Kauf Wins in Almaty, Secures Overall & Dual Moguls Crystal Globes
Jaelin Kauf's incredible season is officially historic as Saturday’s win in Almaty clinches the overall and dual moguls Crystal Globes, becoming the first American to win a globe since Hannah Kearney in 2015.
Thankfully, the fog and clouds from the moguls event left the Yuka G course for the dual moguls World Cup in Almaty, Kazakhstan. In the qualification round, all five U.S. women advanced to the round of 16. Due to a smaller competitor pool in the last two World Cups, the women started in the round of 32 and Jaelin Kauf and Tess Johnson automatically qualified for the finals, allowing them more time to prepare. On the men’s side, Nick Page and Charlie Mickel advanced to the finals. Asher Michel had an incredible close battle against Joey Dubuc (CAN), who advanced 18 to 17. Michel finished the day 18th and Dylan Walczyk in 24th.
In the round of 16, Kauf, Johnson, Kai Owens and Kasey Hogg all won their duals. Kylie Kariotis took on number 10 ranked Rino Yanagimoto (JPN) and kept things incredibly close but ultimately lost 17 to 18, the closest a dual can be. Kariotis landed in ninth, her fourth top-10 finish of the season. Cooper Woods of Australia bested Page in the 1/8th final, while Mickel advanced to the quarterfinals. Page finished ninth.
Kauf and Johnson continued to impress in the quarterfinals to advance, putting them in medal contention. Mickel was paired with one of the best in the world, Ikuma Horishima (JPN). Mickel doesn’t shy away from intimidating duals and chooses to embrace them to gain meaningful experience. Horishima moved on to the semis, and Mickel finished sixth, another excellent performance for the young athlete.
Kauf went up against hometown hero Anastassiya Gorodko (KAZ) in the semifinals, and despite coming across the line tied, Kauf prevailed and moved on to the big final. Johnson took on Yanagimoto, who had been on a tear all day taking out higher-ranked opponents, and the semis were no exception. Yanagimoto advanced to the big final, and Johnson was on to the small final against Gorodko.
In the small final, Gorodko had everything to prove to her hometown crowd, and her performance showed her intensity. She earned the third place finish, her second podium of the season. Johnson finished fourth, her eighth top-five finish of the year.
In the big final, Kauf, the queen of speed, was ready for anything, and her pace was untouchable. Once again, her opponent could not keep up, leading Yanagimoto to ski out of the course to keep herself from going out of control. Kauf beat Yanagimoto 29 to six, earning her seventh win of the season and 15th of her career. This win cements Kauf’s position as the dual moguls and overall World Cup leader, clinching the two globes.
“That’s [clinching the globe] pretty incredible,” said Kauf. “I’ve been working at that for a long time, and I’m stoked with the win today. It was a super fun competition, I'm really excited about those titles, it's really special."
Next week at World Cup Finals in Livigno, Kauf has the opportunity to secure the moguls globe as well. She currently leads the moguls standings by six points over Perrine Laffont (FRA).
“I’m going to give it my all at those events [in Livigno], and it should be really fun,” said Kauf.
Athletes ranked in the top 30 per gender per event are invited to the 2025 World Cup Finals in Livigno, Italy, which will also serve as the Olympic test event for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina. Watch the event live Mar. 11-12 on skiandsnowboard.live.
