Selling Julia.

It's been quite an eventful month for genuine Ski Diva, Julia Mancuso.

First she wins the World Cup in the downhill, after recovering from a stomach flu. No small achievement here.

Then she's featured half-naked in a promotional poster and video by Lange, a company with a long history of using sex to sell ski equipment.

Something is wrong with this picture.

While it's true she's a beautiful woman with a killer body -- one I'm sure she works very hard to maintain -- this sort of thing doesn't do justice to her or any other woman skier. In fact, I think it truly diminishes her talent, her athleticism, and her tremendous achievements.

Wouldn't it be nice if Lange showed her actually (gasp) using the boots instead of posing in them half-naked? Isn't the fact that she's JULIA MANCUSO enough to sell Lange boots? Doesn't her skiing speak for itself? Or is it just another case of objectifying women to sell a product? Hey, anyone can have their picture taken in their bra and panties. But who can win a gold medal?

I think Lange blew it. They have this fantastic spokeswoman they could've used to make a tremendous statement in a way that did them both credit. Instead, they just went with "sex sells." What a disappointment.

Be sure to visit TheSkiDiva.com, an internet forum especially for women skiers, where women can connect with one another to talk about everything and anything ski-related.