The 19-year old from Lake Tahoe is considered one of the biggest young American hopes and is one of the technically strongest members on the Development team.

Lila inherited the love of skiing from her father, the former Slovenian skier Vojko Lapanja, whose biggest success was 2nd place in giant-slalom in Park City 1995.

Lapanja moved to the States in 1991, when he got a scholarship from Sierra Nevada College. While studying he met the American journalist and author Margaret Beiser, fell in love and on December 3rd 1994 Lila was born. The young skier has dual citizenship, she loves coming to Slovenia, she is rooting for Tina Maze and Bode Miller, and she's not considering changing teams.

We've talked to Lila right after her recent success in NorAm.

How often do you come to Slovenia, what appeals to you here?
I try to come to Slovenia at least once every year to visit my family and friends. They live in the Gorenjska region, which is full of lush green forests and beautiful mountains. The breathtaking beauty of nature is one of my favorite things about Slovenia. Also, the people are very friendly and the culture is rich. I LOVE driving through and exploring little villages and towns!

Looking at Slovenian and U.S. ski teams, have you noticed any major differences in team spirits, relationships within the team, attitudes and approaches toward skiing etc.?
I have not spent a lot of time around the Slovenian ski teams, but when I have it has been the women’s World Cup and Europa Cup teams. I feel they are just like us: pursuing dreams and searching for ways to ski as fast as possible while capitalizing on the joy of the sport. Our paths may be different, but our destinations are similar.

USST is often praised for its good spirit, cohesiveness among skiers, whereas Slovenian ski team often gets pointed out just for the opposite. Have you noticed any of that?
It is difficult to truly understand what goes on within another team when you experience it from the outside. I think all teams have unique challenges and very different personalities among the racers. I respect the U.S. Ski Team and am honored to be a member and bring my best attitude to everyday, on and off the snow.

Who do you root for on the women’s and on the men’s side of the FIS tour?
I root for Marlies Schild, Mikaela Shiffrin, Tina Maze and Maria Höfl-Riesch on the women’s side, and Felix Neureuther and Bode Miller on the men’s side. Bode has been my hero my entire ski racing career. Of course, I am always cheering for my team to succeed and am extremely happy whenever a teammate gets on the podium!

How does you father comment the current state of Slovenian skiing on one hand and American on the other?
My dad is thrilled and proud to see me as a member of the U.S. Ski Team and is confident that the U.S. Team has a system in place that will help me develop and achieve my goals and dreams. He follows the Slovenian ski racers very closely and is familiar with the current challenges of the Slovenian Ski Federation. He is very excited about Tina Maze's successes is a big fan of Andrej Jerman and Rok Perko because they both grew up in the same neighborhood/town as he did.

Slovenian skiers do exceptionally well in the junior ranks – but they get lost in the World Cup. Why do you think this is so and what are the Americans doing to nurture a young talent such as yourself?
This sport takes passion, persistence, focus, and resources. Many Americans find success nationally at a young age, but as we grow older our technical skill and dedication become extremely important to breakthrough to top international rankings. I am dedicated, my coach knows I’m dedicated, and he has been patiently working with me every year on developing my technical skill and tactical speed in training. His patience combined with my commitment has worked and I now understand how to use my skills to be fast.

What are your short- and long-term aspirations?
My short-term goal is to earn World Cup starts this season and establish myself as a World Cup racer. My long-term aspirations have been the same since I was 5 –to be successful on the World Cup circuit with consistent podium results and to win a medal at an Olympic Games!

Honestly: Lindsey or Tina?
Tina is an amazing slalom and GS skier, and since those are my specialty events, I naturally connect with her skiing and style and study her videos often. They are both remarkable speed skiers and I always have admired Lindsey’s resilience and hard work.

Mikaela Shiffrin has talked a lot about juggling her trainings with her school activities. How do you do it? Does one or the other suffer sometimes?
Fortunately, like Mikaela, I graduated from high school this year, so I don’t have to worry about completing my studies anymore! Skiing was always my priority and my high school teacher understood that and we customized an independent studies program—when I was home between races, I put as much focus into my schoolwork projects as I did into skiing. I studied German in school and now will continue to learn it better, so I can speak more fluently when I travel to Europe and race. I also want to improve my Slovenian grammar!

What interests you – besides skiing?
I am very interested in nature and animals--I think it is very important to understand the lives of animals and find ways to preserve their habitat and appreciate their beauty. I love animals, especially the snow leopard (you can learn more about this magnificent creature at www. snowleopard.org). I also love to play other sports, especially tennis and ping-pong! My passions also include traveling and learning about other cultures and people. Since I grew up speaking Slovene with my father and his family, I am very interested in language and one day I will be fluent in Slovene and German! I also enjoy reading and writing too and have started writing poetry.

How big of a role does you dad play in your approach to skiing, love of skiing etc.?
My dad, Vojko, introduced me to skiing when I was 2 years old by taking me to the bunny hill at our local mountain, Diamond Peak, and letting me ski after Easter eggs in the snow! He was my coach my entire life and shared his love of skiing with me, so we formed a special relationship on the snow. Vojko raced on the Slovenian National Team and brought his experience and love for the sport to training everyday. He understands what it feels like to go fast! I loved learning from him when I was younger, and he still gives me advice on my skiing.

You’re from Lake Tahoe. Is there something in the water there that produces great skiers like Mancuso, Rahlves and Sullivan?
There must be! I LOVE Lake Tahoe. This area has many different ski areas with varied terrain and training venues where kids can grow up skiing everyday, all winter with unlimited amounts of skiing options. The climate is excellent with a lot of sunshine and snow, so we skied everyday until it became part of our character. Ski racing offered a great opportunity to enjoy the sport even more as we grew up.

When you made it into USST Development team in 2011, the head coach said you were technically one of the strongest skiers on D-team and someone they expect to have long-term success in alpine skiing. That must have been a great encouragement and affirmation for you.
Yes, I have always known I have the dedication to succeed. Now I am finding out ways to use my technique to go faster, and the future looks very exciting!

Tina Maze has never really liked racing in America – one of the reasons is also the food that she just can’t get to like. Considering your mom has written quite a few books on cooking, I guess you would disagree on Tina’s "American food sucks" conviction?
I wish we could invite Tina to join us for dinner!--If she tried my mom’s favorite recipes or my Ati’s homemade risotto, she would change her mind! Yes, "American food" is very different from European food…it is very eclectic and changes from town to town, region to region, home to home. Our best food is actually ethnic food like Thai and Italian--I love foreign cuisine, especially Northern European. Every now and then, even a good American hamburger tastes delicious, but you need to know the right place to go!

Kaja Sajovic