Levi Slalom Kickoff - A Reindeer is on the Line
In Finnish Lapland, the FIS Ski World Cup slalom kickoff is a bit more magical than most stops. Santa attends the races, the prize is a reindeer, the Northern Lights are alive, and you can't escape the sparkles and the holiday vibes.
After a solid training block for the women in Copper Mountain, Colorado with an injected surface, and some time to acclimate to the time difference, the ladies are ready to rock up in the Northland. The slalom crew will be led by Olympic gold medalist, World Champion, two-time overall winner and five-time slalom titleholder Mikaela Shiffrin (Avon, Colo.), who already has two reindeer to her name. In 2013 and 2016, Shiffrin grabbed the Levi win and named her reindeer Rudolph and Sven, respectively.
Last season, Shiffrin was second to Slovakia's Petra Vlhova, but she's feeling prepared, confident and strong heading into Saturday's slalom kickoff. It's not easy to travel across the world for the slalom kickoff, and the ladies were able to get some good time ahead of the weekend's race to get over jet lag, get some training under their belt on Levi soil, and they're looking forward to crushing. Nina O'Brien (Edwards, Colo.) and Resi Stiegler (Jackson, Wyo.) both got some great training in while in Colorado and were able to see where they stacked up against the best in the world in training with teammate Shiffrin.
On the men's side, new coach Martin Andersen touched base with us earlier this week and said that although it's been a warm, wet week of training in Levi, the guys were able to get some great training in at both Kvitfjell, Norway, and Levi. The weather forecast for men's race day is looking good and the guys are feeling ready. With Sölden, Austria's giant slalom canceled due to weather, this will be Luke Winters' (Gresham, Ore.) debut World Cup start. Keep an eye on both he and teammate River Radamus (Edwards, Colo.), who are fresh faces on the World Cup circuit, but will make it more of a home this season.
See who to watch and where to catch all the action below.
WOMEN’S STARTERS
MEN’S STARTERS
*Denotes first World Cup Start
HOW TO WATCH
*All times EST.
ALPINE
Saturday, Nov. 17
4:00-5:30 a.m. - World Cup women’s SL, first run, Levi, FIN - NBC Sports Gold*
7:00-8:30 a.m. - World Cup women’s SL, second run, Levi, FIN - NBC Sports Gold*
7:00-8:30 a.m. - World Cup women’s SL, second run, Levi, FIN - The Olympic Channel
Sunday, Nov. 18
4:00-5:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s SL, first run, Levi, FIN - NBC Sports Gold*
7:00-8:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s SL, second run, Levi, FIN - NBC Sports Gold*
7:00-8:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s SL, second run, Levi, FIN - The Olympic Channel
12:00-1:30 p.m. - World Cup slalom weekend recap, Levi, FIN - NBCSN
* NBC Sports Gold, NBC Sports Digital’s direct-to-consumer live streaming product “Snow Pass” provides fans access to live and on-demand domestic and international competitions of seven Olympic winter sports from October 2018 through April 2019.
The Snow Pass provides access to every second of race action throughout the season. Whoever you support, their races will be broadcast on the Snow Pass. NBC will also email you prior to each event to remind you of live broadcast times on Snow Pass, and if you can’t watch live, the entire event will be available to replay, all for under 20 cents per day.
