ASA MILLER wraps up his preparations for the Beijing Winter Olympics at the Sun Valley Resort’s Western Region Elite Tournament starting on Tuesday until Friday in Idaho.
The country’s lone bet to Beijing, Miller placed seventh (slalom) and 13th place (giant slalom) in last week’s Snow King race in Jackson, Wyoming.
The 21-year-old Filipino-American will try to improve on his times for the Beijing Games which open on February 4 under strict health and safety protocols.
“No matter what he does in Idaho, he’s already in for the Beijing Winter Olympics,” Philippine Ski and Snowboard Federation President Jim Palomar Apelar said on Monday, adding that Miller’s formal inclusion would be released on Saturday by the International Ski Federation.
“And whatever the outcome from his last and current races, Miller will surely gain valuable experience that he can use in Beijing,” Apelar said.
Miller made the FIS threshold of 160 points to join 151 other athletes in Beijing. He accumulated 96 points in slalom and 93 points in giant slalom to qualify for his second straight Winter Olympics.
He wound up 70th out of 110 participants in giant slalom in 2018 Pyeongchang with a time of two minutes and 49.95 seconds. Figure skater Michael Martinez was the only other Filipino in the South Korea Games.
The basic seven-member Team Philippines that includes Miller is expected to arrive in Beijing on January 28.