Arturo Kinch (born 15 April 1956) is a
customer service representative
Customer service representatives, customer service advisors, customer service agents, or customer service associates interact with customers to handle complaints, process orders, and provide information about an organization’s products and servic ...
for
United Airlines
United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois. who has been one of only three skiers from
Costa Rica in
Winter Olympic Games
The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...
history, most recently as a 49-year-old
cross-country skier in the 2006
XX Olympic Winter Games
The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially the XX Olympic Winter Games ( it, XX Giochi olimpici invernali) and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February 2006 in Turin, Italy. This marked the second t ...
.
Childhood
Born the seventh child in a family that would grow to a total of thirteen and the son of
missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...
parents in Costa Rica, Kinch enrolled at Rockmont College (now
Colorado Christian University) in 1974 on a
soccer scholarship
A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need.
Scholars ...
.
Downhill skiing
At university Kinch also played
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
to keep in shape but became a seldom-used reserve, so he turned to
downhill skiing for more playing time. He would score the most points on the ski team in spite of his inexperience, spurring coaches to encourage him to continue with the sport.
After his graduation from the College in 1979 with degrees in
biblical studies and camping and recreation, Kinch kept racing.
Winter Olympics
In 1978 he founded the Costa Rica Ski Association to qualify for the 1980
XIII Olympic Winter Games
The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially the XIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Lake Placid 1980, were an international multi-sport event held from February 13 to 24, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York, United States.
Lake Placid was elected ...
after learning that eligibility for international competition required belonging to a national ski association. In Lake Placid, New York, Lake Placid Kinch competed as Costa Rica's first and only Olympic skier before competing in the 1984 XIV Olympic Winter Games, 1988 XV Olympic Winter Games, 2002 XIX Olympic Winter Games, and XX Games. In 2004 Kinch was inducted into Colorado Christian University's Hall of Fame.
Family
Kinch has one daughter and lives in Denver.
See also
* Philip Boit
* Prawat Nagvajara
* Isaac Menyoli
External links
Miami Herald InterviewHall of Fame biography
1956 births
Living people
Skiers from Denver
Costa Rican male cross-country skiers
Costa Rican male alpine skiers
Alpine skiers at the 1980 Winter Olympics
Alpine skiers at the 1984 Winter Olympics
Cross-country skiers at the 1984 Winter Olympics
Alpine skiers at the 1988 Winter Olympics
Cross-country skiers at the 1988 Winter Olympics
Cross-country skiers at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Cross-country skiers at the 2006 Winter Olympics
Olympic cross-country skiers for Costa Rica
Olympic alpine skiers for Costa Rica
Costa Rican people of American descent
Colorado Christian Cougars
Colorado Christian University alumni
College men's soccer players in the United States
{{CostaRica-crosscountry-skiing-bio-stub