Stratton Mountain School skied to gold in the L.L.Bean U.S. Cross Country Championships relay Sunday at Craftsbury Common, Vt. Stratton successfully defended its 2017 title in a rematch with Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center, which took silver. Craftsbury Project Green Racing won bronze in the mixed gender, mixed technique event.

Last year Stratton upset APU in Fairbanks, Alaska with a close win. Sunday, Olympic champion Jessie Diggins (Afton, Minn.) was matched up against PyeongChang teammate Kikkan Randall (Anchorage, Alaska) on the final leg with Diggins leading Stratton to a 13-second victory.

On the opening leg, Stratton’s Simi Hamilton (Aspen, Colo.) and APU’s Erik Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.) were in a dead heat. In lap two, APU’s Sadie Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.) pulled out to a seven-second advantage over Stratton’s Sophie Caldwell (Peru, Vt.).

On leg three, APU’s Scott Patterson (Anchorage, Alaska) put his team back in front over Stratton’s Paddy Caldwell (Lyme Center, N.H.). On the final leg, Randall and Diggins went head-to-head Diggins gaining the advantage and leading Stratton to the win.

“We knew it was going to be tough going against Stratton today based on how they were skiing all week and we knew it would be key getting a little time going into that last leg,” said Randall. “Scott gave us the gap and I was hopeful going into the last lap. I tried to put the pressure on, but Jessie caught me at about 2.5k. She had a bit more and pulled away to take the win. The team relay is such a great event and having three clubs on the podium just shows the depth of the team.”

The back-and-forth between APU and Stratton, with Craftsbury lurking, made for an exciting race for fans and the live streaming broadcast audience.

“We knew that APU and Craftbury were going to be tough,” said Caldwell. “Our goal was to keep it as close as possible for Jessie because we knew we had a really strong anchor leg. We are psyched.”

Recent snow, strong spectator crowds, and excellent courses have made it an important weekend of racing with more to come at Craftsbury. “The course here is amazing, they do such a great job here at Craftbury,” said U.S. Ski & Snowboard Development Coach Bryan Fish. “It is so exciting to get our World Cup athletes here racing head-to-head with everybody. It was a super competitive race and great fun to watch.”

Both U.S. and SuperTour titles will be on the line Tuesday and Wednesday with long distance races of L.L.Bean U.S. Cross Country Championships. The women’s race 30k classic on Tuesday with men going 50k on Wednesday. Streaming broadcasts begin at 8:45 a.m. EDT each day.

RESULTS
L.L.Bean U.S. Cross Country Championships - Relays

Tuesday, March 27, 2018
8:45 a.m. EDT - Streaming begins
9:00 a.m. EDT - Women's 30k classic mass start - national championship

Wednesday, March 28, 2018
8:45 a.m. EDT - Streaming begins
9:00 a.m. EDT - Men's 50k classic mass start - national championship

Streaming Locations
U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team Facebook
U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team Website

Julia Marino (Westport, Conn.) won her second career FIS Snowboard World Cup big air Saturday night at the Jamboree Festival in Quebec City.

World Cup big air titles were awarded to Chris Corning (Silverthorne, Colo.) and Austria’s Anna Gasser, who both sat out the final competition of a long season. Corning, who also won the World Cup slopestyle title, claimed the overall World Cup title for the 2017-18 season.

In front of an huge crowd which had gathered at L’Îlot Fleurie to cheer for the top six female and best 10 male qualifiers, Marino earned her career's third World Cup victory with a score of 168.50. Canada’s Laurie Blouin was second and Loreanne Smans of Belgium snatched her first World Cup podium in third. In addition to her two World Cup big air victories, Marino also won a World Cup slopestyle earlier this season. Marino finished third in the World Cup big air standings, and seventh in the overall World Cup standings.

“It's really cool to see how many people came to watch us and support us,” Marino said. “It's been real fun to dropping in to all of this big party. It was a smaller field of girls but it's still awesome to come out here and put down some runs and have a good time.”

In the men's event, Canada’s Max Parrot secured his career's sixth World Cup victory with an almost perfect 195.25. Switzerland's Jonas Boesiger was second and Canada’s Antoine Truchon, the 2012 Quebec winner, rounded out the podium in third.

In the women's standings, it was Miyabi Onitsuka (JPN) claiming the Snowboard overall World Cup title.

RESULTS
Women’s big air
Men’s big air

FINAL WORLD CUP STANDINGS
Women’s big air
Men’s big air
Women’s overall
Men’s overall

Colorado natives Nina O’Brien (Edwards, Colo.) and Hig Roberts (Steamboat Springs, Colo.) snagged slalom national titles Saturday, while Sun Valley, Idaho lived up to its name featuring blue skies and sunshine to boot at the Toyota U.S. Alpine Championships.

Burke Mountain Academy alumna O’Brien continued her dominance in slalom with her second victory in as many days, having emerged victorious in Friday’s super-G. This victory brings her national title count to three, as she was crowned 2015 giant slalom national champion as well.

“It feels really good”, reflected O’Brien on her first career slalom title. “I’ve been working on my slalom a lot this season so it’s nice to see a payoff. I was a little nervous coming into the second run but I’m glad I sent it and it worked out for me.”

Lila Lapanja from Team CLIF Bar Ski Racing was in the lead first run by just 0.03-seconds, so O’Brien knew she’d have to push it to get results. “I think chasing Lila was a good position to be in,” O’Brien said, “at the same time I knew Amelia (Smart) was super close behind me, so I knew I was going to have to push it to if I wanted to be on the podium or get the win.”

When asked if she could make it three in a row, O’Brien answered with a laugh, “I don’t know, I’m not going to jinx myself!” Canada’s Amelia Smart finished second, while Lapanja grabbed third. Nina O’Brien was the top junior again Saturday. 

On the men’s side, 2017 giant slalom national champion and Middlebury College graduate Roberts, who skied a full FIS Ski World Cup season – which can be quite the grind – noted that finishing off the season with a victory like this boosts the confidence.

“Today feels so good because I really wasn’t expecting this,” he said. “I’ve been focusing on GS more this year and slalom has been such a project for me, but I think that’s what makes it so rewarding for me.” 

Roberts, whose brother Murphy passed away in August of 2016, added “I’m always sending it for Murph. It’s a huge part of my story and my fight. Forever motivated by him…he’s in every turn.”

Rounding out the podium were Mark Engel (Truckee, Calif.) and AJ Ginnis (Vouliagmeni, Greece). River Radamus (Edwards, Colo.) was the top junior for the second day in a row, finishing fifth overall in the slalom.

The U.S. Alpine Championships action continues Sunday with men’s giant slalom, followed by women’s giant slalom on Monday.

RESULTS
Men’s slalom
Women’s slalom

HOW TO WATCH
Toyota U.S. Alpine Championships

March 25
11:30 a.m. - Men’s giant slalom run 1, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream
2:30 p.m. - Men’s giant slalom run 2, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream
12:00 p.m. - women’s slalom, Sun Valley - NBCSN

March 26
11:30 a.m. - Women’s giant slalom run 1, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream
2:30 p.m. - Women’s giant slalom run 2, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream
 

Stratton Mountain School’s Jessie Diggins (Afton, Minn.) picked up her second straight win, taking the women’s 10k freestyle mass start Saturday at the U.S. Ski & Snowboard SuperTour Finals in Craftsbury Common, Vt. Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center skier Erik Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.) took the men’s 15k win.

All of the events at Craftsbury are being broadcast live by U.S. Ski & Snowboard on its Facebook channel and USSkiandSnowboard.org.

Bjornsen battled Stratton Mountain School’s Simi Hamilton (Aspen, Colo.) and Ski and Snowboard Club Vail’s Tad Elliott (Durango, Colo.) in a close race, winning by just 1.5 seconds.

Diggins also had a close race with Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center’s Sadie Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.), winning by just over a second with APU’s Kikkan Randall (Anchorage) third.

The SuperTour Finals have served as a welcome home for the highly successful U.S. Cross Country Ski Team with big crowds showing up to cheer on their heroes.

“It is really, really cool to be here in Craftsbury and get to race against everyone in the U.S.,” said the Olympic champion Diggins. “The fans are amazing - they are cheering and then they send it off a jump and then they are cheering again.”

“It was a super fun day, great to be here at Craftsbury with all the American racers and spectators,” said Erik Bjornsen. “It was really fun to ski in a group of the nation’s best skiers, feel like skiing with a group of your buddies while pushing yourself super hard.”

“Everyone is psyched about the seasons we have had,” said Hamilton. “The skiing is amazing here, they have done an unbelievable job getting everything ready.”

While the national team athletes race all season long on the World Cup tour for the U.S. Ski Team and Team USA at the Olympics, the Finals is a time to put on their club colors.

“It so nice to come to a race and let the pressure down and enjoy racing for racing,” said Sadie Bjornsen. “I’m out here with all my teammates and we are competing against each other in our club teams, a super fun vibe. It’s so cool to see such a big crowd here at Craftsbury, all these kids that know what you have done this winter is awesome.”

Olympic champion Randall, who is skiing in her final event, echoed those sentiments. “I am really excited to be back here in Craftsbury and see everyone in the ski community. The conditions are beautiful and I am hoping to find the gas to put a down a few more events here.”

SuperTour distance and overall titles are still on the line with long distance events coming up Tuesday and Wednesday.

Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation skier Kevin Bolger (Minocqua, Wisc.) leads the men’s overall with 336 points with APU’s David Norris (Anchorage, Alaska) close behind with 315. Norris has a clear lead in the distance standings.

For the women, APU’s Kaitlynn Miller (Anchorage, Alaska) has a strong lead over Craftsbury’s Caitlin Patterson (Anchorage, Alaska) with 408.5 points to Patterson’s 373. APU’s Rosie Frankowski (Minneapolis) leads the distance standings.

Sunday action shifts from SuperTour to the L.L.Bean U.S. Cross Country Championships with the relay event. Live streaming broadcast starts at 8:45 a.m. EDT.

RESULTS
Women’s 10k mass start freestyle
Men’s 15k mass start freestyle
SuperTour Standings
 

Coming off of her first World Cup win in dual moguls, Tess Johnson (Vail, Colo.) skied to her first national title on Saturday while Brad Wilson (Butte, Mont.) landed his second win of the weekend at the 2018 U.S. Freestyle Championships at Waterville Valley Resort, New Hampshire.

Johnson has consistently finished in the top five at Nationals for the past two seasons. She was finally able to break on to the podium with a 20-15 victory over teammate Jaelin Kauf (Alta, Wyo.) Keaton McCargo (Telluride, Colo.), who won Friday’s moguls championships, claimed her second podium of the weekend with a third place finish.

Wilson skied strong through many tough duals. He found himself up against teammate Dylan Walczyk (Rochester, N.Y.) in the big final and took the win 21-14. Troy Murphy (Bethel, Maine) and Emerson Smith (Dover, Vt.) battled it out in the small final where Murphy took the win for third place.

With the 2018 U.S. Freestyle Championships wrapped up, the U.S. Ski Team moguls athletes look to begin preparations for the 2019 season.

RESULTS
Men’s Dual Moguls
Women’s Dual Moguls

Keaton McCargo (Telluride, Colo.) and Brad Wilson (Butte, Mont.) took home moguls titles on Friday at the 2018 U.S. Freestyle Championships at Waterville Valley Resort, New Hampshire. It was McCargo’s second consecutive title and Wilson’s fourth-career title.

McCargo progressed through the day, qualifying sixth into finals before taking the win with a score of 84.15. Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club athlete Avital Shimko was second with a score of 83.47 followed by Olivia Giaccio (Redding, Conn.) in third with a score of 82.89.

Wilson maintained his lead after posting the highest score in qualification. He took the win with an impressive 88.29. Ski & Snowboard Club Vail’s Jesse Andringa was second with a score of 87.07 and Dylan Walczyk was third with an 85.91.

Action at Waterville Valley continues Saturday, March 24 with the men’s and women’s dual moguls championships.

RESULTS
Men’s Moguls
Women’s Moguls

Ryan Cochran-Siegle (Starksboro, Vt.) snagged his second-straight national super-G title Friday at the Toyota U.S. Alpine Championships in Sun Valley, Idaho. Nina O’Brien (Edwards, Colo.) won her first career super-G title in the women’s race Friday afternoon.

“I was just trying to ski my best, and I think I was able to perform pretty well today,” said Cochran-Siegle, who defended his super-G title he won last year at Sugarloaf, Maine.

Not that he wasn’t brimming with confidence after returning from injury this season and posting numerous top American results at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games, including 14th in the super-G. But the 25-year-old Vermonter, who celebrates his 26th birthday March 27, did snag the alpine combined title (super-g/slalom) Wednesday, so he had a pretty good idea how to nail the line running bullet Friday.

“I had a lot of confidence from the other day. But I also knew that guys were going to try and figure out where they were losing time, so I knew I’d still have to bring it,” he said.  “But I was fortunate to win it!”

With two titles in his pocket this week, Cochran-Siegle now turns his attention to Sunday’s giant slalom and a showdown with teammate Tommy Ford (Bend, Ore.), a two-time national GS champion (2010, 2011).

“I love Tommy. He is such a great teammate and probably my best friend on the (World Cup) tour, so I hope we both can ski our best,” said Ford. “In training, we’re always kind of dueling back-and-forth, and on this hill too, it will be a really good battle.”

River Radamus (Edwards, Colo.) finished third and was the top junior finisher. O'Brien was also the top junior finisher.

"This was my last super-G of the year so I just wanted to have fun and go for it!" O'Brien said.​

​​​​​​RESULTS
Men’s super-G
Women’s super-G

HOW TO WATCH
Toyota U.S. Alpine Championships

March 24
11:00 a.m. - Women's slalom run 1, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream
12:00 p.m. - women’s slalom, Sun Valley - NBC
12:30 p.m. - Men slalom run 1, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream
2:00 p.m. - Women's slalom run 2, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream
3:30 p.m. - Men slalom run 2, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream

March 25
11:30 a.m. - Men’s giant slalom run 1, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream
2:30 p.m. - Men’s giant slalom run 2, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream
12:00 p.m. - women’s slalom, Sun Valley - NBCSN

March 26
11:30 a.m. - Women’s giant slalom run 1, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream
2:30 p.m. - Women’s giant slalom run 2, Sun Valley – U.S. Ski & Snowboard Live Stream

A star-studded field kicked off the U.S. Ski & Snowboard SuperTour Finals Friday at Craftsbury Common, Vt. Stratton dominated the day with Olympians Andy Newell (Shaftsbury, Vt.) and Jessie Diggins (Afton, Minn.) taking wins in the opening classic sprint. 

Newell qualified first for the men and won all three of his heats, taking the victory over Stratton teammate Ben Saxton (Lakeville, Minn.). by just over a half second. Alaska Pacific University Nordic Ski Center’s Erik Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.) was third. Saxton won the overall SuperTour sprint title for the men, while Kaitlynn Miller (Elmore, Vt.) won the women's overall sprint title.

The women’s final was a full house of 2018 Olympians. Diggins battled against Stratton teammate Sophie Caldwell (Peru, Vt.) to take the win by just over a second. Craftsbury Green’s Ida Sargent (Orleans, Vt.) was third, just ahead of top qualifier Sadie Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.) of Alaska Pacific University Nordic Ski Center.

Action in the SuperTour Finals continues Saturday with a 15k men’s freestyle mass start with the women racing 10k. U.S. Ski & Snowboard is carrying a live streaming broadcast daily beginning at 8:45 a.m.

RESULTS
Men and women's sprint
SuperTour final sprint standings

Watch top athletes from cross country clubs across America compete for U.S. Ski & Snowboard SuperTour and national titles live from Vermont's Craftsbury Common beginning this weekend and running through the L.L.Bean U.S. Cross Country Championships distance races Tuesday and Wednesday. Most of the top U.S. Ski Team athletes will also be in the field including Olympic champions Jessie Diggins and Kikkan Randall. U.S. Ski & Snowboard will carry live streaming broadcasts from all events beginning Friday, March 23. Watch it at on the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team Facebook channel or at usskiandsnowboard.org.

Friday, March 23, 2018
8:45 a.m. EDT - Men's and women's sprint qualifying
11:15 a.m. EDT - Men's and women's sprint heats

Saturday, March 24, 2018
8:45 a.m. EDT - Streaming begins
9:00 a.m. EDT - Men's 15k freestyle mass start
10:00 a.m. EDT - Women's 10k freestyle mass start

Sunday, March 25, 2018
8:45 a.m. EDT - Streaming begins
9:00 a.m. EDT - Relays

Tuesday, March 27, 2018
8:45 a.m. EDT - Streaming begins
9:00 a.m. EDT - Women's 30k classic mass start - national championship

Wednesday, March 28, 2018
8:45 a.m. EDT - Streaming begins
9:00 a.m. EDT - Men's 50k classic mass start - national championship

Streaming Locations
U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team Facebook
U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team Website
General Information
Live Timing

Olympic silver medalist Alex Ferreira (Aspen, Colo.) took his fourth World Cup freeski halfpipe podium of the season in Tignes, France to snag the 2017-18 World Cup halfpipe title. The U.S. Freeski Team also took home the FIS Freestyle Nations Cup in halfpipe.

Olympic bronze medalist Brita Sigourney (Carmel, Calif.) landed on the podium in the final World Cup in third place, but it wasn’t quite enough to maintain her overall World Cup lead. Olympic gold medalist Cassie Sharpe of Canada continued her late-season dominance, taking the victory in Tignes and capturing the overall World Cup title. Sigourney finished second in the overall standings.

Carly Margulies (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.) and Maddie Bowman (South Lake Tahoe, Calif.) were just off the World Cup podium in fourth and fifth.

A stacked U.S. men’s team came into Thursday’s finals with Ferreira and two-time Olympic gold medalist David Wise (Reno, Nev.) duking it out for the overall World Cup title. But Wise wasn’t able to put down a clean run and Ferreira walked away with his first FIS crystal globe. Wise finished in second overall.

It was a #TeamNorthAmerica podium in the final World Cup with Noah Bowman of Canada taking the win and Simon D’Artois of Canada in third. Birk Irving (Winter Park, Colo.) was fourth and Taylor Seaton (Avon, Colo.) fifth.

The men and women of the U.S. Freeski Team also stepped on stage to collect the FIS Freestyle Nations Cup in halfpipe, awarded to the team with the most World Cup points after the season.

RESULTS
Men's halfpipe
Women's halfpipe

OVERALL STANDINGS
Men's and women's halfpipe standings