Charles Francis Felix McGrath (born March 13, 1963) is an American retired

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

alpine ski racer who competed in the Winter Olympics in

1988 1988 was a crucial year in the early history of the Internet—it was the year of the first well-known computer virus, the Morris worm, 1988 Internet worm. The first permanent intercontinental Internet link was made between the United State ...

, and three

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

Career

McGrath raced for the United States Ski Team on the World Cup circuit from 1984 through 1990, and had one podium finish in slalom, runner-up to Alberto Tomba at

Åre Åre () is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and one of the leading Scandinavian ski resorts situated in Åre Municipality, Jämtland County, Sweden with 3,200 inhabitants in 2018. It is, however, not the seat of the municipality, which is Järpe ...

. He finished that season third in slalom and fifteenth

overall Overalls or bib-and-brace overalls, also called dungarees in British English, are a type of garment usually used as protective clothing when working. The garments are commonly referred to as a "pair of overalls" by analogy with "pair of trousers ...

. As of 1987, he was the top U.S. ski racer, but was ranked 57th in the world. The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' wrote of his criticism for the lack of competency among the coaches, who were "putting exaggerated pressure on the racers." He felt that the coaches were not attuned to the steps required to develop relatively inexperienced skiers and were not cognizant of the personal training regimes of individual team members. At the

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

, McGrath was tenth in the slalom. McGrath was national champion five times. He became a ski instructor and coach at Waterville Valley in

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

, and later for the ski team at the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, commonly referred to as the University of Vermont (UVM), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont, United States. Foun ...

in Burlington. Ultimately, he became the head coach of the Norwegian women’s alpine team. He was named to ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

s 50 Greatest Sports Figures from Vermont in 1999. While a World Cup racer, McGrath made a commercial for

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Plus, which was shown during the

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...

in January 1988.

World Cup results

Season standings

*Points were only awarded for top fifteen finishes (see scoring system).

Race podiums

* 1 podium – (1 SL), 5 top fives

World Championship results

Olympic results

Personal life

Born in

Princeton, New Jersey The Municipality of Princeton is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey, Borough of Princeton and Pri ...

, McGrath grew up in

Norwich, Vermont Norwich is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,612 at the 2020 census. Home to some of the state of Vermont's wealthiest residents, the municipality is a commuter town for nearby Hanover, New Hampshire acros ...

, where his father Bob (1935–2019) was a longtime art history professor at nearby

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

. McGrath married a Norwegian, Selma Lie, a cross-country ski racer for the

; their son Atle Lie McGrath (b.2000) is a World Cup alpine racer for the Norwegian ski team.

Video

YouTube
– Alka-Seltzer Plus commercial (1987)

References

External links

*

World Cup standings at the International Ski Federation *

{{DEFAULTSORT:McGrath, Felix 1963 births Living people American male alpine skiers Olympic alpine skiers for the United States Alpine skiers at the 1988 Winter Olympics Sportspeople from Princeton, New Jersey Skiers from Vermont 20th-century American sportsmen