“It's really special to represent Madison and represent Wisconsin” says Hoffman; a Madison-born ski jumper who will soon know if she is attending the fast-approaching 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

 A Madison-born ski jumper will soon know if she will attend the fast-approaching 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

The Olympic dream is one step closer to reality for 21-year-old Anna Hoffmann, after she won the U.S. Ski Jumping Olympic Trials in Lake Placid over the Christmas holiday weekend.

“It just was a great time to be able to let all of our hard work show and just have genuine fun on the hill,” said Hoffmann.

Although she won the trials, she isn’t guaranteed a spot at the Olympics. The USA Women’s Nordic Team would need to earn a quota spot for Hoffmann to attend the games. Quota spots are given to the top 40 women in the world, with each country able to secure a maximum of 4 spots. Right now, the U.S. has zero quota spots.

The last chance for the American women to earn quota spots is at a World Cup competition this weekend in Europe. Hoffmann should know by Sunday if she is headed to Bejing or not.

“I think it would mean a lot to me just being that this is what I’ve dedicated my entire life towards and seeing how much the sport has progressed has been amazing and being a part of that now has a very special place in my heart,” said Hoffmann.

Still, Hoffmann says no matter the outcome, she’s proud of how far she’s come. “It would be great to go, but I also know that I can fulfill those dreams of being on the world stage in a lot of other competitions and so whatever happens, happens,” said Hoffmann.

She grew up training at Blackhawk Ski Club in Middleton and earned two Junior Nationals titles before she graduated from Madison Memorial High School in 2018.

Hoffmann now lives in Salt Lake City and attend the University of Utah, studying biology. She trains in Park City with the USA Nordic Team and travels the globe to jump in World Cup circuit competitions. Last year she qualified for the World Championship in Germany.

Hoffman said no matter where she is, the Badger State spirit always stays with her. “It’s really special to be a skier from the Midwest and I think that the pride just runs very deep,” said Hoffmann. Women’s ski jumping just became an Olympic sport in 2014 and Hoffmann hopes to pave the way for more female ski jumpers to take the world stage. “That’s one of my biggest goals is to make sure I’m a part of that and being an advocate for younger athletes, younger female athletes and keeping the stream of athletes going,” explained Hoffmann.

The 2022 Winter Olympics start February 4th. Ski jumping in Beijing runs from February 5th-14th.

Original Publication by NBC15.