When Audrey Crowley first started skiing at just 2 years old, she wasn’t a huge fan. “I didn’t really like the ski boots, and I didn’t really like the cold,” Crowley says in an exclusive interview with Her Campus. As she got older, though, her opinion shifted as she watched her sister, Ava, ski. “One of my earliest memories was when I was 3 or 4 and I was watching my sister do her first ski races,” Crowley says. “I was skiing around with my mom and we were just watching her compete, and that’s what really made me want to start racing — watching my sister race.”
Now, at just 18 years old, Crowley is making her mark in the sport. Despite being born without her lower-right arm, she’s taken part in both para and able-bodied races. In 2023, she won a SYNC Cup race, and in February 2025, she made her worlds debut at the Para Alpine World Ski Championships, where she snagged the bronze in the giant slalom event.Â
As an athlete who competes in many different types of races, Crowley says she loves the different opportunities and challenges that come with each one. For one, para races tend to be much smaller (with only around 20 competitors), while able-bodied races sit at over 60 people competing. “With able-bodied races, I am able to test myself against other able-bodied racers and really push myself,” Crowley says. “The Paralympics offer a unique opportunity because I can learn from my peers, and I get to see the best in the world in the people that I’m actually competing against.”
Crowley prides herself on competing through adversity. This past season at the Para Alpine Ski World Championships, multiple events of hers were canceled, leaving Crowley with only two races to compete in. “Being able to show up and ski my best on that day was really important to me,” Crowley says. “I was in fifth place after the first run, so being able to show my mental toughness, and show that strength, and move up to third place on the second run was really powerful.”
That mental toughness, and the importance of mental health in her sport, is something that Crowley recognizes. Her role model, Mikaela Shiffrin, has spoken openly about her mental health struggles from experiences on the slope. After recovering from a ski-racing crash, Shiffrin’s candor about PTSD created more conversations around mental health. “Getting to see [Shiffrin] come back from mental setbacks — or come back from some of her injuries, and come back stronger and come back on top — is really inspiring,” Crowley says. “The way that she’s not afraid to talk about mental challenges or the other aspects of skiing besides the actual races is really inspiring. It really helps to normalize how that’s part of being an athlete, and that’s something that you go through to be the best in the world.”
Skiing isn’t Audrey’s whole world, though. She loves traveling, spending time with her friends and family, and softball. She’s also a major Swiftie — Speak Now is her favorite original album and 1989 is her favorite re-recorded album. She loves “Bejeweled” before a big race, but “honestly, I just like any song that I can sing along to. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy. It’s just getting in the vibe.”
In the future, Crowley is super excited to start college at the University of Denver, but for now, she’s taking a gap year. “I love being able to spend time with my friends who are also on my gap year, and really being able to focus on skiing,” Crowley says.Â
For anyone hoping to follow in her footsteps, Crowley’s advice is to “always have fun with it.” She says she loves “enjoying the hard work, enjoying the long days, enjoying the time that you get to spend up on the hill with your friends, and just having fun every time that you get to put skis on. Because in the end, that’s why we do it, and that’s what keeps you going.”