Gutsy young snowboarder Callan Chythlook-Sifsof of Girdwood made history on Monday when she capped a remarkable comeback season by becoming what is believed to be the first Native Alaskan to earn a berth on an Olympic team.

"For sure," said her mother Gloria, "she's the first Alaska Eskimo in the history of the Olympics -- we've researched it."

Chythlook-Sifsof was named to the Olympic team Monday afternoon, using a surge of solid performances during the last few weeks to qualify. The news capped a year of sometimes-painful rehabilitation for Chythlook-Sifsof, a Yup'ik-Inupiaq who seriously tore her ACL at the beginning of the 2008-09 World Cup season.

U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association president and CEO Bill Marolt announced the roster of 18 snowboarders who will compete at Cypress Mountain in Vancouver, British Columbia, next month.

"We are going in to the 2010 Games with one of the strongest athletic lineups possible," U.S. Snowboarding head coach Peter Foley said. "We're hoping to ... build on the successes we saw in 2006. This team is in position to do great things."

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