Under heavy snowfall and after a few powder runs, Aaron Blunck was victorious Friday for the second-consecutive year at the Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix FIS Freeski World Cup at Copper Mountain, Colo.

“I woke up this morning around 5:45, looked outside, and saw it was dumping,” said Aaron. “I told myself I need to get to the hill ASAP.  I ended up getting to Copper in time to go up with the official crew at 7:30 a.m., but I got denied,” he said with a playful smirk. “I ended up sitting around waiting until about 9 a.m. and was on the first chair. It was definitely worth it because I got a few really decent pow laps before the competition, so I can’t complain.”

This isn’t the first time members of the U.S. Freeski Team prepared for the competition with powder runs. Prior to the PyeongChang Olympic games, where David Wise and Alex Ferreira earned the gold and silver respectively, the team enjoyed fresh snow in Aomori Spring Ski Resort in Japan. Although Aaron was clearly excited about skiing powder, it was apparent he was happy to be back in the pipe with his friends. 

“I’m am definitely stoked to be able to go back-to-back at Copper,” He said. “They continue to host a great event. It’s a great start the season on a positive note and to share the podium with David and Noah. It was a hard event, but all the boys were able to put it down.”
 

U.S. Freeski Team members David Wise and Brita Sigourney both earned second-place. In addition, both David and Brita are each returning from serious injuries and expressed how thankful they were to not only be skiing again, but also feeling like they picked right back where they left off last season - on the podium.

“I could not be more thankful to be out here skiing,” said David. “Even through practice and qualifiers, we had amazing conditions and I was just out here having fun. I tried to be super calculated with how many hard tricks I did. If I’m being honest, I got lucky with the weather, because I still have many tricks I don’t have dialed yet this year given I’m still coming back from a broken femur. I just embraced the conditions, had fun out there, and once I saw guys landing tricks, I knew it would be a good day.”
 

With both Brita and David boasting a good amount of internal metal rods following significant surgeries, they still found a way to overcome the soreness and pain that comes with the territory when recovering from injuries. 

“I’m so grateful to be able to ski today,” Brita said. “I am almost seven months out from a tib fib spiral fracture, which has not been the longest recovery for me, but definitely one of the hardest. I’ve been in a lot of pain and I wasn’t sure if I was going to be skiing here in the competition or at all. I’m really happy that I was able to participate today and pick up where I left off seven months ago. Halfpipe still makes me smile and makes me happy so it’s great to be here.”

For the men, Canadian Noah Bowman closed out the podium in third-place, somehow maintaining speed in a run full of stylish switch tricks. Also, U.S. Pro Freeski Team member Birk Irving put down two impressive runs, but ended his streak of two-consecutive World Cup victories. However, BIrk did not lack support from his teammates. 

"I was definitely rooting for Birk out there today,” said Brita. “The 1440 he does is insane and when he puts it down, It’s so cool to watch. Although he wasn’t able to put the full run together with that trick, I was still impressed.”

Taylor Seaton strung together a great run to finish fifth, Alex Ferreira finished sixth, and U.S. Rookie Team member Jaxin Hoerter finished seventh. For the women, Zoe Atkin of Great Britain earned her first world cup victory and Rachel Karker of Canada finished third, skiing with consistent amplitude throughout the competition. U.S. Freeski Team member Devin Logan finished sixth and showed great consistency landing all three of her runs. 

TRICK LIST
Men

1. Aaron Blunck: Switch left double 900 Japan, switch right 1080 Tail, left flat 540 Safety, right 900 Tail, Left 1080 Tail. 

2. David Wise: Left double 1260 Mute, right 1080 Tail, switch left 720 Japan, right 900 Tail,  left 900 Cuban. 

3. Noah Bowman: Right 360 Stale, switch left 540 High Safety, switch left alley-oop double 900 Safety, switch left 720 Tail, right 1080 Tail. 

Women

1. Zoe Atkin: Left 720 Mute, switch right 540 Safety, switch left 540 Mute, switch right 360,  Straight Air Double Seatbelt, right 720 Safety, switch left 360 Octo.

2. Brita Sigourney: Left alley-oop Japan, left 900 Tail, left alley-oop 540, left 540 Mute, right 720.  

3. Rachel Karker: Right 720 Mute, switch left 540 Safety, switch right 540, switch left 360,  Straight Air Mute, left 720. 

RESULTS
Men’s Freeski Halfpipe
Women’s Freeski Halfpipe 

Post Event Press Conference - Video
 

The FIS Cross Country World Cup moves to Davos, Switzerland, this weekend for a pair of events, including the highly-anticipated first freestyle sprint of the season Saturday. Over the past few years, the Davis U.S. Cross Country Ski Team has excelled in this format, which provides fast-paced racing in an exciting head-to-head format.

In addition, the freestyle sprint is the one event that will be contested on March 17, 2020, when the FIS Cross Country World Cup returns to the U.S. for the first time in 19 years, taking place at Minnesota’s Theodore Wirth Park, just five miles west of downtown Minneapolis. Perhaps no other American racer has embraced the sprint as much as 10-year U.S. Cross Country Team member Simi Hamilton, who has participated in more than 80 World Cup sprint events. 

Now dabbling in some of the longer distance races, Simi is fired up for this weekend’s freestyle sprint, despite a nagging hamstring injury that plagued him at the start of the season. 

“My hamstring is definitely making big improvements and I think it should be 100% good to go for the weekend,” said Simi, who has four World Cup sprint podiums, including one victory from 2013 in Lenzerheide, Switzerland. “I’m for sure feeling very fit right now, probably the most fit I’ve ever been at this point in the year. So I have a lot of confidence going into the weekend. I’ve made the semifinals a few times here in Davos in the past, and so I think it would be really cool and well within my potential to make the finals here.”

The women’s U.S. Cross Country Team has been racking up podiums and headlines in the first two weekends of the World Cup season with Sadie Masubet Bjornsen taking second in the opening classic sprint in Ruka, Finland, and wearing the yellow World Cup leader’s bib; Jessie Diggins grabbing two individual podiums already this season, and the U.S. Women finishing second in the team relay last weekend in Lillehammer. Meanwhile, the men’s team is making strides toward the top of the results sheet against a very deep World Cup field.

“We’ve had some solid results from the guys so far this season with Erik (Bjornsen) scoring points in Ruka, and Kevin (Bolger), Dave Norris and me just outside of the points in Ruka and Lillehammer,” Simi said. “The margins are incredibly small in men’s World Cup racing, so when you’re not racing at 100% because of an injury, illness, or by training design, it really shows. 

“It’s a very long season and this team’s collective goal is to keep skiing faster and faster as the season progresses, so we’re looking forward to doing that,” Simi added. “I’m confident that this men’s team will put together some results that will turn heads this year, but the name of the game in cross-country ski racing is patience.”

In addition to Saturday’s freestyle sprint, the athletes will compete in a 10k freestyle for the women and a 15k freestyle for the men on Sunday. On Dec. 21-22, the sprinters will have the opportunity to shine once again as the World Cup moves to Planica, Slovenia, for another freestyle sprint, followed by the first team sprint of the season.

U.S. Starters:
Freestyle sprint
Sadie Maubet Bjornsen
Jessie Diggins
Sophie Caldwell
Rosie Brennan
Julia Kern
Hailey Swirbul
Simi Hamilton
Kevin Bolger
Logan Hanneman

Women’s 10k freestyle
Sadie Maubet Bjornsen
Jessie Diggins
Caitlin Patterson
Rosie Brennan
Julia Kern
Hailey Swirbul
Rosie Frankowski

Men’s 15k freestyle
Kyle Bratrud
Scott Patterson
David Norris
Simi Hamilton 

HOW TO WATCH 
All times EST

Saturday, Dec. 14
8:00 a.m. - Men and women’s sprint, Davos, SUI - Olympic Channel, Olympic Channel.com, NBC Sports Gold

Sunday, Dec. 15
4:35 a.m. - Women’s 10k, Davos, SUI - Olympic Channel.com, NBC Sports Gold
8:45 a.m. - Men’s 15k, Davos, SUI - Olympic Channel.com, NBC Sports Gold
9:00 a.m. - Women’s 10k, Davos, SUI - Olympic Channel*

*Same-day broadcast
Note: All televised events to stream across NBCSports.com, NBC Sports app, OlympicChannel.com, and Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA app
Exclusive commercial-free coverage will be available for subscribers of the NBC Sports Gold Pass, available here: https://www.nbcsports.com/gold/snow.

The double-World Cup weekend in Thaiwoo, China, is the light at the end of a six-week tunnel for the U.S. Moguls Team. Having spent the month of November and part of December in the polar night, skiing under sunshine and bluebird skies in Thaiwoo is a very welcome sight.

The Team has two shots at podiums this weekend with a Moguls World Cup on Saturday and a Dual Moguls World Cup on Sunday. There is a 15-hour time difference for friends and family back home in the Rockies, so that means you can catch all of the bumpin’ action Friday and Saturday nights.

Crisp days and clear nights have made the fresh man-made snow Thaiwoo course a beauty. It’s firm, but edge-able, and will favor those who are quick and direct in their skiing. A steep reentry from the top air to the middle moguls section could be the deciding factor between those who podium and those left off. “This event could easily be determined by miscalculations on that top air,” explains U.S. Ski & Snowboard Head Moguls Coach Matt Gnoza.

The team is in good spirits after two days of training and the much-needed refill of Vitamin D. Jesse Andringa is looking for redemption from Ruka and has been focused on keeping his feet underneath him and completing his runs. “The course is terrifying, but firm, which makes for a good competition,” he said. Alex Lewis, who grew up skiing Killington on moguls like these ones, is well-suited to the Thaiwoo course. His quickness works well here, watch for him as he hunts to keep cutting down his bib number. Nick Page has been working to take his jumps a bit bigger to make his presence known. “He’s setting the tone with a large top air, it’s looking really nice,” said Matt.

On the women’s side, the Queen of Thaiwoo, Jaelin Kauf, will look to defend her title. She’s podiumed four out of four times here in the past two seasons, three of which are wins – she won back to back in 2018. She’s attacking where others are backing off and is all systems ready. “I’m super excited, I love this venue and I love the course,” she said. Tess Johnson has been breaking down her run and building it back up over the two days of training. Her smile at the bottom of the course means she’s confident, and when Tess is confident, she gets results. Hannah Soar has two awesome days of training behind her. “She just needs to go out there and be the Hannah Soar that skis over 100 days at Killington,” said Matt. “As soon as she asks her skis to do something they do since she’s such a natural skier.” As usual, Olivia Giaccio has been grinding out the work, focusing on getting a lot of lift but not distance in her airs and stomping her landings.

It's shaping up to be a picture-perfect weekend and the Team is fired up. Thaiwoo marks the last stop in an over six-week travel period for the moguls crew and they look forward to coming home for the holidays. But not before they take on two competitions, including the first dual event of the season. 

U.S. Starters
Jesse Andringa
Olivia Giaccio
Tess Johnson
Jaelin Kauf
Alex Lewis
George McQuinn
Nick Page
Hannah Soar
Dylan Walczyk

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HOW TO WATCH 
All times EST

Saturday, Dec. 14
12:30 a.m. - Men and women’s moguls, Thaiwoo - Olympic Channel.com, NBC Sports Gold

Sunday, Dec. 15
12:30 a.m. - Men and women’s dual moguls, Thaiwoo - Olympic Channel.com, NBC Sports Gold

Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team rising star Brian McLaughlin remembers the day well when his friend Ronnie Berlack died in an avalanche. Five years ago this January two promising U.S. Ski Team athletes, Berlack and Bryce Astle, were killed during a training camp in Sölden, Austria. The Bryce and Ronnie Athlete Snow Safety (BRASS) Foundation has named Brian as an ambassador, helping bring greater awareness to other ski racers and clubs of the dangers outside the race course.

McLaughlin, who won the 2018 National Collegiate Athletic Association national giant slalom title skiing for Dartmouth College, will be in the starting gate when the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup tour comes to Beaver Creek, Colo. in early December. 

“Ronnie and Bryce didn’t know the risks they were facing that day when they were taking a break from training to make a few turns in the fresh snow,” said McLaughlin. “It’s important that athletes and coaches are well versed on avalanche safety and understand that skiing off piste carries dangers we don’t experience on race courses.”

BRASS was formed to raise awareness across the ski racing community on the dangers of avalanches and the need for education, as well as athlete management by club and team coaches. Since its inception the organization has made an impact globally on the avalanche safety community, and has now begun an educational system in concert with U.S. Ski & Snowboard. BRASS has supported costs of on-snow training for athletes and coaches and is pioneering a new online education system with U.S. Ski & Snowboard that will be released this winter.

Brian grew up ski racing at Green Mountain Valley School in Vermont. He went on to race at Dartmouth College where he was a three-time NCAA All America First Team athlete and three-time National Collegiate All-Academic Ski Team member, earning eight collegiate victories. He springboarded from college to win the 2018 NorAm Cup giant slalom title. Last December he scored his first World Cup points in both Beaver Creek and Alta Badia, Italy.

“Brian is a remarkable young athlete and a role model for the next generation of ski racers,” said Steve Berlack, a BRASS board member and father of Ronnie. “He will help BRASS raise awareness of the need for athletes and coaches to be aware of the dangers and to actively engage in ongoing education to keep them safe.”

This season Brian will display the BRASS logo on his racing helmet and serve as an ambassador for avalanche safety.

“Most of all, I want clubs, coaches and athletes to recognize the BRASS sticker on my helmet and think about how important it is that they engage in avalanche safety education,” said Brian. “This is education that can save lives.”

This fall, BRASS 101 clinics around New England have educated hundreds of young racers. The new online modules from BRASS and U.S. Ski & Snowboard will be designed to impact every coach and athlete. All around the country, local avalanche safety workshops provide skiers and snowboards with the basics they need to better understand the dangers.

For more information on BRASS, check out its website at www.brassfoundation.org.

Release courtesy of BRASS. 

Four U.S. Snowboard Team Athletes overcame early-season nerves and rode their way into the final round of the Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mountain, Colo. on Thursday. Maddie Mastro led the way, and qualified first for the women.

“I’m pretty happy and it feels good to lay two runs down at the first contest of the year,” said Maddie. “There is a lot of anticipation and nerves that build up throughout the off-season, but finally, things are moving and it feels great. We had a great set of training camps leading into the grand prix and I feel that work paid off today with some fresh snow causing some challenging conditions.”
 

For the men, Toby Miller arrived at the pipe with his standard smile and a positive attitude, and laced his first run to secure his position in finals. Toby would finish fourth in the qualifying round of grand prix competition.  

“The conditions out here today were definitely a little challenging, but luckily the pipe is amazing, which made things a bit easier, Toby commented. “We had some fresh snow, but it’s an outdoor sport, so what can you expect? I wanted to put down my first run and was incredibly excited to be able to do that. I was definitely was a little nervous coming into this contest with it being the first of the season. When I landed my run, I saw I was sitting pretty high coming into my final run and knew I was dropping late in the start order, so I decided to keep it safe on my second run, get down the pipe, and save my energy for Saturday.”
 

Teammate Chase Josey also had a successful day, putting down his first run complete with multiple switch hits to comfortably secure his spot in finals and finish seventh. Also, Chase Blackwell landed in an impressive first run to lock down ninth place. Toby could not say enough about the level of riding from his U.S. Snowboard compatriots. 

“I really enjoyed watching my teammates today, said Toby, “Especially Chase Blackwell, his first run was incredible, and I would have loved to see him land that second run because I’m sure the score would have been through the roof. Unfortunately, he didn’t, but that’s part of the game. Chase Josey, Taylor Gold, and Ryan Wachendorfer all were out there ripping out there and it was amazing to watch."

Although he didn’t make it to finals, Lucas Foster had a successful day progressing his riding in the pipe. 

“I feel great, Lucas said reflecting on his day. “I landed a lot of new tricks I have never done in a contest and I made it out safe, so I can’t really complain. I’m excited to get on to the next contest and watch all my teammates kill it in finals. Moving forward, I plan on competing at the Rev Tour next week and then we have the Laax open.”

Toby, Chase J., Chase B., and Maddie are set to compete in Saturday’s Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix Finals. Come see the action live at Copper Mountain, Colo. or tune in on NBC to see the action live. 

RESULTS
Women’s snowboard halfpipe 
Men’s snowboard halfpipe

START LISTS
Women’s snowboard halfpipe
Men’s snowboard halfpipe

LAND ROVER U.S. GRAND PRIX - COPPER MOUNTAIN
Event Schedule
*Subject to change

Dec. 13: Freeski Halfpipe Finals
Dec. 14: Snowboard Halfpipe Finals

HOW TO WATCH
Subject to change
All times EST
*Delayed broadcast

FREESKI
December 13, 2019
1:30 p.m. - Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix halfpipe, Copper Mountain - NBCSN, NBCSN.com, and NBC Sports Gold.

December 21, 2019
4:00 p.m. - Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix halfpipe, Copper Mountain - NBC*

SNOWBOARD
December 14, 2019
2:30 p.m. - Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix halfpipe, Copper Mountain - NBCSN, NBCSN.com, and NBC Sports Gold.

December 21, 2019
4:00 p.m. - Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix halfpipe, Copper Mountain - NBC*

All streams will be available via desktop (NBCSports.com/Gold and OlympicChannel.com) as well as mobile, tablet and connected television platforms. The NBC Sports and Olympic Channel app are available on the Apple App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire.
 

Though our jaws are all still on the floor from Tommy Ford’s incredible inaugural visit to the podium—and the top step, no less—it is time for the FIS Ski World Cup Tour to travel across the pond to Europe. First stop: Val d’Isere, France with a giant slalom and slalom for the tech men and St. Moritz, Switzerland for the rare tech and speed combo of super-G and parallel for the women. What kind of tricks does the Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team have up their sleeves this weekend? Buckle up, because it's bound to be exciting. 

Humble and hardworking, Tommy will be donning a new color when he steps into the start gate this weekend: red. Yes, as in the red leader bib. Here’s something cool - no male giant slalom skier has had a second date on the podium yet this year. Six different men have graced the podium. How cool is that?! In a giant slalom field that feels exciting and fresh and up-for-grabs, the men will take on the infamous “La Face De Bellevarde” in Val d’Isere, France. “La Face” is a tricky one for athletes, with an average gradient of 39.69%, reaching 70% in its steepest section. It’s steep, technical and the light can be tricky. Google it and you’ll find that it is widely regarded as one of the most challenging pistes in Europe. Let's hope it's not “La Face De Bellevarde of Broken Dreams" this weekend.

Let’s talk about the Americans, shall we?! Well, first there was Soelden, Austria, where the Americans stacked three into the top 11. That was the best team result in Soelden in...well, a long time. Then, there was Beaver, Creek—what a show on home snow. Three in the top 25, with Tommy leading the way, Ted in 11th and Ryan Cochran-Siegle in 23rd. Fun Fact: “RCS” was the only athlete—across all nations—to score points in all three events at Birds of Prey. Last year in Val d’Isere, Tommy had earned what—at the time—was a career-best sixth place on “La Face.” 

The last American male skier to win successive World Cup giant slaloms was none other than Ted, in February-March 2014 (he had three in a row). Tommy can become the fifth skier in U.S. history to win multiple men’s World Cup giant slalom events, after Ted (24), Bode Miller (9), and brothers Phil Mahre (7) and Steve Mahre (2). The last American male to win in Val d’Isere on La Face was Ted, on December 11, 2010. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves, shall we - as mentioned, it’s a stacked giant slalom field and the athletes are hungry for the podium. Something worth noting is that Frenchman Mathieu Faivre won his only career World Cup giant slalom race in Val d'Isère on December 4, 2016. He was second in Soelden and sixth in Beaver Creek. Got a hunch the hometown crowd will give Mathieu an extra push. Podium-hunting, commence. 

Brian McLaughlin and River Radamus round out the giant slalom roster for the men, and after a frustrating giant slalom on home soil, these two are looking to find the top-30 once again. 

On the men’s slalom side, Luke Winters will look to carry on where he left off in the third split of Levi, Finland, where he was on pace to finish in the top-five before going out. His skiing is there, his coach Ryan Wilson is proud of the mentality Luke is bringing in to race day, and he will be looking to grab his first-career World Cup points this weekend in what will be a slightly modified schedule, due to incoming weather. The men will kick off the weekend with slalom on Saturday, followed by giant slalom on Sunday. 

The women kick off their European tour at St. Moritz, Switzerland, headlined by 2019 super-G world champion and 2019 super-G titleholder Mikaela Shiffrin. Mikaela swept the St. Moritz super-G and parallel series last year. She has won 62 World Cup races, equal to Annemarie Moser-Pröll (62) in second place on the all-time women's list.  Mikaela won her first World Cup super-G in Lake Louise last season, and has won an unfathomable four of the last six major super-G races she participated in: Lake Louise, St. Moritz and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy and at the world championships in Åre, Sweden. She struggled a bit last weekend in Lake Louise, so keep an eye on her as she’s already got that fire in her eyes and race day T-minus two days away. Mikaela can become the third woman to win successive St. Moritz super-G races in the World Cup after Lindsey (2010, 2012) and Karen Putzer (1999, 2001). St. Moritz is a special spot for Mikaela, as she has won three World Cup races in St. Moritz across all disciplines. Her personal record in a ski resort is four victories, achieved in seven different resorts. She’ll have to fend off a deep field of super-G skiers, including Germany’s Viktoria Rebensburg, who skied a smokin'-hot super-G run up in Lake Louise last weekend. 

Alice McKennis returned from injury with a bang in Lake Louise, scoring points all three days and landing in the top-10 in the second downhill as well as a career-best 13th-place finish in the super-G. Keep an eye on this “gator” and teammate Jackie Wiles, who also returned from an injury that had her sidelined for half of the 2017-18 season and all of the 2018-19 season. Alice Merryweather—who also scored points in all three events and a career-best 23rd in super-G in the opening weekend at Lake Louise—will be starting in both the super-G and the parallel event, while Nina O’Brien will be starting in the parallel. 

The women will kick off the weekend with a super-G on Saturday and a parallel on Sunday. Though a weather pattern is coming in, FIS together with the local organizing committee, decided to keep the schedule as is. Let’s all cross our fingers and hold our thumbs that the dreaded “Maloja Snake” doesn’t rear its ugly head this weekend and the women are able to compete in a fair race - especially for Saturday’s super-G.  

See below for all of the details on who and how to watch. 

MEN’S STARTERS
Ryan Cochran-Siegle
Tommy Ford
Ted Ligety
Brian McLaughlin
River Radamus
Luke Winters

WOMEN’S STARTERS
Alice McKennis
Alice Merryweather
Nina O’Brien
Mikaela Shiffrin
Jackie Wiles

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Official event hashtags: #worldcupvaldisere, #worldcupstmoritz

HOW TO WATCH 
All times EST

Saturday, Dec. 14
3:00 a.m. - Men’s slalom run 1, Val d‘Isere, FRA - Olympic Channel.com, NBC Sports Gold
4:30 a.m. - Women’s super-G, St. Moritz, SUI - Olympic Channel, Olympic Channel.com, NBC Sports Gold
7:00 a.m. - Men’s slalom run 2, Val d‘Isere, FRA - Olympic Channel, Olympic Channel.com, NBC Sports Gold
9:30 p.m. - Women’s super-G, St. Moritz, SUI - NBCSN*

Saturday, Dec. 15
3:30 a.m. - Men’s giant slalom run 1, Val d‘Isere, FRA - Olympic Channel.com - delayed until 4 a.m., NBC Sports Gold
3:45 a.m. - Women’s parallel slalom qualifying, St. Moritz, SUI - Olympic Channel.com - delayed until 10:30 a.m., NBC Sports Gold
6:30 a.m. - Men’s giant slalom run 2, Val d‘Isere, FRA - Olympic Channel, Olympic Channel.com, NBC Sports Gold
7:30 a.m. - Women’s parallel slalom, St. Moritz, SUI - Olympic Channel, Olympic Channel.com, NBC Sports Gold
8:00 p.m. - Women’s parallel slalom, St. Moritz, SUI - NBCSN*

Two-time Olympic gold medalist, three-time reigning FIS Ski World Cup overall champion, five-time World Champion, historical four-time slalom World Champ, super-G World Champ, only athlete to win in all six disciplines, winningest slalom skier of all-time...the list of accolades goes on, and on - and then on some more - for Mikaela Shiffrin. Recently, Sports Illustrated covered Mikaela's historic 2019 season - in which she won a record 17 World Cup victories, surpassing and thus smashing Vreni Schneider's previous record of 14 - and what she has learned from it. 

Sports Illustrated senior sports feature writer, Greg Bishop, joined Shiffrin this fall in Copper Mountain as she went through a series of studio interviews for the Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team's annual media days. Following her from room to room, Greg heard media speak over and over of Mikaela's dominance, and then joined her as she drove home to Edwards to further discuss how she feels about being one of the most dominant athletes of her time. With a laugh, she tells Greg that when she was a child she wanted to be "a flying rainbow horse." 

Greg also interviews former teammate - and a childhood idol of Mikaela's - Bode Miller, to give context to Mikaela's greatness and how it stacks up to more well-known sports. Bode's words will give you the shivers, just as they did for Mikaela. Understated as ever, she still can't believe an idol would speak of her so highly. 

She tries to deflect the immensity of her accomplishments, even while experts, like the most prolific American male skier, Bode Miller, made the case that what she accomplished last season is without precedent in all of sports. Better than Novak Djokovic's 2015 season, when he won three Grand Slam tournaments, or even the so-called Tiger Slam of '00–01. "Those are sports where you can make errors in matches and just recover," he says. "In our sport, the margins are so fine, the tolerance for errors is so small, it's just that much more difficult to win as many races as she did."

You're going to want to read the entire piece, and grab a copy in print when it hits the stands. 

Read the full article by Greg Bishop in Sports Illustrated. 

Three women and six men of the U.S. Freeski Team qualified through to finals today on the first day of competition at the Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mountain, Colo. 

For the men, two local Colorado natives topped their heats with Taylor Seaton leading the way in heat one and Birk Irving in heat two. Seaton was in the hot seat kicking off the competition as the first athlete to drop. 

“I knew that I was kicking the contest off, so didn’t put too much pressure on myself with the first guy dropping usually getting scored a little bit low to set the range,” said Taylor. “I tried to use my first run as a practice run, which went really well. I put some more pressure on my second run and planned on using seven hits (vs five or six being the most common for the rest of the field). I wanted to forget the doubles until finals and show the variety I can bring to the table. The highlight of my day would be landing my newest trick which is the left 900 seatbelt.”

Birk took a similar approach trying to utilize one of his runs for practice. 

“I’m feeling really good,” said Birk. “I was a bit nervous coming into the first northern hemisphere competition of the season. I wanted to use my second run as training for finals and I ended up landing my double 1440, which I haven’t been able to land all week so I’m pretty psyched.” 

Birk also hinted at the possibility of trying the double-cork-720 in finals, which he broke out at the New Zealand Winter Games World Cup earlier this year. This was the first time this trick has been landed in a World Cup competition. 

For the women, Brita Sigourney led the way for the U.S. stomping both of her runs in her first competition back from a tibia and fibula spiral fracture at Mammoth Mountain training camp in California this May. After not even knowing she was going to be able to compete, Brita put a high-level of skiing on display qualifying third overall. 

“I’m really happy,” said Brita. “I honestly didn’t even expect to be able to compete at this event. I have been struggling with my comeback a little bit and my legs have been pretty sore. I have been doing my best to manage it by taking strategic days off. I came in with no expectations and I’m really happy to put down two runs and be feeling like my old self again.”

For the men, Aspen local and last year’s X Games gold medalist Alex Ferreira qualified fourth, double-Olympic gold medalist David Wise qualified fifth, Jaxin Hoerter qualified seventh, and last year’s Copper Grand Prix winner Aaron Blunck qualified eighth overall. For the women, Devin Logan and Carly Margulies qualified into finals in sixth and eighth respectively. 

More action goes down at the Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mountain Thursday with snowboard halfpipe qualifications. With America and Canada owning the qualifying rounds, the North American Freeski Finals battle made up six U.S. athletes and four Canadians will take place on Friday, Dec. 13th. Come enjoy all the action live at Copper Mountain or tune in on NBC to catch all the action. 

QUOTES

Alex Ferreira - “I assume it will take three or four doubles to win this year’s grand prix along with  a lot of style, great grabs, and huge amplitude. During the off-season, I trained 5 days a week. I would go to the gym for an hour and a half, then jump on the trampoline for a half-hour, then ill go to the steam room and visualize my run over and over again. After that, I usually go to a sports psychologist and or a physical therapist. It's a full-time job and I’m glad I put in all the training, because it pays off on days like this.”

David Wise - “Honestly the best part about having an injury is how much you appreciate skiing again once your back. It certainly has been a fight for me to get back. I have been working incredibly hard all summer long to be able to compete here today. It feels great to be in the halfpipe again and landing runs. I’m stoked I get to go ski again in the finals. Also, its fun for me as a veteran to be able to witness the young guys coming up and to be able to know the future of freesking is in good hands. These guys and girls are adding their own flavor to the halfpipe, doing things that only they can do, only they want to do, and making skiing interesting again. Its fun to be out here witnessing that and also being part of it at the same time.”

Devin Logan - “I was feeling good, the first competition jitters always come into play here at Copper, but to put down two solid runs in qualifiers is always a nice feeling. It helps build yourself up and get ready for the rest of the season. Really happy to have had some successful camps with the U.S. Freeski Team prior to arriving here at Copper and to make it to finals. It’s awesome to see the young guns coming out and landing their runs and get that competition juice flowing. It’s fun to have their energy to push the veterans and for the veterans to be able to support the younger athletes. It’s great comradery and the next generation is coming up strong and I’m really happy to see that.”

RESULTS
Men’s Freeski Halfpipe
Women’s Freeski Halfpipe

START LISTS
Men’s Freeski Halfpipe
Women’s Freeski Halfpipe

LAND ROVER U.S. GRAND PRIX - COPPER MOUNTAIN

Event Schedule
*Subject to change
Dec. 12: Snowboard Halfpipe qualifications
Dec. 13: Freeski Halfpipe Finals
Dec. 14: Snowboard Halfpipe Finals

HOW TO WATCH
Subject to change
All times EST
*Delayed broadcast

FREESKI
December 13, 2019
1:30 p.m. - Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix halfpipe, Copper Mountain - NBCSN, NBCSN.com, and NBC Sports Gold.

December 21, 2019
4:00 p.m. - Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix halfpipe, Copper Mountain - NBC*

SNOWBOARD
December 14, 2019
2:30 p.m. - Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix halfpipe, Copper Mountain - NBCSN, NBCSN.com, and NBC Sports Gold.

December 21, 2019
4:00 p.m. - Land Rover U.S. Grand Prix halfpipe, Copper Mountain - NBC*

All streams will be available via desktop (NBCSports.com/Gold and OlympicChannel.com) as well as mobile, tablet and connected television platforms. The NBC Sports and Olympic Channel app are available on the Apple App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire.
 

Seven members of the U.S. Snowboard and Freeski Teams, and an additional six American athletes have arrived in Beijing, China, for the FIS Snowboard Air + Style World Cup in Shougang Park and the athletes are very impressed with the venue. 

“Seeing the photos of the big air jump here at the Beijing Olympic venue had us all super excited to check it out,” said U.S Freeski and Snowboard Halfpipe, Slopestyle and Big Air Head Coach Mike Jankowski. “However, seeing how spectacular it is in person has been a next-level experience. The jump doesn’t just look amazing, but the athletes have all been extremely happy with how the jump is riding overall. We expect the competition here this week and in the future to be nothing short of incredible.”

The U.S. Snowboard Pro Team is fielding a strong group, including Olympic big air silver medalist Jamie Anderson, and Julia Marino for the women. For the men, six-time Crystal Globe winner and current FIS World Cup Big Air cup standings leader Chris Corning leads the way, along with Sean FitzSimons, Judd Henkes, Ryan Stassel, and American Storm Rowe. 

“The venue is super nice,” said Jamie. “It’s definitely one of the best big air infrastructures I have ever seen. I’m stoked to be here.”

For Freeski, rookie team member Cody LaPlante will be the sole representative of the U.S. Freeski Team. This event will serve as Cody’s first event back from a torn ACL and meniscus suffered last season. Cody was back on snow this summer in New Zealand and ready to compete. He is joined by American’s Brian Gardiner, Rodney Koford, Ryan Mcelmon, Troy Podmilsak, and Zane Severson. 

According to Air + Style Committee, the Shougang steel mill in the west of the capital has been idle since being closed before the 2008 Summer Olympics to cut pollution. Now it is being transformed into a stunning permanent venue for the 2022 Beijing Winter Games, featuring a giant ramp for big air snowboarding that rises against the backdrop of forsaken cooling towers and smokestacks, evoking the capital's industrial past. The project will serve as an anchor for the entire plan to repurpose the industrial compound into a future destination of winter sports and related leisure activities.

This season marks the third year in a row that FIS Snowboard will work in conjunction with one of the longest-running and most respected names in snowboard competition history as they once again partner with Air + Style. Competition begins with qualifications on Dec. 12-13 with finals set for Dec. 14. 

HOW TO WATCH
Subject to change
All times EST
*Same day delay broadcast
**Delayed broadcast

FREESKI
December 14, 2019
3:20 a.m. - Air + Style FIS Snowboard World Cup, Beijing, China - OlympicChannel.com and NBC Sports Gold.
5:00 p.m. - Air + Style FIS Snowboard World Cup, Beijing, China - OlympicChannel*

December 15, 2019
9:00 p.m. - Air + Style FIS Snowboard World Cup, Beijing, China - NBCSN**

SNOWBOARD
December 14, 2019
6:20 a.m. - Air + Style FIS Snowboard World Cup, Beijing, China - OlympicChannel.com and NBC Sports Gold. 
6:00 p.m. - Air + Style FIS Snowboard World Cup, Beijing, China - Olympic Channel*
10:30 p.m. -Air + Style FIS Snowboard World Cup, Beijing, China - NBCSN*

All streams will be available via desktop (NBCSports.com/Gold and OlympicChannel.com) as well as mobile, tablet and connected television platforms. The NBC Sports and Olympic Channel app are available on the Apple App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire.
 

U.S. Snowboardcross athletes have put in the time this off-season and are ready to kick-off the 2019-20 FIS Snowboardcross World Cup season in Montafon, Austria, this weekend. 

“We just finished a very solid two-week block of training in Pitztal, Austria leading up to this first World Cup,” said Head U.S. Snowboardcross Coach Peter Foley. “The athletes are really excited to finally get in the start gate and see what they can do against the rest of the world.”
 

This venue has been host to the SBX World Cup since 2012, but had to be canceled two times since then due to lack of snow and bad weather conditions. Since last year’s race was one of the canceled events, everybody is eager to get back to business at this resort. The Montafon venue features one of the most spectator-friendly venues on the World Cup tour with excellent viewing throughout the entire length of the course and grandstand seating at the bottom. 

The U.S. Snowboardcross Team is rolling in with a stellar lineup including arguably the most dominant snowboardcross athlete in the history of the sport in Lindsey Jacobellis. Not only because of her 30 SBX World Cup victories (plus one in halfpipe!), which is the most for any SBX athlete, male or female, but also because of her five World Championship titles, her Torino 2006 Olympic silver medal, two crystal globes and 10 snowboardcross titles at the X-Games. Since winning the very first race of her career back in 2003-04, the Californian only finished outside of the top-10 four times in 78 events and shows no signs of slowing down at age 34.

Lindsey is not the only heavy hitter ready for gates to drop in Montafon. Double 2019 FIS Snowboardcross World Champion Mick Dierdorff is also ready to start his season on a positive note. Mick won the individual snowboardcross title at the 2019 FIS World Championships at Solitude Mountain Resort, becoming World Champion and also grabbing his first top-level international competition victory. He soon became a two-time World Champion when he and Lindsey won the inaugural mixed team snowboardcross event. 

Joining Mick and Lindsey is a strong group of riders including U.S. Snowboardcross Team members Faye Gulini, Nick Baumgartner, Alex Deibold, Jake Vedder, Hagen Kearney, and Senna Leith. In addition, U.S. Development Group member Stacy Gaskill and Americans Anna Miller, Jonathan Cheever, Cole Johnson, and Paul Kamisky are set to compete. 

HOW TO WATCH
Subject to change
All times EST

SNOWBOARD
December 13, 2019
7:00 a.m. - FIS Snowboardcross World Cup, Montafon, Austria - NBC Sports Gold
 

Exclusive commercial-free coverage will be available for subscribers of the NBC Sports Gold Pass, available here: https://www.nbcsports.com/gold/snow

Why isn’t Montafon available on NBCSN or Olympic Channel?
The reason Montafon is available via Gold Pass rather than NBCSN or Olympic Channel is that World Cup events held in Austria are not part of the TV agreement that NBC Sports has with FIS. They are controlled and sold by a different rights holder and were purchased by NBC Sports Gold for exclusive use within “Snow Pass.” If you have any further questions, please reach out to NBC Sports Gold's help desk at support@nbcsports.com.
 
Why doesn’t “Snow Pass” have commentary?
In order to provide 900+ hours of content at an affordable price, we rely on the world feed (a video feed provided by the rights holder), which often does not include English commentary. Commentary is available on all television coverage provided by NBC, NBCSN and Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA, and live streaming via authentication at NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app.