LIVIGNO, Italy – Born and raised in Truckee, Calif., freestyle skier Abby Winterberger completed two trick loaded halfpipe runs at the Livigno Snow Park in her Olympic debut in the halfpipe qualification on Thurs., Feb. 19.

Before laying down those two runs, broadcasters hooked her up to a microphone during practice, where she vocalized and visualized her sequence, “Chill, extend, whee, crush, land…”

That’s exactly what she did on her first competition run after dropping in and launching into the air—the “whee”—spinning for about 1.5 rotations with a grab.

Her next trick launched her into two spins to land facing backwards, which set her up for a switch trick. She ended her run with more spins in a flashy alley-oop rodeo, gaining heights of close to eight feet throughout the run.

This first go landed her a score of 72.25 and put her in 12th position. Competitors get to keep the best score of two runs in their aim to qualify among the top 12 in order to move on to finals.

By the second run, Winterberger needed better than 74.75 to make the top 12. However, making that position meant the paradox of moving onto the finals at the expense of knocking out her teammate, Kate Gray, qualifying position.

Despite a small miscue on the landing after her first trick, she improved on her initial score with her second run, but the 72.50 still wasn’t enough to move her onto the finals for a shot at a medal.

Overall, Winterberger placed 15th.

Though she doesn’t move to the next round, her future looks bright. At just 15 years old, she will still be a teenager for the next Olympics.

Her appearance not only makes her the youngest member on Team USA at the Milano Cortina Olympics, but the youngest U.S. Olympian since figure skater Tara Lipinski in 1998, who was also 15.

In addition to being the youngest, Winterberger is the only club-level freeski athlete to qualify directly to the Olympic Winter Games, bypassing the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Rookie and Pro Team pathways.

Her family and friends watched in support with posters and cutouts along with the Truckee-Tahoe community cheering her on at watch parties, including at the Auld Dubliner in the Palisades Tahoe Village.