With five athletes on the podium seven times so far this season, the Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team is off to their strongest start of the season in years. Yet, there have been some season-ending injuries and brutal crashes that have plagued the speed teams. 

Mikaela Shiffrin, Tommy Ford, Paula Moltzan, Breezy Johnson, and Ryan Cochran-Siegle have all graced the podium on the big stage. Up-and-comers have scored World Cup points for the first time, including AJ Hurt, Keely Cashman, and Sam Morse. Numerous athletes have matched or achieved career bests, including Jared Goldberg, Bryce Bennett, Nina O'Brien, and River Radamus. 

Unfortunately, Kyle Negomir and Sam Dupratt have both suffered season-ending injuries. After a strong downhill training run (eighth-fastest) in Val d'Isere, France, Kyle fell crossing the finish line, sustaining an MCL, ACL, four broken metacarpals, and undiagnosed shoulder pain—all on the right side of his body. He is back home and will sit the rest of the season out. 

 

 

 

 

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In a violent crash in the second of two downhill training runs in Val Gardena, Italy, Sam sustained bilateral lower extremity injuries. He was treated locally and will return to the U.S. for further care. He amazed everyone with his resilience and positive attitude. 

 

 

 

 

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On the women's side, two-time Olympian Alice McKennis crashed in the downhill at Val d'Isere, France on Friday, sustaining a fractured right ankle, requiring surgical intervention and will be out for 8-10 weeks.

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Jackie Wiles crashed on Sunday in the super-G, sustaining a broken clavicle, and is getting surgery in Europe. She says, "Ready to get this broken clavicle fixed and get back on snow! Physically down for the moment, but not out!"

 

 

 

 

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These athletes are the epitome of resilience and are already well on their way to recovery. Stay tuned for more information.

Learn more about how you can support U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes like Sam, Kyle, Alice, and Jackie this season at KeepTheFlameAlive.org.

The chaotic, exciting, rough and tumble season of FIS Cross Country World Cup team sprinting opened Sunday in Dresden, Germany, with three Davis U.S. Cross Country Teams advancing to the finals, led by Jessie Diggins and Sophie Caldwell Hamilton finishing fourth.

“That was the most fun race I’ve ever done!” exclaimed Hannah Halvorsen, who teamed up with Julia Kern (USA II) to finish eighth. “I crashed in both the semi and final, which I felt bad about, but I definitely came away with an awesome experience. My teammate Julia skied amazing and our skis were super fast.”

There were numerous crashes and collisions throughout to race, especially during the exchanges on the fast, narrow Robotron Ski Arena course along the banks of the Elbe River. After winning their semifinal race, Jessie and Sophie came into the finals as one of the favorites, along with Switzerland I and Russia I. But in the finals, the exchanges - where one teammate tags off by touching any part of their teammate's body all the while in a full sprint, proved to be the deciding factor of the race. 

Heading into the last two exchanges, Russia I and Switzerland I had a clear advantage over Slovenia, Czech Republic I, and USA I (Jessie and Sophie). Down the stretch, Switzerland I out-sprinted Russia I to take the victory, with Slovenia I finishing third. Sophie sprinted past Tereza Beranova of Czech Republic I to finish fourth.

“We fought hard out there, and I  so proud of all our teams for giving it our best effort,” Jessie said. “Personally I struggled a bit with positioning on such a short and tactical loop, but I was proud of how I held my own in city sprinting on a course that challenged me in different ways. I thought we had great skis and it’s nice to feel that we’re working our way into better and better racing form.”

In the men’s race, Kevin Bolger and Simi Hamilton (USA I) represented the U.S. in the finals. On the opening lap, Kevin was third into the first exchange, however, Simi snapped a pole, so Kevin handed him one, but the ensuing chaos dropped Simi to the back of the 10-team field. As one of the best athletes in the race though, Simi turned on the power and moved back into the pack as Russia, France, and Italy kept the pace in check.

Down the stretch, Russia I took the narrow victory over France I, with Italy I in third. USA I (Simi and Kevin) finished ninth.

Overall, it was an outstanding weekend for the Davis U.S. Cross Country Team as they wrap up Period 1 of the World Cup season with five U.S. Women in the top 30 in the overall World Cup standings, including Rosie Brennan holding the overall World Cup lead, and the World Cup overall distance lead. For the men, Simi and Kevin sit eighth and ninth respectively in the overall World Cup sprint standings, and both are in the top 30 overall World Cup standings as well.

Most importantly, the Davis U.S. Cross Country Team walks away from Period 1 with a number of athletes posting World Cup best results, including:

• Rosie Brennan, two World Cup victories, first Davos freestyle sprint; first Davos 10k freestyle
• Hailey Swirbul, third Davos 10k freestyle
• Kevin Bolger, sixth Dresden freestyle sprint
• Logan Hanneman, ninth Dresden freestyle sprint
• JC Schoonmaker, 14th Dresden freestyle sprint
• Gus Schumacher, first World Cup Points, 24th Ruka 15k pursuit
• Hannah Halvorsen, first World Cup Points, 23rd in Dresden sprint

Up next, the team will enjoy a bit of Holiday downtime while preparing for World Cup Period 2, which kicks off with the FIS Tour de Ski in Val Müstair, Switzerland with a freestyle sprint on January 1.

RESULTS
Women’s team sprint
Men’s team sprint

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

HOW TO WATCH
All Times EST

Sunday, Dec. 20
5:00 p.m. FIS Cross Country Men and Women's Team Sprint - Same Day Delayed Broadcast, Dresden, GER, Broadcast Olympic Channel
7:00 p.m. FIS Cross Country Men and Women's Team Sprint - Same Day Delayed Broadcast, Dresden, GER, Broadcast NBCSN

Tommy Ford continued his stellar streak of giant slalom results, finishing fifth in the Alta Badia GS and leading four U.S. men into the points.

Just on the other side of the valley from the weekend’s speed events in Val Gardena, Italy, Alta Badia’s conditions were perfect. The snow on the Gran Risa was ideal—not too grippy or slick—which resulted in high speeds and a close race. Alexis Pinturault of France won the race with young Atle Lie McGrath of Norway in second and Justin Murisier of Switzerland third.

Tommy was 14th first run, but threw down the third-fastest second run to take fifth place overall—matching his fifth place in Alta Badia in 2018. While he was happy to score another excellent result, he knows there’s more in him. “First run, I didn’t quite have the fire and made a better adjustment second run and allowed that to come out,” he said. “I was a bit round and had a hard time finding the rhythm first run, but second run, I was more in the fall line and hitting with more power and burned all the way through the finish.”

Tommy has already racked up three top-10 giant slalom results this season—a sixth and second place in Santa Caterina at the beginning of December and now a fifth in Alta Badia—assuring U.S. fans that he’s one to watch. He suggested his upward trajectory last year, winning the Beaver Creek GS in front of the home crowd and scoring a podium in Japan, so with a (hopefully) complete season this year, U.S. fans should continue to see Tommy at the top of his game throughout 2020-21.

Including Tommy, four Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team men finished in the points in Alta Badia. River Radamus turned it on and hammered to 20th place from bib 39—his best World Cup GS finish in his career so far. Ted Ligety was 26th and Ryan Cochran-Siegle, fresh off his second place finish in Saturday’s downhill in Val Gardena, was 29th.

Bridger Gile did not qualify for a second run. George Steffey did not finish first run.

So what’s next for Tommy now that the giant slalom is over? “Ravioli and a nap,” he said. He then heads to Christmas in Austria with his girlfriend and fellow Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team member Laurenne Ross.

However, not all of the World Cup men are done for the holidays yet, as there's one more slalom in Alta Badia on Monday and a night slalom in Madonna di Campiglio on Tuesday. Ben Ritchie, Luke Winters, and 2019 NCAA slalom champion (DU) Jett Seymour will represent the stars and stripes in the races.

RESULTS
Men’s giant slalom

HOW TO WATCH
All Times EST

Sunday, Dec. 20
11:00 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Giant Slalom - Same Day Broadcast, Alta Badia, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Monday, Dec. 21
4:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 1 - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Streaming Peacock
7:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 2 - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Streaming Peacock
7:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Tuesday, Dec. 22
11:30 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 1 - LIVE, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, Streaming Peacock
2:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 2 - LIVE, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, Streaming Peacock
2:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom - LIVE, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, Broadcast Olympic Channel

Twenty-one-year-old Keely Cashman took home her first FIS World Cup top-10 result in the Val d’Isere super-G on Sunday, finishing 10th.

Ester Ledecka of the Czech Republic, best known for her surprising win in the PyeongChang Olympic super-G, won her first World Cup super-G. Just .03 seconds behind her was Corinne Suter of Switzerland, who made it three podiums in a row in Val d’Isere. Federica Brignone, who sat out Saturday’s downhill after crashing hard in Friday’s race, was third.

Running bib 35, Keely attacked from the back for the third time this weekend with her typical no-holds-barred style and was thrilled to come down and see herself in 10th place. “It’s pretty crazy,” she said. “These are my first World Cup speed races in Europe, so I didn’t know what to expect. I wanted to ski confident and to ski how I know I can ski and I knew if I did that, it would work out. I’m happy with the results.”

Keely’s star has been rising quickly over the past few seasons, culminating in a win of the 2020 NorAm downhill and overall title and a bronze in the 2020 Junior World Championship alpine combined. While she raced a handful of North American World Cups last season, this season, she’s racing in Europe with the team. And so far, so good. Over the weekend in Val d’Isere, she put down a 17th place in the first downhill, 16th place in the second downhill, and finally cracked the top 10 in the super-G.

Keely credits a lot of her success to her Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team teammates, who have helped the World Cup rookie learn the ropes and inspired her with results like Breezy’s podiums in Val d’Isere. “This is my first year with the speed crew,” said Keely. “It’s awesome to have a lot of older girls to take me under their wing. They’re super helpful. Watching Breezy do so good this weekend hypes everyone up and everyone is just so pumped to ski. When everyone is building off each other, it’s good for everyone.”

On top of that, the speed training offered by Copper Mountain, Colo. at the U.S. Ski Team Speed Center this November was crucial, and it's paying off for the Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team speed crew—both men and women—as they racked up personal bests and podiums this weekend and looked comfortable in the process. 

Rounding out the U.S. team, Isabella Wright was 33rd, and Breezy Johnson—who caught an edge and had a great recovery, narrowly missed doing the splits—37th. Jackie Wiles crashed and did not finish.  

Next up, the women have a short break for the holidays before the tech team heads to Semmering, Austria December 28.

RESULTS
Women’s super-G

HOW TO WATCH
All Times EST

Sunday, Dec. 20
9:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Women's Super-G - Same Day Delayed Broadcast, Val d'Isere, FRA, Broadcast NBCSN

Sophie Caldwell Hamilton led another huge day for the Davis U.S. Cross Country Ski Team, finishing second in the freestyle sprint in Dresden, Germany, Saturday. 

Eight Americans advanced to the heats, with four advancing to the finals. Sophie took her 10th career individual World Cup podium as Jessie Diggins posted her best result of the season so far, finishing fourth. "Wow! What an incredible day for the team," Sophie said. "Two men and two women in the finals, Julia (Kern) and Logan (Hanneman) in the semis, JC (Schoonmaker) with a near miss to semis, and Hannah (Halvorsen) qualifying for her first World Cup heats!"

In the men’s race, both Simi Hamilton and Kevin Bolger advanced to the finals, with Simi finishing fifth, and Kevin posting a World Cup career-best result in sixth. "So psyched to get to the finals for the first time, and especially racing with Simi," Kevin said. 

Racing under a brilliant blue sky along the banks of the Elbe River at the Robotron Ski Arena in downtown Dresden, the Americans came into Saturday’s individual freestyle sprint fresh, fast, and ready for results. Jessie, Sophie, Julia Kern, and Hannah Halvorsen all qualified for the heats, with Hannah qualifying for the first time and scoring her first career World Cup points. Four U.S. men qualified for the heats, including Simi, Kevin, Logan Hanneman, and JC Schoonmaker. Gus Schumacher finished 43rd and Tyler Kornfield was 52nd.

"What a day!" Jessie said. "For me, the best part was that I really, truly had fun out there! Seeing Hannah make the heats for the first time brought such an adrenaline rush, and seeing so many of our boys in the (semifinals) and then Sim and Kevin in the final, and of course Sophie skiing like a boss!"

In the opening quarterfinals, JC skied an impressive race to finish third in the first heat. He looked to advance to the semifinals as a Lucky Loser, however, in the third heat, Logan snagged one of the two Lucky Losers slots and knocked JC out. Kevin displayed patience and tactics in his quarterfinal heat, coming back from the fifth position to finish second. Simi won his quarterfinal heat. Jessie won her quarterfinal heat as Sophie and Julia each finished second in their respective heats to advance to the semifinals.

In the semifinal round, Sophie was second and Jessie advanced to the finals as one of the Lucky Losers. For the men, Simi and Kevin skied in the faster second semi-final heat, finishing third and fourth respectively with both of them advancing as Lucky Losers.  

In the finals, as is so often the case on the tight Robotron Ski Arena out and back course, it came down to a drag race for the podium with Switzerland’s Nadine Faehndricht taking her first World Cup victory. Sophie was second at 0.32 seconds back, while Anamarija Lampic of Slovenia was third. "I felt better and better as the day went on and was definitely motivated by the success of my teammates throughout the day," Sophie said. "It was a course filled with turns and bumps and broken poles, which made an exciting day and I was thrilled to land on the podium."

In the men’s final, Italy’s Federico Pellegrino took his 15th career individual World Cup sprint victory. Great Britain’s Andrew Young was second, and Russia’s Gleb Retivykh was third.

Rosie Brennan, who is not competing in Dresden in order to continue her preparation for the upcoming FIS Tour de Ski January 1-10, continues to lead the overall World Cup standings. Jessie moved up to eighth in the overall World Cup standings, and Sophie is 16th. 

Up next, all 10 U.S. Ski Team athletes will team up in pairs for the freestyle team sprint Sunday in Dresden. "I’m so proud of this team and the atmosphere we’ve created in our little bubble, and we’re really feeding off one another’s happiness," Jessie said. "My own day was exciting as city sprinting isn’t exactly what I’m known for, but my body felt good, and I’m just so pumped for the team sprint here tomorrow!"

RESULTS
Women’s freestyle sprint
Men’s freestyle sprint

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

HOW TO WATCH
All Times EST

Sunday, Dec. 20
6:45 a.m. FIS Cross Country World Cup Men and Women's Team Sprint - LIVE, Dresden, GER, Streaming Peacock
5:00 p.m. FIS Cross Country Men and Women's Team Sprint - Same Day Delayed Broadcast, Dresden, GER, Broadcast Olympic Channel
7:00 p.m. FIS Cross Country Men and Women's Team Sprint - Same Day Delayed Broadcast, Dresden, GER, Broadcast NBCSN

Ryan Cochran-Siegle took second place and his first FIS World Cup podium in Val Gardena, Italy to lead three Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team men into the top six. Bryce Bennett was just off the podium in fourth and Jared Goldberg was sixth.

The Norwegians again showed their consistency, with Aleksander Aamodt Kilde taking his second win in two days. Beat Feuz of Switzerland was third.

Ryan, who has mostly been lauded as a giant slalom and super-G specialist, was surprised to find his first World Cup podium in a glider’s downhill. “Coming here, I didn’t think this would be a hill I should worry too much about,” he said. “That way it made it easy. This isn’t a hill I should do well—it’s such a gliding hill. I just focused on the skiing and it allowed me to perform well.”

But Ryan’s low-key style and textbook technique gave him an edge, which left him only .22 seconds off of the lead. “I had just a nice neutral approach to this hill,” he said. “You have to ski with a good intensity but not overdo it and just focus on the next turn ahead. They did a fantastic job getting the hill ready and it was a lot of fun to ski. I think I tend to do well when I’m having fun.”

But maybe Ryan’s podium in Val Gardena was written in the stars. Fun fact: His mother, Olympic slalom champion Barbara Cochran, took second place on this hill in the FIS Ski World Championships slalom in 1970. With his podium, Ryan became the first American man to grab a World Cup podium in speed since 2017, ending the longest U.S. men's downhill podium drought. 

The Val Gardena track has always treated the Americans well and the team hinted that they were podium hunting in the downhill training runs, but the men showed that they wanted those results, packing in four men in the top 15 and three of those in the top six. Bryce Bennett was just behind Ryan in fourth—his best result since he was fourth in both Bormio and Val Gardena in 2018. “I keep getting the wooden spoon here—the old fourth place—and I’m getting pretty over it!” Bryce joked. “One of these days it’ll happen. I’m feeling better skiing and more comfortable.”

But more seriously, Bryce couldn’t have been more excited for his teammates. “I’m so pumped for Ryan,” he said. “He worked super hard. He’s one of my best friends on the team and I couldn’t be more excited for him. He’s just really good at skiing. You can’t argue that. I’m psyched for him. I’m psyched for Goldberg—he had a great day. It’s what we needed as a team.”

Jared Goldberg, who showed strength in the downhill training runs with a win and a fourth, placed sixth—his best World Cup result in his career and a promising platform to build off of for the 2020-21 season. Travis Ganong rounded out the Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team men in the top 15, taking 14th place. Sam Morse also finished in the points, taking 29th—only his second time scoring points in his career. Middlebury skier Erik Arvidsson was 58th.

Next up, the men pass the baton to the tech team, who have a giant slalom in Alta Badia, Italy on Sunday and a slalom on Monday, then a night slalom in Madonna di Campiglio on Tuesday. The speed team has a short break for the holidays before heading to Bormio, Italy for a downhill and super-G.

RESULTS
Men’s downhill

HOW TO WATCH
All Times EST

Saturday, Dec. 19
10:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Downhill - Same Day Broadcast, Val Gardena, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Sunday, Dec. 20
4:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Giant Slalom, run 1 - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Streaming Peacock
7:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Giant Slalom, run 2 - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Streaming Peacock
7:30 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Giant Slalom - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Broadcast Olympic Channel
11:00 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Giant Slalom - Same Day Broadcast, Alta Badia, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Monday, Dec. 21
4:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 1 - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Streaming Peacock
7:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 2 - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Streaming Peacock
7:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Tuesday, Dec. 22
2:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 1 - LIVE, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, Streaming Peacock
2:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 2 - LIVE, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, Streaming Peacock
2:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom - LIVE, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, Broadcast Olympic Channel

Breezy Johnson went two for two, pocketing her second downhill podium in two days in Val d’Isere, France, skiing into third place.

The podium looked eerily similar to Friday’s FIS World Cup downhill, with Sofia Goggia of Italy taking the win and Corinne Suter of Switzerland in second. Friday’s downhill saw Corinne win and Sofia in second. Breezy was third both days.

It was a bumpy ride for the women on the dark track, but Breezy was able to power through it, using all the strength she worked so hard for in the gym this summer. She flew into the finish .27 seconds off of Sofia and only .03 seconds behind Corinne, showing that she’s gunning for those higher spots on the podium.

“I just want to see what I can do,” said Breezy, whose two third place finishes in Val d'Isere are her first two World Cup podiums. “I want to go in and ski my best. After injury, I’m just trying to seize every moment and seize every day, so maybe I’ll put a threat in there with Goggia and Corinne!”

Breezy has been plagued by knee injuries throughout her career, causing her to miss the 2018-19 season and some of the 2019-20 season, but she hasn’t let those obstacles keep her from her ambitions.

“These podiums have been coming on for a while,” said Breezy. “I definitely have a goal to win a World Cup and go for a World Championship medal this year and I think this is just the beginning. We just keep working. My goal every day is to ski my best and if it’s the best it’s pretty freaking sweet. I want to see how far I can push myself.”

It was a solid day for the rest for the Land Rover U.S. Alpine Ski Team women, stacking three in the top 20. Attacking from bib 44 and in only her fourth downhill World Cup start, Keely Cashman was well on her way to a top-10 result, but skied up on to the net Bode Miller-style and lost time. However, even with that exciting recovery, she still finished 16th, a personal best for the 21-year-old. Just behind Keely was Jackie Wiles, who finished in 17th place. Isabella Wright did not finish, but is OK and skied down.

The women race super-G on Sunday to finish off the weekend in Val d’Isere.

RESULTS
Women’s downhill

HOW TO WATCH
All Times EST

Saturday, Dec. 19
5:00 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Women's Downhill - Same Day Delayed Broadcast, Val d'Isere, FRA, Broadcast NBC
9:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Women's Downhill - Same Day Delayed Broadcast, Val d'Isere, FRA, Broadcast NBCSN

Sunday, Dec. 20
5:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Women's Super-G - LIVE, Val d'Isere, FRA, Broadcast Olympic Channel
5:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Women's Super-G - LIVE, Val d'Isere, FRA, Streaming Peacock
9:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Women's Super-G - Same Day Delayed Broadcast, Val d'Isere, FRA, Broadcast NBCSN

U.S. Nationals

The 2020-21 season kicked off last month with a flurry of high-level competition at Copper Mountain.  Two races were held in each event, one National Championship and one FIS, and many athletes notched personal best results.  It was exciting for domestic athletes to be able to race toe-to-toe with U.S. Ski Team members to start the year.  Congratulations to the juniors who achieved podium-level results: Isaiah Nelson (USST/BHSC), AJ Hurt (USST/SVST), Allie Resnick (USST/SSCV), and Ava Sunshine Jemison (BMA). There was a tremendous amount of momentum for the whole country coming out of the series, and a special thanks goes to Copper Mountain for hosting such exceptional races! 
 

Copper Speed Projects

Directly after the U.S. Nationals finished, U.S. Ski & Snowboard hosted open, club-facilitated developmental speed training on the Copper Mountain Speed Center.  Coaches from around the western U.S. brought U14, U16, and FIS-level athletes to work through a speed progression under the leadership of U.S. Ski & Snowboard staff.  Reaching 200 athletes over the course of 10 days, the athletic focus was on basic speed skills: jumping, gliding, aerodynamics, and skiing over terrain.  The FIS athletes had the bonus of finishing their five-day training block with two SG races under blue-bird skies.

COVID-19

Both the U.S. Nationals and the Copper SG races featured extensive COVID mitigation measures to ensure that the races were run as safely as possible.  For the Nationals, every athlete, coach, and official was tested upon entry, and then again once more during the week.  For the FIS SG races, every athlete, coach, and official was required to complete a daily health check before arriving at the venue.  In each case, it was successfully shown that ski racing can move forward with thoughtful steps taken to mitigate congestion points at the start, finish, and on course during inspection.  Granted, there is risk with almost any activity we undertake in this pandemic, but as an individual, naturally socially-distanced, outdoor sport, alpine ski racing has distinct advantages that should allow us to continue doing what we love this winter! 

In spite of the successful precedent established at Copper, we are having difficulties hosting races this December.  Some of the challenges have been weather-related, but in other cases, the local restrictions have been too strict for us to operate.  Still, it is encouraging to see the Western Region moving forward with FIS races in Jackson, WY this week, and we will look to build on that example after the holidays. 

In spite of all the challenges the COVID-19 pandemic has wrought, the stark reality has forced us to be thankful for what’s most important: our collective health, the chance to remain engaged at work and school, and the opportunities we have to enjoy the outdoors.  This winter, more than ever, skiing will prove to be a vital part of our lives.  The slow start to the racing season is only a small hiccup in the larger picture and one that has the side benefit of allowing our athletes to train more and hone their skills for the long-term.  Let’s all work together to make the most of the current situation.

American Tara Geraghty-Moats won the first-ever women’s FIS Nordic Combined World Cup in Ramsau, Austria, Friday.

“This is something that I have dreamed about since I was about 10 years old,” she said after prevailing by 1.5 seconds over Norwegian Gyda Westvold Hansen, who had a 39-second advantage over the American going into the 5k cross country portion after scoring the highest in the ski jump. Tara finished fifth in the jumping portion and then had the fastest skiing time at 13:19.3 to seal the victory. Anju Nakamura of Japan was third.

The two-time Continental Cup champion came into the event a bit unsure of her jumping, but in the end, she relied on her experience to propel her to victory and the record books. 

“Coming into this competition I was really uncertain of myself because I had not put a bib on in 10 months,” she said, “and I had 10% of my ski jumping training that I had hoped to have. But all day long I just kept telling myself that I could do it one step at a time.”

Three other Americans also competed. Annika Malacinski was 28th, Alexa Brabec finished 29th, and Tess Arnone was 30th. 

Two other World Cup Nordic combined stops that were to include men’s and women’s events this season have been canceled amid the coronavirus pandemic. The first women’s nordic combined event is scheduled for February at the FIS World Nordic Ski Championships in Oberstdorf, Germany.

“A huge thanks to my team and the FIS for finally inviting the women to the big leagues,” Tara added.

RESULTS
Women’s Nordic Combined

Ryan Cochran-Siegle led the way for the U.S. men in Val Gardena, Italy, finishing in eighth place—his first top 10 in a FIS World Cup super-G.

Val Gardena’s striking beauty didn’t distract last season’s overall World Cup champion Aleksander Aamodt Kilde of Norway, who took the win ahead of 2019-20 super-G globe winner Mauro Caviezel of Switzerland. Kjetil Jansrud of Norway was also on the podium in third—his sixth super-G podium in Val Gardena in the last seven seasons.

Ryan skied a clean and fast line on Val Gardena’s dark Saslong track to take his first top-10 result in the discipline. He had threatened a number of times last season, snagging three top 20s in the Beaver Creek, Saalbach-Hinterglemm and Hinterstoder super-Gs before the season ended early, and was excited to finally crack the elusive result bracket.

“My main focus was just to carry speed as much as I could—trusting that, not trying to be perfect and letting it go, letting it flow,” said Ryan. “I think I executed in places pretty well. Obviously still a good amount of time off the top Norwegian, so there’s still a lot to learn, but I had fun with it and trusted it and really enjoyed it. I think between my set up and approach to the whole day, it was a good day.”

Behind Ryan, Jared Goldberg attacked from bib 57 to take home 23rd place—his best super-G result since 2018. Keep an eye out for him in Saturday’s downhill. He won the first training run and was fourth in the second and he wants that result.

Travis Ganong, who was fourth in last week’s Val d’Isere super-G, also finished in the points, taking 25th place. Bryce Bennett was 33rd.

Sam DuPratt was also scheduled to race in Val Gardena, however, he crashed and sustained bilateral lower extremity injuries in the second of two downhill training runs. He has been treated locally and will return to the U.S. for further care. He is amazing everyone with his resilience.

Also missed in Val Gardena is Steven Nyman, who holds the title “King of the Saslong,” as he’s won three times (all three of his World Cup victories) on the track and has four top 10s. Steven is currently recovering from an injury home in Park City, but provided his teammates advice for the weekend’s races.

Next up, the men race downhill on Saturday in Val Gardena.

RESULTS
Men’s super-G

HOW TO WATCH
All Times EST

Saturday, Dec. 19
5:45 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Downhill - LIVE, Val Gardena, ITA, Broadcast Olympic Channel
5:45 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Downhill - LIVE, Val Gardena, ITA, Streaming Peacock
10:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Downhill - Same Day Broadcast, Val Gardena, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Sunday, Dec. 20
4:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Giant Slalom, run 1 - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Streaming Peacock
7:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Giant Slalom, run 2 - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Streaming Peacock
7:30 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Giant Slalom - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Broadcast Olympic Channel
11:00 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Giant Slalom - Same Day Broadcast, Alta Badia, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Monday, Dec. 21
4:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 1 - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Streaming Peacock
7:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 2 - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Streaming Peacock
7:00 a.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom - LIVE, Alta Badia, ITA, Broadcast NBCSN

Tuesday, Dec. 22
2:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 1 - LIVE, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, Streaming Peacock
2:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom, run 2 - LIVE, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, Streaming Peacock
2:30 p.m. FIS Alpine World Cup Men's Slalom - LIVE, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, Broadcast Olympic Channel