5'1"
31
Chicago, IL
Lyons Township High School (LaGrange, Ill.) '13 Colorado State University '17, Human Development & Family Studies and Spanish Language, Literature & Culture
Classification: LW 6/8-1
Allie Johnson grew up outside Chicago dreaming of skiing every day — a childhood ambition that was geographically impossible but never left her. She first skied at age four in Winter Park, Colorado, and the mountains took hold of something that wouldn't let go. She returned to Colorado for university, graduating from Colorado State University in Fort Collins in 2017 with degrees in human development and family studies, Spanish language, literature and culture. The academic work reflected her instinct for human connection and community.
Before racing, Johnson worked as a therapeutic horseback riding instructor, teaching individuals with physical and cognitive disabilities how to ride, using the horse as both a therapeutic tool and a vehicle for independence. The work connects directly to her academic background in human development and her belief that sport is one of the most powerful means of building confidence and capability in people who are told what they can't do.
Johnson did not begin competitive ski racing until the 2018–19 season. A coworker named Scott Olsen, who would later become her coach encouraged her to complete. She fell in love immediately with the technical demands, the team environment, and the particular intensity of standing in a start gate. Early momentum was interrupted in February 2020, however, when she crashed during her first-ever downhill race, sustaining fractures to her tibia and fibula in approximately five places. The injury required significant rehabilitation and months away from racing.
She returned to competition in February 2021, and the impact was immediate. In her first full season on the world cup circuit in the LW6/8-1 standing classification, Johnson won her first race, earned four total podium finishes, and claimed the bronze overall crystal globe in giant slalom. The following year, she qualified for the U.S. Paralympic Team and competed at the Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, finishing 14th in Super-G.
At the 2025 FIS Para Alpine World Ski Championships, she placed 10th in slalom and 12th in giant slalom in the women's standing division — consistent with the trajectory of an athlete who arrived late to racing and has been closing the gap ever since.
Away from the race course, she operates her personal platform at skialliejohnson.com, where she shares her story and engages with a community of athletes, coaches and followers who have followed her journey from the outside of Chicago to the podium.
Paralympians Andrew Kurka, Patrick Halgren and Matthew Brewer cherished recent descents down Cortina d’Ampezzo’s revered Olympia delle Tofane race hill.Competing at the FIS Para Alpine World Cup in the Italian Dolomites ski resort, Jan. 30-Feb. 2, the ...
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At the Paralympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, para alpine and cross-country events will be held at the same venues as their Olympic cousins: the Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre in Cortina d’Ampezzo and the Tesero Cross-Country Skiing Stadium in Val d...
Disability Pride Month is a time to recognize the history, achievements and experiences of people living with disabilities. It reminds us that disability is a natural part of human diversity, not a deficit or a condition that needs a fix.Team USA’s Par...
Paralympians Andrew Kurka, Patrick Halgren and Matthew Brewer cherished recent descents down Cortina d’Ampezzo’s revered Olympia delle Tofane race hill.Competing at the FIS Para Alpine World Cup in the Italian Dolomites ski resort, Jan. 30-Feb. 2, the ...
U.S. women (and one mixed team) shined in 2023 with world titles, record-breaking performances and some notable firsts.
