By Zach Thummel
Columbia Gorge News
HOOD RIVER – Jayvin Lemieux of the Hood River Valley High School’s Nordic ski team won the Oregon Interscholastic Ski Racing Association Nordic (OISRAN) overall individual state championship Feb. 21-22 at Mt. Bachelor in Bend.
The two-day event included a 5-kilometer, mass-start, freestyle (skate) race on Friday afternoon and a 4.4-kilometer, interval-start (one skier starts every 20 seconds) classic race on Saturday morning. Three-person sprint relays followed the individual races.
Lemieux, a junior, won both individual races with a combined time of 26:31, earning the overall individual state championship by a healthy margin. Lemieux bested his closest competitors by 22 seconds in the skate race, and 31 seconds in the classic. This is the first time a Nordic skier from Hood River has been crowned state champion.
“I was just super happy,” Lemieux told the Gorge News. “It’s good to see the hard work pay off. I’m very grateful for everyone in my life who supports what I do and has brought me to where I am today. So yeah, it was just relief, happiness, and all of it.”
After his individual wins, Lemieux teamed up with senior Colin Gerald and junior Tate Shays for a second-place finish in the varsity sprint relay. The HRV boys varsity team, which also included freshman Björn Swanson, finished the weekend in third place in the team combined competition.
“We are all just so happy for Jayvin. You can’t help but love the guy. He is someone whose work ethic can only be matched by his humility,” said HRV Nordic head Coach Erik Weeman.
Meanwhile, fellow HRV racers senior Hazel Haspela, sophomore Cate Haspela, and sophomore Sophie Ransom nabbed fifth place in their relay. The HRV girls varsity, which also included junior Aneka Diem, took home fifth place in the team combine.
Weeman said: “While we are proud of this year’s success, we try not to stress the numbers. We aim to win the gold medal in having fun. And I’d say, with our team’s unparalleled cheering on the course today, and Björn (Swanson’s) perfectly executed 180-to-moonwalk over the finish line, we easily accomplished that goal.”
Lemieux grew up skiing Teacup Nordic on Mt. Hood with his dad, Jason Lemieux, right by his side. Jason is the general manager of Teacup Nordic.
“Ever since I was a little kid, my dad used to pull me around in a little chariot thing when I was probably like two years old,” Lemieux said. “Then I probably started skiing when I was like three or four, and I’ve been racing for a while, but I really started taking it seriously probably three years ago, four years ago.
“I did a few races when I was young. Like 10 or 11, I did a few races a year, but I didn’t really start racing often until probably three years ago, when I was in 8th grade. I think that’s when I really started racing.”
For Lemieux, skiing has become more than competition; it’s a foundation that shapes his daily life and long-term goals. Lemieux said he would be “much different” without skiing.
“I would say just the overall lifestyle is a big thing for staying focused. I have something to work on constantly, and it keeps me focused not just for skiing, but for everything. For school work, for just everything in general life. It’s been a big thing for me.
“I think without it, I’d be a much different person, so I’m very grateful for everything the sport has done for me.”
Next up, Lemieux will travel to Cable, Wisconsin, for the 2026 U.S. Ski & Snowboard Cross Country Skiing Junior National Championships, March 9-14.
“I’m just excited for another opportunity,” Lemieux said. “An opportunity on a bigger stage, a lot of competition. I’m just going to try to approach it the same as I always do and give it my all there. Hopefully, it goes well.”
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