Aspen Hall of Famer Tage Pedersen passed away Tuesday in Ashland, Oregon. He was best known for his dedicated work in fitness and rehabilitation with the U.S. Ski Team over four decades.
Born in Denmark, Pedersen moved to Aspen in 1956. Shortly after, he became the assistant director, and later the director, of the Aspen Institute Health and Fitness Center, where he remained until 1983.
Pedersen was a ski instructor at Aspen Highlands in the 1960s and began training the U.S. Ski Team eight years later. He is credited with pioneering many rehabilitation programs before physical therapy even existed.
Pedersen had three daughters with his wife Pauline. His daughter, Lorna, said she will remember him for his overwhelming generosity and his love for people.
“He did so much for this community,” she said. “He was never looking for praise or money just because that’s the way he was. [He had] a strong heart, a big heart. [He was] a giver.”
Lorna said he would work with kids that often didn’t have the money to afford a physical therapist because he loved being able to help athletes return to their favorite sports.
He moved from Aspen to Oregon with his wife in 2001. She passed away in 2010.
Pedersen was inducted into the Aspen Hall of Fame in 1999 and the Colorado Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame in 2004.