Barbara Ann Cochran (born January 4, 1951) is a former

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 concept i ...

alpine ski racer and

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

gold medalist from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Born in

Claremont, New Hampshire Claremont is the only city in Sullivan County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 12,949 at the 2020 census. History Pre-colonial native populations Before colonial settlement, the Upper Connecticut River Valley was home to the Pe ...

, Cochran was the second of four siblings of the famous "

Skiing Cochrans The Skiing Cochrans are a family of American alpine ski racers from Richmond, Vermont, a dominant force on the U.S. Ski Team in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and again in 2000s, 2010s and 2020s. In 1961, parents Mickey and Ginny Cochran bu ...

" family of

Richmond, Vermont Richmond is a town in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 census the population was 4,167. The main settlement of Richmond, in the north-central part of town, is a census-designated place (CDP), with a population of 853 at t ...

, which has operated a small

ski area A ski area is the terrain and supporting infrastructure where skiing and other snow sports take place. Such sports include alpine and cross-country skiing, snow boarding, tubing, sledding, etc. Ski areas may stand alone or be part of a ski resort. ...

in their backyard since 1961. Her father, Gordon "Mickey" Cochran, was a longtime coach, coaching youngsters of the Smuggler's Notch Ski Club, the University of Vermont Ski Team, and the

U.S. Ski Team The U.S. Ski Team, operating under the auspices of U.S. Ski & Snowboard, develops and supports men's and women's athletes in the sports of alpine skiing, freestyle skiing, cross-country, ski jumping, and Nordic combined. Since 1974 the team and ...

. The family has placed several generations of athletes on the U.S Ski Team: three-time national champion sister Marilyn, Barbara Ann, nine-time national champion brother

Bob Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: Places *Mount Bob, New York, United States *Bob Island, Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters *Bob (surname) ...

, and two-time national champion sister Lindy. The family's next generation includes niece Jessica Kelley, nephews

Jimmy Cochran James Michael Cochran (born May 29, 1981) is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from the United States. He specialized in the technical events and his best World Cup finish was seventh in a Giant slalom in December 2005. Born in Burlington, Ve ...

, Roger Brown,

Tim Kelley Tim Kelley (born May 20, 1986) is a former American Alpine skiing, alpine ski racer. He was born in Burlington, Vermont to former alpine skier Lindy Cochran and her husband Steve Kelley. His siblings Jessica Kelley and Robby Kelley both raced on ...

Robby Kelley Robby Kelley (born May 26, 1990) is an American alpine ski racer from Starksboro, Vermont. Kelley specializes in the technical events of Slalom and Giant Slalom. He made his World Cup debut on October 27, 2012, and has represented the U.S. the W ...

, and son,

Ryan Cochran-Siegle Ryan Cochran-Siegle (born March 27, 1992, nicknamed "RCS" ) is an American World Cup alpine ski racer and a member of the Skiing Cochrans family. Cochran-Siegle specializes in giant slalom and super-G, and also races in downhill and combined. ...

. After retiring from competitions, Cochran graduated from college in Vermont, married Ron Williams, and published her book ''Skiing for Women''. She eventually became a writer for ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

''. Cochran now lives in her home in Starksboro, working hard on her own business, Golden Opportunities in Sports, Business, and Life, which teaches people how to handle the pressures of competition, work, academics, and any other obstacles that life throws at you. She is also working on a book that should soon be up and running. Cochran was inducted into the

National Ski Hall of Fame The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame and Museum is located in Ishpeming, Michigan, the birthplace of organized skiing in the United States. Located in the state's Upper Peninsula, the building includes the hall of fame and museum, as well as a t ...

in 1976, later joined by siblings Marilyn (1978) and Bob (2010). In 1979, the

Supersisters ''Supersisters'' was a set of 72 trading cards produced and distributed in the United States in 1979 by Supersisters, Inc. They featured famous women from politics, media and entertainment, culture, sports, and other areas of achievement. The ca ...

trading card set was produced and distributed; one of the cards featured Cochran's name and picture. Cochran was also inducted into the then-recently established Vermont Sports Hall of Fame in 2013.

Career highlights

* Gold medal in

slalom To slalom is to zigzag between obstacles. It may refer to: Sports ;Alpine skiing and/or snowboarding * Slalom skiing, an alpine skiing and alpine snowboarding discipline * Giant slalom, an alpine skiing and alpine snowboarding discipline * Super-G ...

at the

1972 Winter Olympics The 1972 Winter Olympics, officially the and commonly known as Sapporo 1972 ( ja, 札幌1972), was a winter multi-sport event held from February 3 to 13, 1972, in Sapporo, Japan. It was the first Winter Olympic Games to take place outside Europe ...

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous city ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

** won by 0.02 seconds, the smallest winning margin in Olympic history. * Silver medal in

at the 1970 World Championships in

Val Gardena Val Gardena (; german: Gröden ; lld, Gherdëina ) is a valley in Northern Italy, in the Dolomites of South Tyrol. It is best known as a tourist skiing, rock climbing, and woodcarving area. Geography The valley's main river is the Derjon, a ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

* Three

victories, 18 podiums, 45 top tens FIS-ski.com
– top ten results – Barbara Cochran – accessed 2010-03-11 * Two-time U.S. national champion.

World Cup results

Season standings

:Points were only awarded for top ten finishes (see scoring system).

Race podiums

*3 wins – (2 SL, 1 GS) *18 podiums – (11 SL, 7 GS) World Championship results (Val Gardena, Italy) were included in the World Cup standings in 1970.

Olympic results

*From

1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...

through

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – ...

, the

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...

were also the

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, ...

for alpine skiing.

References

External links

* * *
U.S. Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame
– Barbara A. Cochran – inducted 1976

– Barbara Ann Cochran – inducted 2013
University of Vermont Athletics Hall of Fame
– Barbara Ann Cochran – skiing – inducted 1988 {{DEFAULTSORT:Cochran, Barbara Olympic gold medalists for the United States in alpine skiing Alpine skiers at the 1972 Winter Olympics American female alpine skiers University of Vermont alumni Sportspeople from Vermont People from Claremont, New Hampshire 1951 births Living people Medalists at the 1972 Winter Olympics 21st-century American women