Utah’s Steve Nyman will celebrate his 36th birthday on the hills of Pyeongchang after making his fourth U.S. Olympic team

The Sundance Kid has earned a ticket to his fourth Olympic Winter Games.

U.S. Alpine skier Steven Nyman, who will turn 36 in three weeks, will get to celebrate his birthday on the hills of Pyeongchang, South Korea. The Provo native and Sundance Resort product was named to the 2018 U.S. Alpine skiing roster Wednesday. These Olympics will be Nyman’s fourth consecutive appearance at a Games.

He joins fellow Olympians and Utahns Ted Ligety, Jared Goldberg and Megan McJames as representatives of the Beehive State at the upcoming Olympics, which begin in two weeks in South Korea. Alice McKennis and Breezy Johnson, who both graduated from Rowland Hall’s Rowmark Ski Academy, were also named to the U.S. Alpine team.

Nyman’s inclusion comes after overcoming what appeared to be a potentially career-threatening injury last January. Nyman suffered a torn ACL, MCL and PCL ligaments in a crash in a men’s downhill race at Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. A long, grueling rehab awaited if he wanted to snag a return spot to the Olympics.

He eventually returned to the Alpine World Cup circuit in December in Italy. In all, Nyman raced in five World Cup events this season. His most recent was his best finish of the year, a 15th place in the men’s downhill event at Kitzbuehel in Austria.

At the U.S. Olympic Media Summit in Park City this fall, Nyman said he was cleared to start racing ski gates nine months removed from his extensive knee surgery, which he admitted was pushing the limits of the ideal recovery timeline. Nyman spent all summer rehabbing at U.S. Ski and Snowboard’s Center of Excellence facility in Park City.

“When you’re rehabbing, you need to push to the limit, but if you push beyond, you’re taking several steps back to recover,” he said. “You’ve just got to really listen to yourself, listen to your body, feel that limit and say, ‘OK, we’re good.’”

Nyman, who sports an imposing 6-foot-4 racing frame, grew up on the hills of Sundance in Provo Canyon. He started skiing at the age of 2 and remembers trying to keep up with members of the BYU ski team down the mountain as early as age 8, which also happened to be the year he began Alpine racing.

He’s remained one of the most consistent downhill skiers on the U.S. team since making his World Cup and Olympic debut in 2006. Nyman has 11 career World Cup podiums, including three World Cup gold medals. His top finish at an Olympic Games came in 2006 in Torino when he finished 19th in the men’s downhill.

Before cementing his spot on the 2018 team, Nyman spoke about his longevity in the sport in spite of the high-risk, oft-injured nature of Alpine skiing.

“As long as I’m healthy and happy and my body is strong and I’m confident, keep doing it. I love it,” he said this fall. “Why not? Let’s keep going. I love what I do. I love the challenge of being at the start and going through those goals.”

Asked if he was surprised that he still was pushing toward another Olympic appearance at his age, Nyman laughed. He thinks he already has a shot at the 2022 Olympics in China. He’ll turn 40 that year.