SAALBACH-HINTERGLEMM, Austria -- Bates men's alpine skiing senior captain
Nic Hotermans competed last week for Belgium at the 2025 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships, qualifying for the championship slalom race at an event second only to the Olympic Games in prestige.
Hotermans (Weston, Mass.) was born in Belgium and still visits family there every summer. He was one of four Belgian alpine skiers to qualify for the World Championships.
An estimated 20,000 people were in attendance each day watching Hotermans and the rest of the skiers compete on Zwölferkogel mountain, with thousands more watching on television throughout Europe.
"It was by far the most people that I've ever had watch me ski," Hotermans said. "I think the most I've skied in front of before was like 200 people at the Middlebury Carnival. This was a whole new game for me."
Hotermans had to skip this year's Middlebury Carnival to compete at the World Championships, but Bates head coach
Kurt Simard was more than understanding.
"I am so happy and proud for Nic," Simard said. "Nic's commitment and passion to improve is so engaging to be around. What a great thing for Bates skiing, to have Nic show everyone we are among the best in the world."
Just getting to the World Ski Championships is the first step. Hotermans had to do well enough in qualifiers on-location to then compete in the championship races. He did not qualify in the giant slalom last Thursday, crashing on his first run. But on Saturday he turned in an outstanding performance in the slalom qualifier.
"Everyone in the top 25 in the qualifier moved on to the next round, and I started with Bib 35 at that race," Hotermans said. "So that meant I had to really push it because all those guys are ranked significantly better than I am. So it's a little intimidating at first. You're like, 'okay, I have two guaranteed races, the GS qualifier and the slalom qualifier. The rest is really up to me. I have to get into that top 25 to make it.'"
He made it, getting the opportunity to compete Sunday on the big stage.
"You don't see the amount of people watching you until you are in the gate, and you have 30 seconds to go," Hotermans said. "You see the stands, and you hear the roar of the crowd down below. But I wouldn't say it was intimidating at that point. I had qualified. I deserved to be there."
Although Hotermans didn't finish his first run on Sunday, it was still an experience to remember forever.
"I probably signed 15 or 20 kids' jackets and helmets, so that was definitely one of the highlights," Hotermans said. "And after Sunday's race, I got a text from my fellow senior captain
Kyle Kagan just congratulating me. It must have been like 4 a.m. on the east coast, so I really appreciated that."
Hotermans' story is only just beginning. He will spend the next year competing in FIS races as he hopes to represent Belgium in the 2026 Winter Olympics.
"There are many things I can't control when it comes to the Olympics," Hotermans said. "So I am just going to focus on what I can do every day to get better, to get one step closer."
