With only four days of super-G training under her belt in the last 382 days, Mikaela Shiffrin secured third place and the 2021 FIS World Ski Championships bronze medal in super-G.

After two canceled races due to snow and fog in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, the sun finally shone brightly on Thursday. And the Swiss women capitalized on the weather, going 1-2 with favorite Lara Gut-Behrami taking the gold—her fifth straight super-G win this season and first World Champs gold medal. Her teammate Corinne Suter was second.

Shiffrin came out swinging in Cortina, looking like she hadn't lost anything from her time away from speed skiing as she hammered down the super-G. However, she had to pull off a big recovery near the bottom of the course, pushing her into the soft snow and slowing her way down. But she pulled off the athletic move and salvaged the bronze—her second World Championships super-G medal and eighth World Champs medal. The result also ties Shiffrin for the most World Championship medals for any American with former teammate Lindsey Vonn.

“That was so nice to ski!” said Shiffrin. “It’s a little bit soft, but it felt like skiing through butter—so easy and so nice. I felt like I was carrying really good speed and I was having so much fun while I was skiing. I came down to this last section and really wanted to push it. I missed the timing a little bit coming off that terrain…I was like, that looks like a mistake someone would make from someone who hasn’t skied a lot of super-G recently! But it was really fun.”

Not a lot of super-G is an understatement, as the defending World Championships super-G gold medalist Shiffrin only ran four days of super-G training over the last year. With the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season combined with the tragic death of her father, she lost the necessary hours on her long skis. But she looked like she hadn’t missed a beat in sunny Cortina, gliding back to the podium in her first speed event of the year.

The gracious Shiffrin also was quick to commend her competitors. "For me, it’s just an amazing run on a hill I love to ski,” she said. “I knew how the course was supposed to be skied to win. I executed the way I wanted to for the most part, but at the end of the day, Lara was supposed to win this. With the way she's been skiing all season, it was amazing. I would love to win gold, but it was Lara’s today."

Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team teammate Breezy Johnson landed in the top 15 in 15th place—her best result in super-G this season. “I’m really pleased with how I skied,” said Breezy. “I went out there with courage and confidence to execute my plan and for that, I’m really grateful.”

But now, Breezy looks towards the downhill, where she’s a favorite after stepping on the podium in four downhill World Cups so far this season. “It’s great to get one race out of the way before the downhill this weekend, which I’m really looking forward to and definitely putting a lot of my hopes on,” she said. 

Bella Wright, in her first World Championships appearance, took 22nd—an impressive result for the young 23-year-old. AJ Hurt also squeaked into the top 30 in her first ever World Championships in 29th. Jackie Wiles was 32nd.

Next up, the women race the World Championships downhill on Saturday. Breezy Johnson will go for the gold, with Shiffrin choosing to sit out and wait for the alpine combined on Monday.

RESULTS
Women’s World Championships super-G

HOW TO WATCH 
All times EST

Thursday, Feb. 11
5:00 p.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Women's Super-G - same-day broadcast, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Saturday, Feb. 13
5:00 a.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Women's Downhill - LIVE, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast Olympic Chanel
2:30 p.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Women's Downhill - same-day broadcast, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast NBC
4:30 p.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Women's Downhill - same-day broadcast, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Sunday, Feb. 14
5:00 a.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Men's Downhill - LIVE, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Streaming Peacock
5:00 a.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Men's Downhill - LIVE, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast Olympic Channel
12:00 p.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Men's Downhill - same-day broadcast, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast NBC
4:30 p.m. FIS World Alpine Championships Men's Downhill - same-day broadcast, Cortina d'Ampezzo, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Two-time Olympic champion and Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team athlete Ted Ligety has announced his retirement, capping a storied 17-year career. Ligety announced on Tuesday that he will stand in the start gate one final time on the world stage in the giant slalom at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships at Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy on Feb. 19th. 

Ligety’s career started with an unconventional path, but the path he blazed was an unforgettable one. A notably late-bloomer, Ligety surprised even himself when he struck gold at the 2006 Torino Olympic Games in the alpine combined. He’d go on from there to be one of the most influential figures in the sport of alpine ski racing. Never wanting to pigeon-hole himself into a single discipline, Ligety is proud to have podiumed in all major FIS Ski World Cup events throughout his career, including slalom, giant slalom, alpine combined, super-G and downhill. 

“It’s wild. I’ve been racing on the World Cup for 17 years,” Ligety reflected. “I’ve always said I didn’t want to think back on my legacy or my career until I was done and now I’m super excited. I’m super proud of what I was able to do.”

Ligety’s career was so unconventional that his first World Cup victory came after his first Olympic gold medal. Fun fact: His first World Cup victory was at Yongpyong, South Korea on March 5, 2006—the day after he slept through his alarm and missed the first of two World Cups at the venue.

Ligety was a game-changer in the sport, redefining the discipline of giant slalom so much so that the New York Times wrote about him in 2014, “No skier in the world carves turns the way Ted Ligety does. The American has practically invented a new way of skiing.” And it was true; Ligety was winning races by seconds in a sport typically decided by mere hundredths. 

His skiing was an art that everyone studied. When the International Ski Federation changed the equipment rules in 2012—including ski sidecut and ski length—Ligety pushed back hard in an article entitled “Tyranny of FIS.” But he didn’t only push back for himself, he pushed back for the sport of alpine ski racing. 

Why did he take the stance? “Because it was bad for the future of the sport,” said Ligety, who (as Bill Pennington from the New York Times reported) launched his assault on the new skis through a blog post. “Young kids coming up weren’t going to be able to turn those new straight skis. I didn’t want a whole bunch of 16 year olds to get discouraged and quit racing.” And yet, he prevailed and won the giant slalom title in 2013 for the fourth time in his career. 

Ligety made history at the 2013 World Championships in Schladming, Austria, winning three gold medals. In doing so, he became the first since Jean Claude Killy 45 years prior in 1968 to win three or more golds in one World Championships. Killy won four World Championship medals at the 1968 Olympics in Grenoble.

“The thing I’m most proud of was probably Schladming when I won three gold medals at the World Championships there. I definitely achieved far more in my career than I would have ever thought as a 16/17-year-old kid when my coaches were telling me I’d be a good college athlete,” Ligety said with a laugh. 

Not only was Ligety a mastermind on the mountain, but he was also the mastermind behind Shred, a company he founded with friend Carlo Salmini following the 2006 Olympics. Originally started with goggles, Shred now makes helmets, sunglasses, gloves and outerwear, but more importantly, pushes the style envelope with ski racing. Up next for Ligety will be progressing the business, as well as spending more time with his three sons—Jax (3) and twins Will and Alec (6 months)—and wife, Mia.

“Now, I have two 6-month-old twins and a 3 year old,” Ligety said. “It gives you a nice perspective on life when you have these little guys running around. Having six weeks on the road is not really manageable anymore. I think there’s a time in your life where family is more important than skiing. That time has come.”



The legacy Ligety leaves behind is far greater than young Ted Ligety could have ever imagined. Not only are his longtime teammates Tommy Ford and Ryan Cochran-Siegle now World Cup winners, but the next generation of World Cup victors who looked up to Ligety are also having success on the world stage. Enter the young River Radamus.

In an emotional video tribute to teammate Ted Ligety from the chairlift at Alpe Cimbra, Trentino—the European home base for the Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team men—Radamus shared, “I’m feeling a little bit emotional, because this may be one of the last days I get to train with Ted Ligety. It’s no secret I grew up trying to ski like Ted Ligety. You can see it from the way I ski, and everybody’s talked about that a fair bit...but I think he affected the way an entire generation of skiers—particularly Americans—ski. Every kid my age was trying to emulate Ted Ligety when they were growing up. Ted seemed to simultaneously accomplish a level of dominance that seemed impossible, while also making it seem very possible for every American kid to be able to compete on the World Cup.” Ligety was not only a hero on the mountain for Radamus, but in the final two years of his career, Ligety was Radamus’ formal mentor in the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team’s mentoring program.

Ligety will be remembered by his teammates as a fierce competitor dedicated to his craft—one who not only expects excellence from himself, but everyone around him.

 

 

 

 

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Ted Ligety Career Accolades

• 2x Olympic Champion
  • Gold, Alpine Combined, Torino, ITA, 2006
  • Gold, Giant Slalom, Sochi, RUS, 2014
• 5x World Champion
• 7x World Championships medalist
• 3x World GS Champion
• 5x GS Titleholder (2008, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014)
• Five straight victories at Beaver Creek, Colo., 2010-2014
• Won historic six of eight GS races, 2013
• Top three in giant slalom standings, 2008-2015
• 336 World Cup starts
• 25 World Cup victories
• 52 World Cup podiums across five disciplines (slalom, giant slalom, alpine combined, super-G, downhill)
• First Olympic start: Gold (2006, AC, Sestriere, ITA)
• Sole American male to win two Olympic gold medals in alpine skiing
• Largest margin of victory since Ingemar Stenmark in 1979 (4.06 seconds) in GS, Soelden, AUT, 2012 - 2.75 seconds (Austrian rival Marcel Hirscher would later top this accomplishment, in Garmisch in 2015, 3.28 seconds over Germany’s Felix Neureuther)
• First Podium, third, slalom, Beaver Creek, Colo., 2005
• First World Cup start November 22, 2003 – Park City, Utah (GS)

The women’s FIS Alpine World Ski Championships super-G race in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy was canceled due to fog Tuesday morning. It had been 380 days since reigning super-G World Champion, Mikaela Shiffrin, had stood in the start gate of a super-G race. She'll have to wait a couple more days to get the chance. 

The day started out beautifully but was marred by a thick layer of fog that settled over the start and middle of the course and refused to budge. The officials postponed the race multiple times and lowered the start to try and dodge the clouds, but 1.5 hours after the race was scheduled to begin, the officials canceled. Mikaela Shiffrin, Breezy Johnson, Bella Wright, AJ Hurt, and Jackie Wiles were all scheduled to race for the Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team.

This gives the Italian weather 2 and race organizers 0, following Monday’s cancelation of the women’s alpine combined due to heavy snowfall. Both men's and women's super-G are now scheduled for Thursday, February 11. 

UPDATED PROGRAM FOR CORTINA 2021 
Wednesday, February 10: no races and no training scheduled
Thursday, February 11: Women's Super-G at 10.45 CET // Men's Super-G at 13.00 CET
Friday, February 12: Women's Downhill Training 2 // Men's Downhill Training 1
Saturday, February 13: Women's Downhill // Men's Downhill Training
Sunday, February 14: Men's Downhill
Monday, February 15: Women's Alpine Combined // Men's Alpine Combined

U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced on Feb. 8, 2021 that the national governing body will not field a team at the 2021 FIS Freestyle, Snowboard, and Freeski Junior World Championships in Krasnoyarsk, Russia March 18-28.

U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s Board of Directors approved a Strategic Panel tasked with determining whether to withdraw the U.S. Junior World Championships Team from the event in accordance with its responsibilities as a national governing body, as detailed in the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act. The Strategic Panel includes one-third athlete representation and their input was included throughout all levels of the review.

After significant evaluation of circumstances specific to the region including the COVID-19 landscape, travel challenges, additional safety and medical concerns, as well as potential quarantine situations, U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s Strategic Panel unanimously decided to withdraw from the event. The health and safety of all U.S. Ski & Snowboard members, athletes, and staff remain our highest priority. U.S. athletes will not be able to participate independently.

While no U.S. athletes will compete, U.S. Ski & Snowboard wishes the International Ski Federation (FIS), the local organizing committee, and all athletes a successful event.

###

About U.S. Ski & Snowboard
U.S. Ski & Snowboard is the Olympic National Governing Body (NGB) of ski and snowboard sports in the USA, based in Park City, Utah. Tracing its roots directly back to 1905, the organization represents nearly 200 elite skiers and snowboarders in 2020, competing in seven teams; alpine, cross country, freeski, freestyle, snowboard, nordic combined and ski jumping. In addition to the elite teams, U.S. Ski & Snowboard also provides leadership and direction for tens of thousands of young skiers and snowboarders across the USA, encouraging and supporting them in achieving excellence. By empowering national teams, clubs, coaches, parents, officials, volunteers and fans, U.S. Ski & Snowboard is committed to the progression of its sports, athlete success and the value of team. For more information, visit www.usskiandsnowboard.org.
 

Jessie Diggins and Sadie Maubet Bjornson, along with Simi Hamilton and Kevin Bolger teamed up to represent the Davis U.S. Cross Country Team in Sunday’s FIS Cross Country World Cup team sprint in Ulricehamn, Sweden, finishing fourth and sixth respectively.

“I had a lot of fun being Sadie’s team sprint buddy today,” Diggins said following the eight-lap race on the same track she sprinted to third on Saturday. “This was a really hard course because it played to none of my strengths; it was windy, no big climbs, and pretty much impossible to drop people or even tire them out because the draft was so big.”

Both Diggins and Maubet Bjornsen pushed the pace through the race to try and break things up. However, the final sprint came down to positioning and luck. “With such a strong headwind, it was a tough position to lead from the front,” Maubet Bjornsen said. “My mission was to stay in the front and out of trouble, and then attack on leg 3. On such a drafty, tactical course Jessie and I had to get creative with our strengths. We would have loved to attempt to stretch people from the gun, but the wind was not in our favor.”

Slovenia took the win, with Sweden I in second and Switzerland in third. The top four teams were separated by only 0.31 seconds at the line with Switzerland taking third in a photo finish.  “I played the cards I had and tried to push the pace,” Diggins recalled of her final leg, “then tucked in to prepare for a sprint finish but ended up too boxed in.”

“After finishing fourth by a photo finish, we both of course left wanting a bit more, but also felt like we did the best we could with our strengths,” Maubet Bjornsen added. “Even if I am 31 years old, I still feel like every race is a learning lesson, so there are no losses.”

In the men’s race, Hamilton and Bolger used many of the same tactics Diggins and Maubet Bjornson used - push the pace and stay near the front and out of trouble. Bolger skied the anchor leg and held the lead for the first half of the last lap but down the stretch, he also found himself boxed out. Italy I took the victory with Switzerland I second and Sweden II in third. 

Diggins added another 12 points to her overall World Cup lead (1,246 points) over Russia Yulia Stupak (904) in second and Rosie Brennan in third (879). Neither Stupak nor Brennan competed Sunday. 

Up next, many of the athletes will return to Davos, Switzerland, to prepare for the upcoming FIS Nordic World Championships Feb. 22-March 7 in Oberstdorf, Germany.

“I’m headed to Davos for a training camp in preparation for World Champs and excited to train with the team and be sure to absorb all the hard work I’ve put in over the past few weeks,” Diggins said. 

“Each race back on the World Cup, I feel a little less dusty, so I look forward to showing up at World Championships both excited and full of fitness,” Said Maubet Bjornsen, who will also join Diggins in Davos.

RESULTS
Women’s freestyle team sprint
Men’s freestyle team sprint

STANDINGS
Women’s World Cup overall
Women’s World Cup sprint
Men’s World Cup overall
Men’s World Cup sprint

The U.S. Aerials Freestyle Ski Team wrapped up the Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International at Deer Valley in style, earning three podium finishes in the first domestic Olympic tryout event for any U.S. Ski Team athlete on Saturday. Winter Vinecki and Justin Schoenefeld lead the way for the men’s and women’s teams, finishing in second behind Australia’s Danielle Scott and Switzerland’s Noe Roth respectively. The 17-year-old American up-and-comer Kaila Kuhn rounded out the podium for the women in third, while Switzerland’s Pirmin Werner claimed the position on the men’s side.

For both Vinecki and Kuhn, Saturday’s podium was their first on the iconic White Owl course at Deer Valley Resort. After an extremely busy competition schedule in January, the women were able to pull off a strong finish and positive sign as they look toward World Championships in Kazakhstan in March.

This is the third time Vinecki has found the podium this season after never quite squeezing into the top three in previous super finals. It’s also the third time Vinecki has found the podium with the back double-full-full, a trick that she just started building into her repertoire in the summer of 2020, proving to her that all her hard work is starting to pay off.

“This is the second week in a row that I’ve been on the podium with a teammate,” commented Vinecki. “Megan Nick last week in Belarus and Kaila [Kuhn] this week. It’s always fun when you have your teammates up there supporting you and we’re all having a good time and putting some good jumps down. I got a fourth-place last year at this event and so I’m super excited to get on the podium this year.” 

For Kuhn, earning a podium at Deer Valley alongside her older teammate and fellow Michigan native meant the world. Bonus, Deer Valley has always been her favorite jump site.

“The conditions got pretty tough today so I’m excited to put my jumps to my feet,” reflected Kuhn. “Being on the podium with Winter, she’s one of my idols on the team so it’s awesome to jump with her and be on the podium.”

Despite not qualifying for the super final, team veteran Ashley Caldwell had a big day, returning to a triple for the first time in two years during a competition. Caldwell was right on the screws when she landed initially but had to throw a punch front to bring it all the way around, which wasn’t enough to break into the top six, despite showing the most difficult trick of the women’s field. Caldwell is known for going big at Deer Valley, and with Saturday being an Olympic tryout, commentators expected her to bring the intensity. Unfortunately, on Saturday, the landing didn’t quite click.

“I’m definitely excited that I did triples for the first time in two years in competition, but I’m also devastated at the same time,” said Caldwell. “Deer Valley is obviously a good event to perform at, it’s an Olympic qualifier event, and I trained really well. So to mess up in competition is not very fun. I’m a little devastated but I’m excited for my teammates.”

Caldwell finished the day in 12th. Tanner Tasia preceded Caldwell in 11th – her World Cup debut – followed by Megan Smallhouse (13), Megan Nick (21), Madison Varmette (22), and Dani Loeb (22). 

Schoenefeld represented for the U.S. men, sending a huge back double-full-full-full that nearly earned him the win. But Switzerland’s Roth executed a more difficult trick almost flawlessly, putting him just enough ahead to send Schoenefeld into second – earning him the second podium of his career, and his first podium of the season. Schoenefeld topped the podium in Belarus in 2020 but since has struggled to break into the top three after qualifying for multiple super finals. 

“This winter has been pretty challenging,” said Schoenfeld. “I made a couple of super finals and ended up with a fourth and two fifths. I guess I just hadn’t figured it out yet this season on what I really needed to do in super finals, but today I think I knew what was up.”

Teammate Chris Lillis threw a double-full-full-full during the first final, the highest degree of difficulty the men’s competition had seen so far on Saturday. Unfortunately, a sticky landing with a small hand drag was too big of a mistake for him to overcome to break into the super final. 

Lillis ended the day in 7th, followed by Eric Loughran (9), Quinn Dehlinger (15), Derek Krueger (24), and Nick Novak (25).

Overall, Head Coach Vladimir Lebedev was satisfied with Saturday’s results. In preparation for World Championships in March (only a month away), Lebedev thinks the number one thing his athletes need to prioritize looking ahead is rest. 

“In January we had nine events, which is a lot. We have competed for a month-and-a-half straight, so everyone is tired,” explained Lebedev. “I’m glad the whole team handled the schedule well. I know we are moving in the right direction into the World Championships, but first, the team needs to take a break and rest.”

RESULTS
Women’s Results 
Men’s Results 

HOW TO WATCH

*Subject to change

All times EST

Sunday, Feb. 7

8:00 p.m., Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International Dual Moguls World Cup - next-day broadcast, Deer Valley, USA, Broadcast NBCSN

9:30 p.m., Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International Aerials World Cup - next-day broadcast, Deer Valley, USA, Broadcast NBCSN

Sunday, Feb 21

1:00 p.m., Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International Moguls World Cup - Deer Valley, USA, NBC Sports 

Sunday, March 14

12:00 p.m., Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International Aerials World Cup - Deer Valley, USA, NBC Sports

Jessie Diggins took another massive step toward one of the biggest goals of her career - the overall FIS Cross Country World Cup title - after finishing third in Saturday’s freestyle sprint in Ulricehamn, Sweden.

For the ninth time this season, Diggins stood on the podium. But what is most impressive is that her podiums, and victories, have come in both sprint and distance events this season proving that she is indeed the best overall skier on the World Cup tour. However, none of her four victories, or podium results have come easy, and Saturday’s third-place finish was no exception.

The track at Ulricehamn was hard, fast, and with minimal climbing, the heats were more of a drag race with speeds so high it was challenging to pass. “That was a really cool day, because the course here is so challenging and tactical! You don’t really get any rest out there and it’s super hard to find windows to pass, so this challenged me to ski differently than I normally might,” Diggins said. 

Six Davis U.S. Cross Country Team athletes qualified for the heats with Diggins posting the third-fastest qualifying time for the women. Sadie Maubet Bjornsen and Hannah Halvorsen qualified 16th and 22nd respectively. For the men, Simi Hamilton qualified 23rd, Kevin Bolger 24th, and Logan Hanneman 25th.

In the women’s opening quarterfinal heat, Halvorsen, unfortunately, broke a pole right off the start but rallied after receiving a pole from one of the Czech coaches to finish fifth in the heat.  Going into next week’s U23 World Championships her form is coming around and she sees that as a positive improvement. “It was a great day, and a big improvement from last weekend,” she said. 

Diggins set a fast pace in her quarterfinal heat, leading from start to finish to advance to the semifinals. Meanwhile, Maubet Bjornsen just missed advancing by a half-second, finishing third in her quarterfinal heat. Unfortunately, for the U.S. men, they were not able to advance past the opening quarterfinal heats.

In her semifinal heat, Diggins set the opening pace and kept her foot on the gas, which proved a worthy strategy as despite finishing fourth, she advanced to the finals as one of the two Lucky Losers.

“In my quarter and semi I had the tactic to lead right away since I knew I could pull the group to a fast time and have a much better chance of moving on with the Lucky Loser time added in there as a bonus,” Diggins said.

In the finals, Sweden’s Jonna Sundling - one of four Swedish athletes in the race, got tangled up at the start and broke a pole. That incident disrupted the pace and Diggins settled into the pack. However, with 500 meters to go, she took the inside line and move up to third, and powered her sprint to the line.

“In the final I knew leading would make me too tired to have a good finishing sprint,” Diggins reflected. “SoI tucked in early and just kept looking for any windows and was ready to jump through them when they opened up!”

Sweden’s Maja Dahjqvist took the victory - her first individual World Cup win - ahead of countrywomen Johanna Hagstroem at 0.30 second back, with Diggins in third at 0.39. Maubet Bjornsen finished 15th, and Halvorsen finished a World Cup career-best 22nd and was the fourth among U23 athletes.

Diggins extended her World Cup lead to 330 points (1,234) over Russia Yulia Stupak (904). Rosie Brennan remained third overall (879). Neither Stupak nor Brennan competed Saturday. 

Up next, Sunday features a freestyle team sprint in Ulricehamn.

RESULTS
Women’s freestyle sprint
Men’s freestyle sprint

STANDINGS
Women’s World Cup overall
Women’s World Cup sprint
Men’s World Cup overall
Men’s World Cup sprint

HOW TO WATCH
All times EST

Sunday, Feb. 7
6:45 a.m. FIS Cross-Country Skiing World Cup Men's Team Sprint & Women's Team Sprint - LIVE, Ulriceham, SWE, Streaming Peacock
 

On another balmy day at Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, Travis Ganong led the way in super-G for the Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team, in 12th place—the final FIS Ski World Cup before World Championships in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. 

Austria finished one-two, with Vincent Kriechmayr leading the way and Matthias Mayer in second, at .17 seconds back. Swiss Marco Odermatt rounded out the podium in third, .49 seconds back. It was a sprint as far as super-G tracks go, at just over a minute (1:12.68), and only 1.07 seconds separated the top-15.  

The temperatures at Garmisch were high and the conditions springlike once again, with the surface not freezing overnight. During the inspection, the coaches and athletes could already feel the surface getting slushy. Hats off to the organizers for working tirelessly to make this race series happen in such challenging conditions. 

Despite a major mistake, Ganong hung in there with the best in the world once again, just .86 seconds off the pace. “Stoked with another solid result today...really good skiing, I’m really happy with how I’m skiing and how I’m pushing on my skis,” he reflected after the day. “I had another big mistake like yesterday—I went down on my hip—but luckily it was in a section of the course that was pretty steep, so I was able to bounce back up after going down on my hip and keep going. For sure, without this mistake, I would have been at least in the top five, if not better...I was 18 hundredths from fifth. It was a really tight race.” 

Heading into Cortina, Ganong has tinkered with his set-up and is feeling confident with where he’s landed. “Really dialed with my set-up now and feeling comfortable on the skis...and now it’s go-time,” he added. “So I’m feeling ready to push and start racing. Like I said yesterday, my set-up in downhill and super-G are completely different, and I finally figured out how to switch between the set-ups—my downhill boots to my super-G boots are completely different, so I have to take some runs and get used to the super-G boots before the race. But yeah, I think it’s the way to go, and I’m pretty happy with where I’m at, so I’m looking forward to Cortina.” 

Bryce Bennett, Jared Goldberg, and Middlebury College’s Erik Arvidsson also started for the Americans but ended up 39th, 40th, and 45th, respectively.  

The Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team will now travel to the gorgeous Dolomites in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, for the World Championships. 

RESULTS
Men’s super-G

Check out the World Champs Preview/Schedule.

Day two of mogul competitions at the Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International ended with a bang as three Americans, Kai Owens, Hannah Soar, and Tess Johnson triumphantly stood on top of the podium at the base of Deer Valley’s Champion course. Loads of fresh snow and low visibility didn’t stop 16-year-old Owens from capitalizing on Thursday’s career-best to earn her first-ever World Cup win (despite only having 10 World Cup starts under her belt). Owens bested her teammate Hannah Soar in the big final to take the win. This marks the first time in history that Americans have swept a dual moguls World Cup competition, and demonstrates the might of the #powHERhouse women's moguls team.

"It’s unreal, I’m feeling like I’m on cloud nine right now," said an exasperated Owens. "I’m so lucky to share it with my teammates. I put everything I had in today, so I’m just really feeling honored and excited to be here."

Soar finished the day in second after overtaking Kazakhstan’s Yuliya Galysheva in the semi-final, allowing her to move on to face her teammate Owens in the big final. Feeling a bit exhausted after multiple duals run and catering to a leg injury, Soar continued to push it on her first air, but a tiny mistake in her landing almost sent her out of the course upon exit. Soar was able to regain composure, stay in the course, and finish her run just behind Owens. Although her skiing wasn’t enough to capture her first win, it was enough for her second podium of the season and matching her career-best.

“Some of those runs were a little wild, but that’s what I needed them to be, a Deer Valley-esque, not sure if you’re going to die into the bottom air or make it across the finish line run,” reflected Soar. “After yesterday where I skied conservatively, that was a good accomplishment for me to just push it and enjoy the moment. Hopefully next year I can turn these two second-places into Deer Valley into a win.”

Tess Johnson rounded out the podium for the Americans, outdoing Galysheva in the small final to capture third and secure an all-American podium for the red, white, and blue on home soil. Johnson personally knocked Perrine Laffont out in the quarter-final, ending the French woman’s World Cup-win streak, putting herself in a head to head battle against her young, up-coming teammate Owens in the quarter-final.

Earlier during training, Johnson broke a ski and almost decided to opt-out of competition for the day, so as she rode up the lift with Owens, one of her best friends from Vail headed into the round of eight, the duo swore no matter what happened they promised put on a good show at Deer Valley.

“Tess is like my best friend and older sister,” said Owens. “We’ve been training together for the past month, so I was just ready to put on a show and give it everything I had and show everyone here and at home what we could do.”

“It was a close one, I wanted to get her, but it was so much fun and I love dueling teammates in the round of four,” added Johnson. “I got pretty emotional earlier. Ever since I’ve made the team I’ve wanted [to see a podium sweep] almost more than individual success. Sweeping the podium with these girls, its a dream come true, it really is. They’re my sisters, they’re my best friends, it feels unreal. It’s an honor to be on such a progressive, hardworking women’s team.” 

The United States women once again ended the day with all competing athletes finishing inside the top 30. Following the podium, the women finished in order from Olivia Giaccio (17) Jaelin Kauf (18), Kenzie Radway (20), Sabrina Cass (24), Madison Hogg (28), and Avital Carroll (29).

On the men’s side, Bradley Wilson faced a tough competitor in the round of 16 – Canada’s Mikael Kingsbury, who has been on a hot streak since early on in 2020 and won the singles event at Deer Valley the day prior. Wilson gave Kingsbury a run for his money, coming into the second air at top speed after fighting past a few mistakes in the midsection and making a massive save upon entry. Despite a shaky entry, Wilson successfully landed his jump and sailed into the finish, securing the fastest run points. Unfortunately, his early mistakes cost him and he was unable to defeat Kingsbury who went on to capture the win for the day. 

“It’s the luck of the draw when you get into that bracket, you don’t really know who you’re going to duel until the day before,” commented Wilson. “Getting [Kingsbury] in the round of 16 is usually way too early, which is a bummer, but I was really happy to put down a good run, give him a run for his money, and beat him across the line. There’s only so much you can do with him, he’s pretty amazing and a flawless skier so you do your best and hope that he loses it for you.” 

Fellow Americans Alex Lewis and Dylan Walczyk qualified for the round of 32. Lewis finished 16th, a career-best. Walczyk had a clean finish but it wasn’t enough to best the day’s third-place finisher, France’s Benjamin Cavet. Australia’s Matt Graham rounded out the podium in second.

Nick Page, Jesse Andringa, and Jaelin Kauf all took hard crashes while giving duals all they had. Page and Kauf thankfully walked away unscathed. Andringa sustained an injury to his ankle and underwent further evaluation, but Gnoza stated he is confident Andringa will be oaky after a bit of time resting.

Despite conditions, Friday proved to be a great day for the United States moguls team. A podium sweep pushed Team USA further ahead in the Nation’s Cup standings, securing their lead and giving the entire crew momentum headed into World Championships at the end of the month.

“The whole team can build momentum off of a sweep like this, they can all see what they are capable of,” commented Head Coach Matt Gnoza. “They can all take a look at what happened today and say ‘next time that’s gonna be me up there.’ We look forward to everybody taking this as an opportunity to step up as a team and continue to build momentum. [The Nation’s Cup] is something everyone on the team is a part of and if we can pull off winning, it’s something that every athlete that competes in a world cup can be proud of.” 

To support the U.S. Moguls Freestyle Ski Ski Team, please click here for more information.

RESULTS
Women’s Results
Men’s Results 

HOW TO WATCH

*Subject to change

All times EST

Saturday, Feb. 6

4:30 p.m., Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International Aerials World Cup - LIVE, Deer Valley, USA, Broadcast Olympic Channel, Streaming Olympic Channel, and Peacock

Sunday, Feb. 7

8:00 p.m., Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International Dual Moguls World Cup - next-day broadcast, Deer Valley, USA, Broadcast NBCSN

9:30 p.m., Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International Aerials World Cup - next-day broadcast, Deer Valley, USA, Broadcast NBCSN

Sunday, Feb 21

1:00 p.m., Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International Moguls World Cup - Deer Valley, USA, NBC Sports

Sunday, March 14

12:00 p.m., Intermountain Healthcare Freestyle International Aerials World Cup - Deer Valley, USA, NBC Sports

In an IGTV video, four-time Olympian and Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team athlete Steven Nyman announced he will sit out for the remainder of the season, in order to prep and come back stronger for the Beijing 2022 Olympic year.

After tearing his Achilles at a training camp at Official Training Site Timberline Resort and Ski Area last summer, Nyman returned to Europe in late December but did not feel confident on the "big boy tracks." Nyman is back with family—including his two daughters—in Park City, Utah...working to get bigger, faster, and stronger. 

In the video, he noted that he will be cheering for his teammates at World Champs in Cortina, "I want to say good luck for my teammates going to Cortina...you guys got this, let's go! I want to see it, I'm bummed I'm not going to be there...and see you soon."
 

 

 

 

 

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