On the final downhill in the regular World Cup season, the Stifel U.S. Ski Team men’s speed crew dominated the race with a top-tier team result led by Bryce Bennett’s fourth place finish, just off the podium. Teammates Ryan Cochran-Siegle and Sam Morse were close behind in seventh and 10th place, Morse’s top result of the season. 

“Super stoked with how the day went for myself and the whole team,” said Morse. “The track was in such good shape they did a really good job getting all the snow off from the day.” 

The conditions were good on Saturday after snow had been adequately pushed from the training run the day prior. The sun was shining and the speed men knew what to do. First Cochran-Siegle raced down into fourth place position, running right before Bennett. Bennett, currently riding one of his best downhill seasons to date, knifed the course, in the green the majority of the way, falling short of a podium by 0.10 seconds. He settled for fourth place, his third best result of the season. 

“I’m happy with today’s skiing, where my focus was during my run and getting the end result,” said Cochran-Siegle. “There’s always some time to be had or turns you wish you’d skied a little better that can be the difference between a good solid day like today and an amazing day, but that’s ski racing.”

The excitement for the men’s team did not stop and their confidence was shown through the rest of the skiers. Morse came down into seventh place eventually moving into 10th for the day. 

“Starting my first race in the top 30 you feel the pressure to stay there, so to have it all come together meant a lot,” said Morse. 

Jared Goldberg sped down for a top 20 result in 17th. Kyle Negomir landed his best World Cup result to date in 19th, tied with fellow American Wiley Maple. That marked six U.S. men in the top 20 for the last downhill of the regular season. The winner of the race was Swiss skier Niels Hintermann, second place went to Austrian Vincent Kreichmayr and third place to Canadian Cameron Alexander. 

“Really proud to be a part of this team after such an incredible performance from every one of us," said Cochran-Siegle. "I'm looking forward to racing tomorrow on such a fun track."

The next and final downhill will be the World Cup finals in Saalbach, Austria in March. The top 25 athletes by ranking in each discipline will compete. 

The men have another chance at the track for a super-G on Sunday. The race will be streamed and on demand on skiandsnowboard.live at 6 a.m. ET. 

RESULTS
Men's downhill

It was a night of victory for the Stifel U.S. Freeski Team in the first of two World Cup finals at the Snow Rodeo freeski halfpipe World Cup with Alex Ferreira writing his name in the FIS history books with his fourth straight freeski halfpipe World Cup podium, a new FIS World Cup record. 

Controversial scoring combined with a squirrely second hit that took many riders victim made for an entertaining Thursday night final at the World Cup double header in Calgary. Riley Jacobs was the top performer for the Stifel U.S. Freeski Team women, putting down three solid runs that consistently scored in the high seventies. After sitting in podium position the majority of the night, she was knocked out of the top three by Canada’s own Amy Fraiser, who stepped up under pressure in front of her home crowd and put down a final run worthy of a spot on the podium. Jacobs was joined by teammates Svea Irving and Kate Gray, but both were unable to string together a complete run. China’s Eileen Gu took the top spot on the women’s side, adding to her lead in the overall freeski halfpipe World Cup standings and once again proving why she is dubbed the “Snow Princess.”

On the men’s side, all eyes were on two-time Olympic medalist Ferreira, who repped the yellow bib to signify his top spot in the World Cup overall standings. He continued his dominant season with his fourth win in a row to reset a FIS record. 

“I’m amazed, I didn’t even know that,” joked Ferreira in a post-competition interview. “I’m just so grateful. I have a wonderful team around me. Thank you Calgary for a great atmosphere, what a great city to compete in front of. I’m so thankful.”

Ferreira was joined by teammates Hunter Hess, Dylan Ladd, Birk Irving and Olympic gold medalist David Wise, displaying the dominance of the American men in the halfpipe this World Cup season, with 50% of the field of finalists composed of Stifel U.S. Freeski Team athletes.

Despite falling on his first run, Hess continued his impressive season, scoring in the 90s on his second two runs but ultimately landing in fifth place. Ladd finished the night in seventh with an impressive first run score of 82.25, speaking to the high level of competition in the pipe for the men. Irving and Wise ended the night in eighth and ninth respectively.

The Stifel U.S. Freeski Team has another chance in the halfpipe with the second round of World Cup qualifications in Calgary on Friday morning. The freeski halfpipe season will wrap up Saturday night with the second round of finals at the Snow Rodeo freeski halfpipe World Cup.

RESULTS
Women
Men

The Stifel Palisades Tahoe Cup is a go! On Thursday, Feb. 15, the International Ski & Snowboard Federation (FIS) officially gave the green light to the local organizing committee during the scheduled snow control meetings, giving the go-ahead for Palisades Tahoe to host the men’s technical World Cup for the second year in a row.

The Stifel Palisades Tahoe Cup will host a giant slalom and slalom scheduled for February 24-25. As with every stop on the Audi FIS Ski World Cup, each mountain must pass “snow control” ahead of the races to ensure course quality for the racers. Palisades Tahoe has received 179” inches of snowfall this season and groomers and racecourse planners have been working on the course since February 1st.

“It’s a great honor to be the host resort for the Stifel Palisades Tahoe Cup as we continue to bring international competition back to our legendary slopes,” said Dee Byrne, COO and President of Palisades Tahoe. “From the 1960 Winter Games to the 1969 Men’s World Cup, the 2017 Women’s World Cup, and most recently the 2023 Men’s World Cup we’re looking forward to bringing an international competition back to our resort for the second year in a row. I would like to give a huge shoutout to our hardworking and dedicated Palisades Tahoe staff, North Tahoe community, and volunteers from around the world, because we couldn’t put this event on without them.”

A full schedule of events can be found here. here.

On a day where seemingly all weather patterns moved through the Canadian Rockies, the fourth race of a week-long World Cup brought the cross country world together for an exciting day of classic sprinting, with JC Schoonmaker skiing to an impressive seventh place and Julia Kern leading the women in 11th. 

With the Stifel Loppet Cup in Minneapolis looming, skiers had one more chance to see what they could do before traveling to the United States. In the qualifiers, where only the top 30 advance to the heats, which include a quarterfinal, semifinal and final round, seven Americans made their way, including Jessie Diggins, Rosie Brennan, Julia Kern, JC Schoonmaker, Gus Schumacher, Zak Ketterson and Luke Jager. This was Schumacher’s first time advancing to a classic sprint heat and the first time for Jager in the 2023-24 season. 

In the quarterfinal heats, there were seven Americans on the start line, all fending for the top two spots in their heat or the remaining two positions reserved for the "lucky losers," which refers to the third fastest athlete across the line. The quarterfinals were a nail-biter. On a tough course that challenged each athlete due to the slow snow, steep hills and skied-out classic tracks, everyone had to dig deep to fight for position. After several quarterfinal rounds, it was only Kern and Schoonmaker who made it to the semis - advancing to the next round by literally hundredths of a second. 

In the semis, Kern crossed the line in sixth, yet her time across around the course (3:20.81) was faster than the winner of the second semi-final heat. But, rules and rules and Kern's day was ultimately cut short, yet her positive attitude was present knowing that she is back to skiing where she wanted to be.

"I am really proud of how I skied today," said Kern. "It was just fun to ski on the skis I was on - our techs did an amazing job - and I love classic skiing on these kinds of days. It's been so fun here in Canmore and it's just building the excitement to next week in Minneapolis. I am so ready to show the world the U.S. I cannot express how exciting it will be."

For Schoonmaker, the race was interesting and exciting from start to finish. On a course that emphasizes the final stretch, it was all Schoonmaker's game. Coming into the last several hundred meters in sixth, he pulled out all the stops and made the move on the left side of the six-lane classic tracks into the finish, moving past three of his competitors and nearly crossing the line in third. With that move, Schoonmaker secured a top 10 result and even though he did not advance, still put a seventh place onto his strong resume. 

"It was nice to have a couple of good finishes and have a solid result," said Schoonmaker. "Honestly, my mentality in sprints is to act like I am going into the semis because if I am thinking too much about if I make it or not make it, that's just not the right headspace. I just went into it and skied on those trails and did what I could."

Alongside Kern and Schoonmaker in the top 30, was Brennan in 16th, Diggins in 17th, Ketterson in 18th, Schumacher in 20th and Jager in 24th. The ultimate winners of the race included five-time Olympic champion Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo of Norway in first for the men and World Cup sprint overall leader Linn Svahn of Sweden. 

Now, it's time for the race everyone has been waiting for, the Stifel Loppet Cup in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the first cross country ski race in the United States in more than 23 years. The action starts Saturday, Feb. 17. 

RESULTS
Women
Men

On the second day of competition in Lac-Beauport, Québec, Canada, Winter Vinecki led the way for the Stifel U.S. Freestyle Ski Team aerials athletes, earning her third individual win of the season. 

It was another moody weather day on course with intermittent rain and persistent clouds, leading many athletes to adjust their typical game plans. The weather didn’t appear to significantly impact the U.S. team, however, as they put on a show in the qualification round, advancing five women and two men into the finals. Included in this group was Winter Vinecki, who missed out on yesterday’s finals but qualified in the second position today. She was looking to regain the yellow bib, signifying the overall World Cup leader. Karenna Elliott, yesterday’s winner, ran into trouble in qualification, finishing in 13th place just outside of finals. Derek Krueger also finished outside of finals, landing in 17th, followed by Ashton Salwan in 22nd and Ian Schoenwald in 31st.  

In finals, Vinecki almost lost her balance on her landing, but her score of 76.05 was just enough to put her in the sixth position to advance into the super finals. Chris Lillis fell hard in finals, landing on the knoll, but he skied away unharmed. Just outside super finals was Megan Smallhouse, finishing eighth along with Tasia Tanner in 10th and Kyra Dossa in 11th. It was a close fight in finals for the men, with Connor Curran narrowly missing super finals, finishing in seventh place. Chris Lillis finished 12th. 

Ultimately, Kaila Kuhn and Winter Vinecki represented the United States in the final round of six. Here, Vinecki pulled out all the stops to get in the top spot by competing a back lay-full-full as the only woman attempting a triple in today’s competition. Her efforts paid off, as she earned her third individual and fourth overall win of the season, completed by regaining the well-earned yellow leader's bib. Kuhn toned down her difficulty in super finals but was technically perfect in her back lay-full. Kuhn sat in podium position in third place until the final competitor, current World Cup leader Danielle Scott, bumped her into fourth place. 

The team is headed into a well-deserved rest and training period before they travel to Almaty, Kazakhstan, for their final World Cup of the season on Mar. 10. 

RESULTS
Women
Men

Paula Moltzan ensured the Stifel U.S. Ski Team ended the weekend with a bang in Soldeu, Andorra, taking third in the slalom on Sunday, Feb. 11. 

Moltzan started the day off strong, crushing her first run and setting a precedent for the time to beat. She knew it when she came to the finish, exclaiming, "Now that's how I ski slalom." 

Backed by a wave of motivation coming off of Saturday's giant slalom, where she finished 11th, and a solid understanding of the slope, having trained in Soldeu the week before, Moltzan was able to put it down confidently on the steep, final pitch, a section where most struggled. She was only surpassed by the day's winner, Sweden's Anna Swenn-Larsson, by a mere 0.14 seconds heading into the second run. 

By the end of the race, Moltzan held onto her podium position, finishing third overall behind Swenn-Larsson and Croatia's Zrinka Ljutic. It was her best result this season and second career slalom podium.

"Thus far, it's been a season of really high highs and really low lows, so to finally take a step up on the podium feels really good, and a step in the right direction," said Moltzan. 

"I know we're missing a lot of top competitors, but that doesn't discount anybody's skiing," she added. "Everyone gave it their all in challenging conditions, and it shows."

AJ Hurt also qualified for a second run, sitting in 13th after the first 1.57 seconds off Swenn Larsson's time. So, in classic AJ Hurt fashion, she held nothing back as she pushed out of the gate a second time, holding on to the green light one second faster than the girls that had skied before her through the third split. Sadly, her aggression pushed her line too low, and she could not hang on to the finish and straddled.

Lila Lapanja also started the race, but did not finish her first run. 

Overall, the women had a solid weekend in Soldeu, Andorra, despite missing Mikaela Shiffrin, who is still tending to a knee injury incurred in Cortina. The women's tour now looks ahead to a speed series in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, where the speed crew will compete in two downhills and one super G. 

RESULTS 
Women's slalom

A chilly Saturday night set the scene for the final snowboard halfpipe competition of the 2023-24 season at the Snow Rodeo in Calgary, Canada. Maddie Mastro stepped on the podium in second place, her fourth podium out of the five comps in the season.

With overall World Cup titles on the line and heavy hitters like Australia's Scotty James missing from competition, athletes competed in a dramatic and exciting finish to the season. Sonora Alba was the first to drop for the Hydro Flask U.S. Snowboard Team, coming off a fourth place finish at the Youth Olympic Games. Alba put down a stylish first run, earning a 64.75 in what would be her best run of the night, earning her best career World Cup finish with fifth place.

Next up was rookie Bea Kim, who was sitting in an impressive second place in the overall halfpipe World Cup standings and looking to continue her breakout season. After a disappointing first two runs, it came down to Kim’s third and final run to hold her spot in the overall standings. Coming off a third place finish in Mammoth, and sitting in third behind teammate Kim in the halfpipe World Cup rankings, two-time Olympian Mastro came out strong with a clean first run, locking in an 83.50 to put her in a comfortable second place. Mastro was briefly knocked out of podium position by teammate Kim, who showed veteran-level composure to stomp her third and final run, but Mastro responded with the first and only double cork of the night on the women’s side and was rewarded by the judges with a massive score of 88.25 to secure second place.

"I’m super happy I was able to land my third run and do the double after getting bodied on it in Laax not too long ago," said Mastro. "I also got bodied in Calgary last year so it was nice to get a bit of redemption in that sense as well; I’m just really hppy and stoked with how I’m riding."

On the men’s side, rookie Alessandro Barbieri came out swinging in his first career World Cup finals appearance, landing a 1440 on the final hit of his second run and making a statement to the rowdy crowd at the bottom of the pipe to finish seventh. Barbieri was joined by teammate Joey Okesson, who finally punched his ticket to finals after landing consistently on the qualification bubble throughout the majority of the season. Okesson was determined to show off his stylish bag of tricks and did not disappoint, going huge in his first run with three consecutive double corks. After barely missing his final hit on both of his first two runs, Okesson finished the season out on a high note, landing one of the most stylish runs of the night to land in eighth overall. 

The Hydro Flask U.S. Snowboard Team women finished the halfpipe World Cup season with two on the podium in the overall halfpipe World Cup standings, with Mastro taking second and Kim taking third. Japan’s Mitsuki Oni won the overall halfpipe Crystal Globe for the second consecutive year.

Japan’s Ruka Hirano ended his dominant season as the halfpipe Crystal Globe winner for the men, with one point separating Aussie teammates Valentino Guseli in second and Scotty James in third. Chase Josey was the top overall finisher for the Hydro Flask U.S. Snowboard Team, taking seventh place overall for the 2023-24 season.

The Hydro Flask U.S. Snowboard Halfpipe Team will take a well-deserved break from competition to focus on recovery ahead of upcoming team training camps.

RESULTS
Women
Men

On the second day of racing in Canmore, Alberta, the Stifel U.S. Ski Team had another historic day in the skate sprint. Through the qualifications, where the top 30 for both men and women advance to the sprint heats, 11 qualified, marking the most Americans advancing to the heats in recorded history.

Jessie Diggins led the team with a fifth-place result, after her historic win just a day earlier in the 15k skate, followed by a slew of teammates, some of them having their first-ever World Cup starts. At the end of the day, 11 U.S. athletes graced the top 30, once again increasing the never-ending momentum felt this season by the Stifel U.S. Cross Country Ski Team. 

In the women's qualifications, Diggins led the way, crossing the finish in sixth, followed by Rosie Brennan in 15th, Julia Kern in 17th, Lauren Jortberg of Stratton Mountain School in 20th and Erin Bianco of Bridger Ski Foundation making her career-first sprint heats in 25th. On the men's side, JC Schoonmaker led the team qualifying in fifth followed closely by an impressive run by Jack Young, a Colby College Nordic Ski Team athlete called up to the World Cup for the first time in his career, qualifying in 11th. Behind Young was Ben Ogden in 22nd, Logan Diekmann of Bridger Ski Foundation in 24th, Kevin Bolger of Team Birkie in 26th, and Gus Schumacher 27th. 

Into the quarterfinals, the athletes would take another fast lap around the intensely challenging sprint loop that featured sharp corners, fast downhills, and long uphills - a course that challenges even the best sprinters in the world. Though many did not advance onto the semis, this day is a step in the right direction with several USA athletes punching their tickets through to the heats.

"I was expecting to make the qualifications and knew I could do it," said Young, post-race. "Going into the heats, it was a lot like the rounds of the World Cups I've been watching my whole life. It went out easy, everyone slowed down at the top of the hill, and then everyone went for it on the downhill. I unfortunately did not advance, but it was a blast."  

Into the semis, Diggins, Kern and Ogden represented the red, white and blue on the start line, surrounded by fans - thousands of them - lining the entire course, creating an electric and impressionably loud atmosphere. 

Diggins ultimately wad the only American moving onto the finals as Ogden and Kern were just seconds away from qualifying, ending their day just short of the final round. 

In the women's final, things suddenly got interesting. "I don't think I've ever done a race like that," said Diggins, in her post-race reflections. "On the World Cup, you usually don't see that happening in the women's race in general." Diggins is referring to how the entire pack of six women nearly came to a stop at various points in the race - often a tactic used to not lead the downhill, which often allows your competitors to draft and slingshot ahead going into the finishing straightaway. "A lot of courses don't have this dramatic long straight slingshot and today, it was just fascinating. I tried to time it right, but it's a safer bet to just blast my way through, get up there, and see what happens. I sure tried and proud of myself for that and did what I had to do today!"

As the day came to a close, Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo of Norway won for the men and Kristine Stavaas Skistad of Norway won for the women. The top 30 included Diggins in fifth, Kern 12th, Jortberg 19th, Brennan 26th and Bianco 29th. For the men, six landed in the top 30, led by Ogden in seventh, Diekmann 16th, Bolger 18th, Schumacher 19th, Schoonmaker 22nd and Young 23rd. 

Tomorrow, the athletes will once again turn around for another race, the 20k classic. Watch LIVE on skiandsnowboard.live. 

RESULTS
Women
Men

The Stifel U.S. Freestyle Ski Team aerials athletes are on the road again in Lac-Beauport, Quebec, Canada, where Karenna Elliott earned her first World Cup win in Saturday’s World Cup event. 

Lac-Beauport is a new stop on the aerials World Cup circuit, but it holds a strong freestyle history and is the home of many Canadian team members as their training site. 

The weather on course was varied, with rain scattered throughout the afternoon, causing sticky snow conditions. The unpredictable weather and snow caused athletes to land further down the hill than they were used to, leading to overcorrections for many. 

The U.S. started the day strong, sending four women and two men into the finals. Kaila Kuhn and Connor Curran led the way for the U.S., qualifying in third and 10th, respectively. In only his sixth World Cup start, Curran competed a triple for the first time, completing a successful back full full full. 

Due to deteriorating conditions in finals, Elliott was the sole U.S. team member to make it to super finals. In the first super finals of her career, she made sure to make her team proud. First, Elliott completed her back full double full for the first time in competition, executing it beautifully. With this jump, she was able to follow up her first super finals by making her first podium, standing on the top box.

"[This] feels like an absolute dream. I had never made a super final round before, so all I wanted to do today was to land a nice jump and make the top 6. Then, after landing my jump, I knew I was in a good position, but after seeing the results come in, I lost it, realizing what had just happened. I cried after realizing I got my first podium and then balled my eyes out when I won," said Elliott. "That was only my ninth full double full on snow, and first one in competition, so to be able to land it was incredible! I actually did one in training the day before yesterday, and it didn’t go well, and I really hurt my knee. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to even jump today as our team doctors almost pulled me. But once I was in the final round, my coach and I decided that if I wanted a chance at a podium, then I would need the full double full and go down with a fight."

Just outside the super finals was Megan Smallhouse, who finished seventh, followed by Kaila Kuhn in ninth, Kyra Dossa in 11th, Winter Vinecki in 13th and Tasia Tanner in 14th. 

On the men’s side, Chris Lillis led the team, finishing seventh, and was joined by Connor Curran in the finals, who took eighth. Ashton Salwan landed in 23rd, Derek Krueger in 24th and Ian Schoenwald in 26th. 

The team is headed right into another aerials World Cup in Lac-Beauport on Saturday, Feb. 11. Women’s qualification begins at 9:30 a.m. ET, followed by men's at 11:30 a.m. ET. Tune in to finals live tomorrow at 1:45 p.m. ET on skiandsnowboard.live. 

RESULTS
Women
Men

Stifel U.S. Ski Team's own AJ Hurt continues to wow this season, earning her first-ever giant slalom podium on Saturday, Feb. 10, in Soldeu, Andorra, where she finished third overall after starting the second run in the sixth position. She finished just 0.15 seconds behind the day's winner, Switzerland's Lara Gut-Behrami, and 0.14 off second-place finisher New Zealand's Alice Robinson.

Hurt, 23, is the first U.S. woman other than Mikaela Shiffrin to grace a giant slalom podium since Lindsey Vonn in 2015. It's also her personal best in the discipline and her second podium in one season. Coming off an injury that took her out of the game for 2022-23 makes her success so far in 2024 even more surreal. 

"I didn't really know what to expect coming into today because I've never been here before," said Hurt. "I was hurt all last season, so I'm excited to be back; I'm excited even to be ski racing at all. So I went as hard as I could, and I'm glad this is the outcome."

Today, Hurt's result in the giant slalom moved her into position to qualify for her first World Cup Finals, another milestone accomplishment in the 2023-24 season. Not to mention, she shared the podium with a lifelong ski buddy, Robinson, who she skied alongside at Palisades Tahoe when the two were cutting their teeth trying to get their first World Cup starts. 

In addition to Hurt's success, Paula Moltzan was able to squeeze into a stacked top 15, finishing 11th overall and hanging on to her top 15 position in the giant slalom overall standings. 

Mikaela Shiffrin did not ski. However, she is back on snow, and working on testing her knee, to see when she will be able to return to racing.

Up next, Hurt and Moltzan, as well as Lila Lapanja, will represent the U.S. in Sunday's slalom. First run kicks off at 4:30 a.m. ET on skiandsnowboard.live, with second run starting at 7:30 a.m. ET. 

RESULTS 
Women's giant slalom

STARTERS
Women's slalom (name/bib)
Paula Moltzan (3)
AJ Hurt (33)
Lila Lapajna (42)