The U.S. Freestyle Moguls Team had six athletes in the top 10 at the debut World Cup of the season in Ruka, Finland. 

Olivia Giaccio led the women's team in fourth, with teammate Jaelin Kauf right behind in fifth place. Elizabeth Lemley, an up-and-coming talent on the team, finished in seventh. 

For the men, Nick Page led the way with a fourth-place finish with teammates Dylan Walczyk and Cole McDonald in seventh and eighth. 

RESULTS

Women's Moguls

Men's Moguls 

Jessie Diggins finished fourth to lead four U.S. Ski Team athletes into the top 10 in the FIS Cross Country World Cup freestyle sprint in Lillehammer, Norway, on Saturday. Ben Ogden posted a career-best World Cup result, finishing seventh, and Julia Kern and JC Schoonmaker each finished eighth. 

“We had some awesome skis out there,” Diggins said, once again praising the effort of the U.S. service techs. “It was so cool seeing the U.S. Team as a whole having such a great day.”

Diggins posted the fifth-fastest qualifying time and advanced to the finals after finishing second in the opening quarterfinal heat. She then advanced as the Lucky Loser in the semifinal heat. 

Kern was 20th in qualifying and came out swinging when she skied away from the field to take the opening-round win in the fifth heat. In the semifinals, Kern was locked in on the second Lucky Loser position, only to watch it slip away when Norway’s Lotta Udnes Weng crashed in front of her in the closing 200 meters. 

“I was able to react pretty quickly and get around her,“ Kern said. “And I felt really strong coming into the finish, but that little blip and hiccup cost me. But that’s sprint racing.”

In the finals, Diggins was well-positioned on the first of two laps, but racing up the final climb into the finish, the Swedish duo of Emma Ribom and Maja Dahlquist put the hammer down and finished 1-2 with Norway’s Tiril Udnes Weng in third.

“I had the skis, I just didn’t have the gas and the sharp race form feeling in that final, but that’s OK. I’m really happy with the day and the performance,” Diggins said. 

In an impressive showing for the young U.S. men’s team, three qualified for the heats, including Ogden, Schoonmaker, and Luke Jager, who posted a career-best World Cup freestyle sprint result, finishing 25th.

“Ben and JC and Luke, they skied so well,” Diggins added. “I was really, really impressed. They were (so close) to getting into the final too. It was cool to feel that energy as a team out there today.”

Ogden and Schoonmaker, who qualified 20th and 24th respectively, each won their opening quarterfinal heats to advance. Racing in the second semifinal heat, both were in the mix heading in the final 200 meters but came up short with overall World Cup leader Paal Goldberg of Norway leading countryman Ansger Evensen across the line to finish 1-2. 

In the men’s finals, Norway’s Johannes Kleabo put on another sprint show, skiing to his 55th World Cup victory. Italy’s Frederico Pellegrino was second, and Norway’s Evan Northug was third.

World Cup racing wraps up Sunday in Lillehammer with a 20k classic mass start.

RESULTS
Women’s freestyle sprint
Men’s freestyle sprint

Jessie Diggins skied to her 13th individual World Cup win - tying her former teammate Kikkan Randall for the most U.S. World Cup Cross Country victories - in Friday's opening 10k individual start in Lillehammer, Norway.

"First and foremost, I want to say thanks to the wax techs and the team. I am really proud of their effort because my skis were so awesome out there," said Jessie Diggins in a post-race reflection. "I went into the race with the plan of trying to ski really smooth, pace it evenly, work the transitions and the corners and push hard into the downhills and maximize every second that I could." 

On a fast, 3.3k loop course lined by numerous American fans, fast skis, high tempo, and quick transitions made all the difference for Diggins. Germany's Katharina Hennig was sitting comfortably in the hot seat until Diggins skied through every time check with positive splits. Hennig held on for second, 3.8 seconds back, with Heidi Weng of Norway rounding out the podium in third. 

"My fitness and brain were in a really good place and today I felt like when I asked my body to go deep into the pain cave, it responded," said Diggins. 

Julia Kern and Sophia Laukli also posted top 30 results, finishing 25th and 29th respectively. Alayna Sonnesyn was 32nd, and Lauren Jortberg was 48th in her first World Cup distance race.

With the win, Diggins has racked up 250 World Cup starts, 41 podiums and 15 overall World Cup wins, including a U.S. Team Sprint win in Quebec in 2012, and a Mixed Team victory in Falun, Sweden, last season.

In the men's 10k, Zak Ketterson led the U.S. Ski Team, finishing 26th. Gus Schumacher was 32nd, Scott Patterson 40th, Hunter Wonders was 45th, and Ben Ogden was 56th.

"The fans were pretty fun," Ketterson said. "I actually noticed the cheering the most while I was skiing around the course on my warmup. Tons of American and Norwegian fans cheering for me and asking me silly questions. Can always rely on Norway to provide an awesome World Cup experience."

Racing continues in Lillehammer Saturday with a freestyle sprint, followed by a 20k classic mass start on Sunday. All events are streamed LIVE on skiandsnowboardlive.com.

RESULTS
Women's 10k freestyle individual start
Men's 10k freestyle individual start
 

Release courtesy of the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee

U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced today it is honoring the University of Utah as the winner of its 2022 U.S. Ski & Snowboard Collegiate Impact Award, which honors the top-contributing school on the 2022 U.S. Olympic skiing and snowboarding teams in Beijing. As part of the recognition, Mark Harlan, director of athletics at Utah, will be honored during the Team USA Collegiate Recognition Awards that will run in conjunction with the National Football Foundation’s 64th Annual Awards celebration on Dec. 6, 2022, in Las Vegas.

At the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, 16 U.S. Olympians on the alpine and cross country ski teams competed collegiately. Utah had six current student-athletes representing Team USA in Beijing – more than any other school on U.S. Ski & Snowboard – and the Utes are being recognized with the 2022 U.S. Ski & Snowboard Collegiate Impact Award for this contribution. The athletes that competed for both U.S. Ski & Snowboard and University of Utah at the Games include Keely Cashman (alpine), Kevin Bolger (cross country), Luke Jager (cross country), Mo Lebel (alpine), Novie McCabe (cross country) and Sophia Laukli (cross country).

“Being a collegiate athlete is an incredible feat. Athletes learn how to balance academics and sport while competing for their team, which are crucial skills to both the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team and Team USA,” said U.S. Ski & Snowboard President and CEO Sophie Goldschmidt. “We are thrilled to present the University of Utah with the 2022 U.S. Ski & Snowboard Collegiate Impact Award, and thank them for being such an important part of our sports. We look forward to seeing what our mutual athletes can accomplish next!”

U.S. Ski & Snowboard joins seven other National Governing Bodies that will participate in this year’s Team USA Collegiate Recognition Awards—a celebration that will honor sport-specific contributors (NGB Collegiate Impact Awards) and overall Team USA contributors (Team USA Collegiate Impact Awards) to the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 and the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022.

More information about the Team USA Collegiate Recognition Awards and Team USA’s collegiate footprint in Beijing can be found online at TeamUSA.org/CollegiateImpact.

*NOTE: Student-athlete is defined by the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee as any individual who is/was a member of a collegiate roster (varsity/club/other) and/or competed in outside competition for a university or college. Student-athletes impacted by transfer circumstances were included in the totals for each institution attended.

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A partnership with the U.S. Ski & Snowboard became official last May: the Omini brand will kit all sports for the next 10 years. 

Release courtesy of Kappa.

Torino, 29 November 2022 – After the announcement on May 10th of a 10-year partnership between Italian brand Kappa® and U.S. Ski & Snowboard, the first winter collection produced by Kappa®’s R&D center is now available online at Kappa.com and inside the main retail stores.

The first Kappa® US SKI & SNOWBOARD offer – activewear version of the racing clothes worn by the athletes on the U.S. team – includes: ski jacket and pants, fleece sweater, ultra-light down jacket, heat-sealed windproof, waterproof down jacket, cotton T-shirt, tracksuit (hoodie + pants), visor hat and a wool hat in dark navy blue with U.S. Ski & Snowboard team logos. There will also be, for a few exclusive items, in white and red, designed to represent colors of the Stars and Stripes.

Six young athletes from U.S. Ski & Snowboard are protagonist of the advertising campaign shot in Salt Lake City (Utah, USA) last October, including alpine skier Bella Wright, freestyle moguls skier Kai Owens, freeskier Jay Riccomini, cross country skier Luke Jager and up-and-coming athletes Izzy Worthington and Bo Giddings.

It is the first time that a single outerwear and racing suit brand appears on the uniforms of all the winter sports teams of the U.S. Ski & Snowboard: alpine ski, snowboard, freestyle, freeski and cross country.

The new Kappa® 4CENTO 400 KOMBAT SL 2022 US uniforms immediately conquered the first two podiums in the FIS Ski World Cup 2022-23 season with a double victory by Mikaela Shiffrin in Levi, Finland, on 19 and 20 November.

ABOUT KAPPA®

Kappa® is one of the brands owned by BasicNet SpA, an Italian company that also owns Robe di Kappa®, Jesus Jeans®, K-Way®, Superga®, Sabelt®, Briko® and Sebago®, leading clothing, footwear and accessories brands for sport and leisure. BasicNet operates worldwide through a network of entrepreneurs who, under license, produce or distribute products with the Group’s trademarks. BasicNet provides these companies with research and development, product industrialization and global marketing services. All business processes take place solely via the internet, which makes BasicNet a “fully web integrated company”. BasicNet, based in Turin, has been listed on the Italian Stock.

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 2022, competing in seven teams; alpine, cross country, freeski, freestyle, snowboard, nordic combined, and ski jumping. In addition to fully funding 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

PARK CITY, Utah - U.S. Ski & Snowboard today announced Brandon Gayle as its newest Board Director. Gayle’s experience includes positions across several industries including Facebook, Instagram, Groupon and Bain & Company. He is currently the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Spurs Sports & Entertainment (SS&E), the parent company of the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs. Gayle also has notable board experience, including serving as a board member for the customer experience giant Zendesk and as Vice Chair of the private-public nonprofit greater:SATX Regional Economic Partnership. 

As COO of SS&E, Gayle currently leads the teams responsible for the organization’s operations across ticketing, premium seating, global partnerships, brand marketing, content and distribution, merchandising, as well as business communications. In addition to the NBA’s Spurs, the company’s portfolio includes the NBA G League Austin Spurs, the United Soccer League’s San Antonio FC, AT&T Center and Toyota Field. 

Prior to joining SS&E, Brandon spent more than six years in multiple roles with Facebook. As Director of Global Sports Partnerships & Solutions, his team was responsible for helping athletes and sports properties in North America create interactive content, including Instagram, Messenger and Oculus. Prior to this role, Brandon led global sports partnerships at Instagram, where his work ultimately led to Sports Business Journal naming him to their Forty Under 40 Class of 2018, as well as his selection to the Leaders Under 40 Awards Class of 2017 by Leaders and Aspire Academy. 

“We are very excited to have Brandon join our Board,” U.S. Ski & Snowboard Board of Directors Chair Kipp Nelson. “His experience across multiple companies will be invaluable. As we look to take our organization to the next stage, we will really benefit from his relevant knowledge in various areas.”

Gayle also served as Director of Strategic Partnerships at Groupon, as a consultant for Bain & Company and in a strategy and finance role with the New York Jets. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA in Economics from Harvard College.

“I’m thrilled to be joining the board and to be a part of a dynamic organization that is known for supporting their athletes and fans at the highest level,” said Gayle. “U.S. Ski & Snowboard has incredible commercial momentum and a strong brand identity. I can’t wait to get to work supporting the board, CEO Sophie Goldschmidt, her leadership team and the organization's talented athletes.” 

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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 2022, competing in seven teams; alpine, cross country, freeski, freestyle, snowboard, nordic combined, and ski jumping. In addition to the fully-funded 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.

In the men's Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup downhill at Lake Louise, Ryan Cochran-Siegle led the way in the men’s downhill race on Saturday, Nov., 26.

Cochran-Siegle posted the ninth fastest run on the hill, only 1.12 seconds back from the winner, Aleksander Kilde from Norway. 

"As a team we recognize today was a little bit of a letdown all said and done. I think we're definitely more capable than that," said Cochran-Siegle on the team's efforts. 

Other top American finishers included Travis Ganong in 13th place. 

“I'm feeling good about a solid 13th place today in the first downhill,” said Travis Ganong. “I just had fun with it today, I had really good sections and I felt really balanced and positive on my skis." 

The conditions were mostly solid with some soft snow in various places throughout the course. The race today (Nov., 26) was rescheduled from the canceled race the day previous when weather conditions were a challenge. Now, the men shift focus to the Super-G on Sunday, Nov., 27.

RESULTS

Men's Downhill

Super-G

In the first Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup super-G of the season, Marco Odermatt of Switzerland showed his dominance winning the race after a podium in the downhill the day prior. 

The Stifel U.S. Alpine speed men took to the course with Kyle Negomir landing in 23rd. This is also Negomir's first World Cup points in his career. Jared Goldberg was the next top finisher on the U.S. side, ending up in 32nd place. 

"That was the first time I've been in a World Cup in almost three years," said Negomir. "Definitely means a lot to be racing again. And to be back and be part of the team and healthy again. There are a lot of things I took for granted before that I can really appreciate now from a different perspective."

Organizers say that despite a snowy night, the slope was still great for racing. The course workers helped to prepare a solid race hill for the day. 

The speed men will now turn their attentions to the Xfinity Birds of Prey at Beaver Creek starting Dec. 2.

RESULTS

Men's Super-G

In the Heroic Killington Cup presented by Stifel, an Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup, the Stifel U.S. Alpine Team women’s tech team showed great depth, placing four in the top 30. Mikaela Shiffrin was the top finisher, finishing in 13th.

It was a sunny and windy day in Vermont, but that did not stop the women from giving it their all on the track. Katie Hensien scored her first World Cup GS points in her career, finishing 27th.

“It feels really good, especially here in Killington with a home crowd," said Hensien. "I gave it my all first run and pretty much shocked myself."

Paula Moltzan and Nina O’Brien also scored points, finishing 18th and 23rd, respectively. The crowds did not disappoint either with 21,000 in attendance on Saturday, making it one of the most attended races in the event's history.

AJ Hurt, Allie Resnick and Ava Sunshine also started the giant slalom, but did not qualify for a second run. 

The women will be back in action for a slalom race on Sunday to wrap up one of the best weekends on the World Cup circuit.

RESULTS
Women's Giant Slalom

HOW TO WATCH
 

Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022

10:15 a.m. ET, FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup, Women’s Slalom (Run 1) - Killington, Vermont, streaming on Outside

1:15 p.m. ET, FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup, Women’s Slalom (Run 2) - Killington, Vermont, streaming on Outside // broadcast LIVE on NBC

The U.S. Cross Country Ski Team is in Ruka, Finland for the first World Cup of the season, racing in three different races; classic sprint, 10k classic and 20k skate. Men and women all raced equal distance, which marks the first time equal distance has been implemented on the World Cup stage.

Classic Sprint

On Friday, Nov., 25, eleven athletes started the sprint race on the fast and quick course in Ruka. Julia Kern led the women's team with a personal record (PR) in a World Cup sprint, finishing in 11th place with teammate Jessie Diggins finishing top 30 in the stacked women's field. On the men's side, JC Schoonmaker had a stellar start to the season in 19th and Ben Ogden rounds out the top 30 finishing in 22nd. Norwegian star, Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo started off the season with a sprint podium for the men and Emma Ribom from Sweden was atop the sprint podium for the women. 

"It was really great to get the processes back in action," says Diggins. "I didn't have any big expectations in terms of results, I just had big expectations in terms of my process, technique focus and mental game. I was focused on dialing in all the things I could control and I was happy with how it's going so far!"

Results

Women's Sprint

Men's Sprint

10k Classic

On Saturday, Nov., 26, Rosie Brennan had a great day finishing in seventh, only 29 seconds back from the leader in the 10k classic. A two-time Olympian, Brennan is off to a great start in the first World Cup of the season. For the men, summer training is looking like it paid off, as Ben Ogden skied very well into a top-30 finish in 28th place with several teammates close behind, including Zak Ketterson who had his best classic World Cup start finishing the day in 31st. With one more race of the weekend to go, both men's and women's teams are looking strong, healthy and excited for more. 

"I am very happy with today's race. It felt really good to be able to turn around after a disappointing day yesterday," says Brennan. "I was able to find a good rhythm and strong skiing today and that is all I can ask for in my first race weekend of the year. I am pleased with some of the technical improvements I have made over the summer and am hopeful to have stronger classic races this season. I am really looking forward to tomorrow. It feels like a big opportunity with a new distance and I am excited to see what happens!"

For the podium on the men's side, Norway's Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo snags another first place and Ebba Andersson from Sweden is the winner for the women's 10k classic. 

Results 

Women's 10k Classic

Men's 10k Classic

20k Skate Pursuit 

What a weekend in Ruka! Today was the 20k skate pursuit on the hard, technical and hilly course in Finland. Both men and women raced the same distance and the Americans had solid races all around on the six-lap course. 

Leading the charge for the women was Rosie Brennan, followed closely by Jessie Diggins. Brennan and Diggins stuck with the chaser pack for the majority of the race chasing down Frida Karlsson and Ebba Anderson from Sweden. Brennan pushed it right at the end and had a photo finish, ultimately landing in sixth place. Diggins was right there in top ten and crossed the line in tenth, which rounds out her personal best results in Ruka. Novie McCabe scored her first World Cup points of the season after finishing in 25th place and a trio of her teammates, Alayna Sonnesyn, Sophia Laukli and Julia Kern finished together, immediately embracing in a hug the second after crossing the finish line. 

For the men, Scott Patterson was first on the team and in the mix the entire race, finishing in 14th place - his best result in Ruka to date. A great start to the World Cup for Patterson, who has shown what it takes to be in the top! The pack was fast, as were the skis. Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo (NOR) won again, but the American men held their own and worked together with the various chaser packs and had great races all around. Hunter Wonders had another fast day and skied to a 30th place in the 20k pursuit, with many of his teammates close behind, including Zak Ketterson, Gus Schumacher and Ben Ogden. 

Results

Women's 20k Skate Pursuit

Men's 20k Skate Pursuit

The tech women are ready for this year’s Heroic Killington Cup presented by Stifel, an Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup.

The U.S. women had a strong showing in Levi with back-to-back wins by Mikaela Shiffrin, back-to-back point scoring from Ava Sunshine in 21st and 26th, and a great day for Katie Hensien placing 25th in Levi. Plus, Paula Moltzan had very fast intervals before she went out, proving she can be up there with the top slalom skiers in the world.  

Turning to the Heroic Killington Cup presented by Stifel, this weekend includes both slalom and a GS. 

Top skiers to watch for GS include Tessa Worley (FRA), Frederica Brignone (ITA), Sara Hector (SWE), Petra Vhlová (CZE) and more. Worley won the giant slalom World Cup in Killington in 2016, she is also last season’s GS crystal globe winner. Hector claimed three World Cup giant slalom wins last season. She also won Olympic gold in this discipline in Beijing. Vlhová has won six giant slalom World Cups and claimed 14 podium finishes. Marta Bassino (ITA) is also one to watch after she won the Killington giant slalom in 2019.

The action starts on Saturday, Nov., 26. 

HOW TO WATCH the Heroic Killington Cup presented by Stifel 

Saturday, Nov. 26, 2022

10:00 a.m. ET, FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup, Women’s Giant Slalom (Run 1) - Killington, Vermont, streaming on Outside

1:00 p.m.  ET, FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup, Women’s Giant Slalom (Run 2) - Killington, Vermont, streaming on Outside // broadcast LIVE on NBC

Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022

10:15 a.m. ET, FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup, Women’s Slalom (Run 1) - Killington, Vermont, streaming on Outside

1:15 p.m. ET, FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup, Women’s Slalom (Run 2) - Killington, Vermont, streaming on Outside // broadcast LIVE on NBC