February 28, 2010
Kearney shows off gold medal
by PR Wire Report/
Olympic gold medalist Hannah Kearney was honored in Norwich, Vt., and Hanover, N.H., on Friday. (photo: Scott Halleran/Getty Images)
Olympic champion Hannah Kearney (Norwich, Vt.) brought her women’s moguls gold medal home on Friday, parading through two separate towns where she attended school as a youth.
In Norwich, Vt., and Hanover, N.H., Kearney showed elementary, middle and high-school students the first gold medal won by the U.S. in Vancouver. The medals won by Kearney and Shannon Bahrke (Tahoe City, Calif.) in moguls ignited a firestorm of athletic success for the U.S. Ski Team and U.S. Snowboarding in Vancouver.
"To have a welcome like this means that much more," said Kearney.
Kearney was born in Hanover, went to elementary school in nearby Norwich, then returned to Hanover for middle and high school while still living in Norwich.
Feb. 26 was declared Hannah Kearney Day by Vermont Governor Jim Douglas.
"I can't believe it's Hannah Kearney Day," Kearney said. "That is something I've never dreamed of."
Kearney will take a short break at home, skipping next weekend's World Cup event in Japan, before returning to final competitions in Sweden and Spain.
