Phil McNichol Is Back After Nearly 20 Years To Lead The Stifel U.S. Men's Ski Team

Training programs, methodology, equipment, sport science, and times have all evolved, but Phil McNichol intends to bring the same core values, motivation, and messaging which brought him noteworthy success the last time he coached the U.S. Ski Team, nearly two decades ago.

The veteran ski racing coach was rehired in May to lead the Stifel Men’s U.S. Alpine Ski Team for a second time around. His previous tenure was in a vastly different era, from 2002 to 2008.

McNichol, who coached stars Bode Miller and Ted Ligety during that period, was hired by old friend and new U.S. Alpine Program Director Sasha Rearick. McNichol assumes the lead of a men’s ski racing squad, which, to be brutally honest, has struggled with performances over recent seasons.

“It’s unique in regard to how much has changed and how much is still the same. To have this challenge and try to reapply my philosophy in terms of team environment and culture, how you work together and care for each other, so that you create and stimulate strong performances,” McNichol tells POWDER. “I’m super excited for the challenge and love the people I’m working with and this organization that I’m part of.

“Turning to the men’s team, they’ve gone through a sustained period of turmoil and massive shifts in direction through changes in personnel. When you change staff, you change direction, and when you change direction, you change outcomes. This is not a blender that you want to subject a program to.

“I have a simple mandate: to try to stabilize the men’s team and improve performance. That happens through stabilizing personnel, philosophy, and direction,” he says. 

McNichol, who served as Alpine Canada director from 2019-2022, is amped for the second opportunity that awaits this World Cup season, and beyond.

“If we were having this conversation a couple of years ago, I probably would have said it that it wouldn’t happen, but I was always entertaining and interested in getting back involved with U.S. skiing,” McNichol informs. 

Rearick stresses McNichol’s attributes: decades of experience, intricate knowledge of the sport, and a commanding presence on the mountain. In addition to Miller and Ligety, McNichol helped seven different athletes to achieve podium finishes, while the men’s team finished second in the Nations’ Cup standings twice.

“We needed a person with experience and also someone who’s a proven team leader, so I couldn’t think of anyone better than Phil,” Rearick says. “He was also a mentor of mine.

“Phil helps coaches develop themselves and gain confidence. Our programs were gun-shy and we needed someone to come in and fuel that belief.”

McNichol will join forces alongside newly hired head men’s tech coach Paul Epstein and John McBride, one of the most respected coaches in the sport, leading the speed side.

McNichol Highlights Veterans and Blossoming Talent

The FIS World Cup season kicks off with the traditional men’s and women’s GS races on the Rettenbach Glacier in Soelden, Austria, on October 24-25, 2026.

Two-time Olympian River Radamus, who finished 10th in last season’s World Cup GS standings, continues to pursue an elusive second podium (Radamus took 3rd place in GS at Palisades Tahoe in 2024). Rising talent Ryder Sarchett, 23, is building off a breakthrough season in which he won a Junior GS World Title, represented Team USA at the Milan-Cortina Olympics, and landed his first World Cup top-10 finish. McNichol is optimistic about their potential and hopes to guide breakout performances to complement Radamus.

“We have to look towards some dark horses, whether it’s Ben Ritchie in slalom, who shows tremendous potential coming back from a knee [injury], or Ryder Sarchett and Cooper Puckett stepping it up to back up River Radamus,” McNichol says.

“Radamus, in my opinion, is a podium-level athlete that just hasn’t achieved what he’s capable of, but that doesn’t take much more to get there.”

As tight tech turns give way to full throttle descents, the men’s speed season officially opens in Beaver Creek, CO, December 2-5. The men’s speed team will look different and shorter without two-time Val Gardena champion Bryce Bennett, who hung up his race skis after last season.

Vermonter Ryan Cochran-Siegle, 34, who blazed to his second Olympic super-G silver medal this past February, owns five World Cup podiums, including one victory. The master speed technician nabbed two top-three finishes last season, on home snow in Beaver Creek (2nd DH) and Crans Montana (3rd DH).

“RCS is always a podium threat every time he slides into the gate, and Eric Arvidsson and Kyle Negamir are clearly moving in the right direction, so we’re rapidly trying for more consistency on the speed side with McBride having come in already for last season,” McNichol says.

“And we also have we have a good core of Europa Cup and NORAM skiers coming up, so that’s super encouraging.”

McNichol and the boys have their sights set on this season’s marquee FIS World Alpine Championships, in Crans Montana, Switzerland, February 1-14.

“We do have athletes that are capable of top 10s, top 5s, or podium performances on the World Cup. Those performances can translate into top 5s or medals at the World Championships in Crans-Montana, and that’s our focus,” he says.

Stifel Races Stateside this Season

Home snow races on the 2026-27 World Cup calendar, all branded with Stifel as the title sponsor, include Copper Mountain, CO (Nov. 28-29, men’s SG & GS), Killington, VT (Nov. 28-29, women’s tech), Beaver Creek, CO (Dec. 1-6, men’s speed & Dec. 9-13, women’s speed), and the highly anticipated Stifel Sun Valley FIS World Cup Finals (March 18-25), at which Mikaela Shiffrin could be awarded a large crystal globe if she can command a record-breaking seventh overall World Cup title.

McNichol spoke enthusiastically about joining the Stifel U.S. Ski and Snowboard team, in a new era and a program backed by Stifel’s unwavering support.

“Stifel is an amazing partner as well as the whole flagship group of partners that U.S. Ski and Snowboard has brought to the table,” says the veteran men’s head coach. “The organization is much bigger, more complex, and more sophisticated than the last time I was here.”

“It’s pretty impressive. We have what we need to be successful. We have some very talented athletes in my opinion, and a country that is dedicated to help growing our sport.”

Related: Sasha Rearick Rolls Up Sleeves To Lead Stifel U.S. Alpine Ski Team