University of Alaska Anchorage Men's Skiing

Sparky Anderson has served as the head ski coach UAA since 2012.  Since taking over the program in 2012, Anderson has produced 12 All-America certificates on the slopes and 26 combined with Nordic. Prior to taking over head coaching duties, Anderson produced two national champions and nine downhill All-America certificates throughout his five-year career from 2008-11 and 2002. As head coach, Anderson has led the Seawolves to seven top-9 NCAA finishes, including a fourth-place result in 2021. UAA also finished seventh in 2013, eighth in 2014 and ninth in 2015 and 2016. In 2010, Anderson produced his second national champion in Andreas Adde, who won the men's slalom. UAA landed a combined five skiers as All-Americans and finished 7th at the national meet. Anderson also helped UAA to a program-best second-place finish at the RMISA/West Region Championships. During his third season in 2009, Anderson helped UAA to a program-best fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championships and helped produce five All-Americans and six All-Conference members. Anderson guided freshman standout Alex Parker to four individual titles and the RMISA Women's Alpine MVP, while UAA's women's Alpine team was the regional champion. In his first season back with UAA in 2008, Anderson helped guide the Seawolf Alpine squad to one of its most successful campaigns, qualifying a full squad of six skiers to NCAAs for the first time since 1999, while two racers earned All-America honors. UAA claimed the overall RMISA Alpine title by combining to score a conference championship meet-best 256 points, producing nine top-10 results. All told, the Seawolf downhillers combined for 25 individual top-10 results during the 2008 season. Anderson came as no stranger to UAA or collegiate ski racing, having coached the Seawolf Alpine squad in 2002, when UAA's Aurore de Maulmont won the NCAA title in the giant slalom. Prior to coming to Alaska, he was the head ski coach at Brown University in Rhode Island from 1996-2000. Prior to rejoining the UAA coaching staff, Anderson worked as the program director for the Alyeska Ski Club in Girdwood for seven years. A 1991 graduate of the University of Nevada, Anderson earned four letters in skiing with the Wolf Pack, serving as team captain his senior season. After college, he moved to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, where he taught skiing for the Flori Woerndle Ski School. A year away from ski racing proved to be too much, and Anderson moved to Innsbruck, Austria, where he spent two years coaching a small FIS team at the Innsbruck International School. After leaving Europe, he moved to New England and spent two years coaching the Eastern Cup team at the Holderness School. In addition to his international experience, he holds USSA's highest level of coach's certification and currently serves as the Alaska Division's USSA coaches education clinician. Over the years, he has been invited to coach at multiple national and regional events. Anderson grew up in Northern California and raced out of Bear Valley. He now resides in Girdwood with his wife Diana and daughter Kéa.  

Trond Flagstad returned for his second stint as the associate head coach for Nordic skiing in 2020. He previously served as an assistant and head coach at UAA from 2001 to 2011.  He made an impact on the Seawolves in his first season back in 2020. He coached four skiers to All-American honors, including a national runner-up finish from Astrid Stav in the freestyle. The team finished fourth overall, tying for its best finish in program history.  Flagstad started as an assistant coach for cross country running and skiing in 2001, before being promoted to head coach in 2004, a position he held until 2011. Flagstad led the Seawolves to a fourth place finish at the 2009 NCAA Championships, the highest finish ever in program history, and was named the NCAA West Regional Nordic Skiing Coach of the Year. During his tenure with the Green and Gold, he coached three NCAA national champions, eight national runner-ups, five third-place finishers and 32 All-Americans. Since leaving UAA, Flagstad worked as a physical education teacher in Anchorage before returning to Norway where he was a ski coach with Norges Toppidrettsgymnas (NTG). Several of his skiers at NTG earned gold, silver and bronze medals at the Norwegian Junior National Championships and represented Norway at the World Junior Championships. Flagstad is an accomplished athlete in both running and skiing. He was a professional Nordic skier for 12 seasons with a best finish of 56th on the World Cup and he won a bronze medal in the relay at the Norwegian National Championships. He is a two-time winner of Mount Marathon (2008 & 2010) and represented Norway at the 2003 World Mountain Running Championships held in Girdwood. Flagstad earned a pair of bachelor's degrees in sport science and social sciences from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and holds teaching degrees from both the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and the University of Alaska Anchorage. Flagstad and his wife have three children. 

Chase High joined the athletic department as an assistant ski coach in 2025.  Chase spent the 2024-25 season as an assistant coach with the Steamboat Winter Sports Club providing individualized coaching with a focus on technical progression and strength training. High, a native of Steamboat Springs, Colo., was an accomplished skier at the College of St. Scholastica. He finished 32nd in the 7.5-kilometer classic and 32nd in the 20-kilometer freestyle at the 2025 NCAA National Championships and was a CCSA Second Team All-CCSA selection. He served as team captain his junior and senior seasons and was a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. He has degrees in accounting and finance from the College of St. Scholastica.