Since joining the All-Gender Nordic Skiing team in his Lower year, Co-Captain Luke Williamson ’25 has been off to the races bringing energy to the sport. After deciding to give the sport a try because of his love for downhill skiing, Williamson found his power and passion in the snow.
Williamson acknowledges and is aware of the disparity in experience on the team. He uses this understanding as a part of his leadership as he supports the team during races.
“I try to bring everyone in because not everyone in Nordic has been a part of a sports community [before],” said Williamson.
He continued, “We had a meet on Wednesday, and there are the people who have done Nordic for a while, and there are the people who have not, and sometimes we separate between these two groups. Before the race, I gathered everyone. I gave them a little speech, got us all committed, [and] made sure that everyone knew that we were a team and that we were working together. It really reflected on how the race went, because throughout the race, whenever I would pass someone on the team, I’d be like ‘Let’s go!’ or ‘Let’s get it, you’re doing great!’ and they would talk back as it hyped them up, and they’d start going a little faster,” said Williamson.
Sebastian Vermut ’27 described Williamson as the epitome of a Nordic skier due to his sharpness in all areas of the sport, his hard-working mindset and humble personality, and his efforts to encourage teammates.
Vermut said, “Luke provides, first and foremost, a great example of what a skier should try to be. All around, he’s great at skating, he’s great at classic. He’s always very humble. Although he’s one of our most skilled skiers on the men’s team, he’s never going to explicitly go out and say that. He’s always helping too, especially the newer skiers. This is my first year and he’s given me tips whenever he sees me. Even when he’s up in the front and he passes me, he’s probably huffing and puffing but still has enough energy to keep going and pushing. He is just visually, a very powerful leader.”
Adrian Werner ’25 highlighted Williamson as a more vocal leader. According to Werner, before meets, Williamson gives a captain’s speech to psyche up Nordic with a pep talk.
“I would say before races Luke’s always in our ears, hyping us up, getting us ready to go. This Wednesday, we’ve got a classic 5K, which will be a slog, but I’m excited for Luke to give us his hype speech. That’s how he contributes. He’s always a vocal leader,” said Werner.
Williamson explained the positive nature of his leadership style. When he cheers his teammates, they reflect his encouragement and thus tend to motivate others and develop a strong community on the team.
“It’s all about building team culture, and so when I take that first step to cheer them on in their race, they reflect [that leadership]: they cheer me on, they cheer their other teammates on them. It’s just a positive upward spiral,” said Williamson.
Vermut, having trained with Williamson through Cross Country, vouched for his work ethic and commitment to the team. Whether completing a long run or intense speed intervals, Williamson always goes the extra mile.
“I ran cross country with him, and now I’m skiing with him. In both sports — endurance sports — he’s always doing something extra. He’s always going above and beyond what is asked of him by his coaches. For example, during Nordic, whenever he goes on runs, it’s never going to be only that for him for the day. He’s always going to do one extra run or in the morning, maybe he’s already run eight to nine miles or done speed work. He’s still going to go out and practice with the team, not because of the exercise it provides him, but because of the team it creates by being there,” said Vermut.
Williamson plans on attending the United States Naval Academy next year. While the lack of snow in Annapolis, Maryland holds back his Nordic goals, Williamson aims to continue his leadership into college.
