What is it like to be in the Olympics while also having siblings in the games?
Jul 25, 2024, 11:00 AM
The Olympic rings from the 2002 Winter Games are pictured at Rice-Eccles Stadium at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City on Monday, Oct. 31, 2022. It's rare enough to get selected to compete in the Olympics. But, how rare is it to have siblings competing in the same games? (Scott G Winterton, Deseret News)
(Scott G Winterton, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — It’s rare enough to get selected to compete in the Olympics. But, how rare is it to have siblings competing in the same games? How about three?
That’s a possibility for three siblings: Lauren, Sam and Alli Macuga. Lauren is an alpine skier, Sam is a ski jumper and Alli who joined Team USA in 2022, does moguls.
Lauren and Sam told KSL NewsRadio each of them got their start through the Youth Sports Alliance (YSA), a non-profit in Park City.
“It’s really cool because they do an after-school program where we all got to try all the different sports and find what we were good at,” Sam said. “Because … I could never be an Alpine racer and I would love to see Lauren try to be a ski jumper.”
The Macugas moved to Park City in 2007 and Lauren said at just five years old she began skiing.
“(I) really got into the sport a few years later and it really hit me a few years back that this is what I wanted to do,” Laruen said. “I decided I like to go fast.”
Specifically, she said she averages at around 75 miles per hour going down the slope.
Advice for kids who want to be in the Olympics
Sam has advice for children who hope to be in the Olympics one day.
“It’s a marathon, not a sprint,” she said. “My biggest thing is … I wasn’t very good when I was younger. I was like ‘I love this, I just want to keep doing it.’ And through the resources, like our parents are amazing and the YSA, just kept getting added and added like reaching out to whoever I could. Then it finally started to click … I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m actually getting kind of good … I can keep doing this.”
She said she realized that she could keep skiing and that she didn’t need to give up on it.
“It takes a lot of sacrifices. I think people don’t think about (that),” Sam said. “We did not have a typical high school experience. My college experience is going to take me well more than four years to finish. But it’s worth it. If you want it, you really have to go for it.”
Along with this, she said many people have to move to Salt Lake City or Park City to take advantage of the facilities. People as young as 15 and 16 stay with host families while training in Utah.
However, ski training brings athletes to other places too.
“I started going to Europe when I was like 14 (or) 15 to train,” Sam said. “It wouldn’t be ‘Oh, let me pop over there for a week and do one competition.’ It’s like, ‘Oh we need to go for a couple months.’ You need to follow the circuit if you want to be good.”
While they may not be training 24/7, Sam said her, and her siblings are still athletes 24/7 having to think about what they’re going to do next. While it’s a busy lifestyle, Sam finds it cool and is grateful for the opportunities.
Sam is looking forward to the 2034 Olympic Games hosted in Salt Lake City.
“We’ve been dreaming of (this),” she said. “Can you imagine training your whole life for the Olympics and then you have the chance to have it in your hometown? … I’m so excited to have an Olympics here”
Lauren shares this excitement, saying “it’s almost unbelievable.”
“It almost feels fake,” Lauren said. “We’ll be in our prime (in 2034) … I couldn’t be more excited.”
The sisters say they’re all, including Alli, on track to being in an Olympic Games before 2034. Keep an eye on the Macuga sisters, you may see them in the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Italy.
Devin Oldroyd is a digital content producer for KSL NewsRadio. Follow them on X.
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