former teammates and colleagues have posted messages recalling his warmth, his energy, and how enjoyable he was to be around, both as a racer and later as a coach.
Lanning is survived by his family, including his children. Ski Racing Media and the broader alpine skiing community have extended condolences to those he leaves behind, remembering a racer who attacked every hill with courage and a coach who never stopped giving back to the sport he loved.
