It was a standout day for the Stifel U.S. Freestyle Ski Team moguls athletes, with two on the podium, six in the top six, and now seven athletes ranked in the top 10 in the World Cup standings. In the second event at Ruka, Finland, Olivia Giaccio finished second, her second podium of the event and Jaelin Kauf bounced back from a tough crash on Sunday to finish on the podium in third place.

“I’m really thankful that I was able to lay down runs throughout the whole weekend,” said Giaccio. “It was so fun to be back in action and build on my performances round after round. I couldn’t have asked for a better comeback to World Cup.”

Kauf tried to keep the pressure low on Monday to ease back into things.

“Yeah tough start yesterday, but some good takeaways and learning moments from it,” said Kauf. “Today, I took a bit more of a mellow start to it and just tried to get a top-to-bottom under my belt. After getting that out of the way, I was able to just focus on skiing my run and having fun out there!” 

Eight Stifel U.S. Ski Team athletes advanced past the qualification round, two more than the day prior. Giaccio qualified in the top spot, followed by Tess Johnson in second, Kauf in fourth, Kasey Hogg in ninth and Alli Macuga in 16th. On the men’s side, Nick Page qualified fourth, Asher Michel ninth and Charlie Mickel 11th. Kylie Kariotis just barely missed the finals, finishing in 17th place. Landon Wendler finished 22nd. Liz Lemley and Dylan Walczyk did not finish but skied off ok. 

In finals round one, the U.S. women continued to show their dominance, with four athletes advancing in the top six to super finals. Macuga was just outside the bubble, finishing the day seventh. Page continued to lead the way for the men, finishing fourth in F1, followed by Mickel in fifth, the positions they would hold throughout the rest of the day. Michel ended the day 10th. 

There were nothing but clean runs put down in the women’s super finals, cementing the depth of talent in this women’s field. Kasey Hogg finished sixth, her sixth super finals finish. Current World Cup leader Johnson was just off the podium in fourth place, growing her lead in the overall World Cup standings. Giaccio and Kauf were joined on the podium by Jakara Anthony of Australia, the reigning Olympic moguls champion. 

“I’m so stoked for this team this weekend too,” said Kauf. “This was a gnarly course and took a lot of fight to put down runs, so I'm pretty impressed with this team for putting it down all weekend.”

“As always, this team is so special to be a part of,” echoed Giaccio. “It was awesome to share podiums with Tess and Jae throughout the weekend, and celebrate Nick and Charlie’s great results as well. Thanks x1000 to my whole crew — coaches, parents, friends, sports psych — for helping me get back to the starting gate this weekend. The process back from injury this summer was really tough, so it definitely wouldn’t have been possible without the U.S. Team staff and the people in my corner.”

This World Cup was also momentous due to the multiple successful comebacks made across the team. Giaccio, Lemley and Wendler all made their return to competition in Ruka and took steps in the right direction for the rest of the season.  

“I also want to shout out the numerous comebacks from major injury this weekend (Liz, Landon) — that was a huge milestone, and it was so cool to watch live,” remarked Giaccio. “I’m psyched for them.”

Next up, the team will stay in Ruka to train through the holidays before their next World Cup at the beginning of the year in Val St. Come, Canada, Jan. 9-10, 2026.

RESULTS
Women
Men

The moguls World Cup opener in Ruka, Finland, was filled with excitement, including Tess Johnson standing atop the podium for the third time in her career and second time in moguls. Olivia Giaccio and Nick Page finished on the podium, each in third place. This win moves Johnson into the top spot in the season standings. 

Johnson was filled with emotion after the score for France’s Perrine Laffont was announced, slotting Laffont into second place. 

“I worked really hard, and this just means a lot,” said Johnson. “I just love skiing, and I had so much fun out there today.”

Johnson led the women from the start, qualifying in the top spot with a perfect combination of great time, turns and air scores. Five U.S. women advanced to the finals: Liz Lemley in fourth, Kasey Hogg in seventh, Giaccio in eighth and Alli Macuga in 10th. Last year’s overall winner, Jaelin Kauf, crashed in qualification but skied away healthy. Page led the way for the U.S. men qualifying in second place. 

Johnson, Giaccio, Lemley and Page finished finals in the top six, advancing to the super finals to compete for a podium position. This was Lemley’s first World Cup back after an injury took her out last season, and she continued to push throughout the day, finishing just off the podium in fourth place. Giaccio was also out at the end of last season after a crash in China, and finished third place, earning her 19th World Cup podium. Johnson, one of the most consistent skiers on the circuit, was on a roll all day long and her super finals run was one to watch. Between her unique jumps and clean turns, her result was a surprise to no one but herself, as she was overcome with emotion at the finish. 

The men’s super final was filled with ups and downs as multiple men went down. Page threw down a clean run featuring a huge cork 10 on the bottom air to finish third, the ninth podium of his career. 

The athletes take on the bumps in Ruka again tomorrow, Dec. 8th, for a second moguls World Cup starting at 9:30 am ET.

RESULTS
Women
Men

The Stifel U.S. Ski Team aerials athletes wrapped up a fantastic season opener on Saturday in Ruka, Finland, with Chris Lillis landing on the podium in third place, the 15th podium of his career. Kyra Dossa had a standout performance, finishing in fourth place, her best career finish. 

The athletes have spent the last few weeks training in Ruka, which has become a familiar starting point for the athletes as they prepare for the season. The weather was consistent all day, with a packed surface built for jumping. 

Today, for Lillis, it was all about learning and improving as he heads into the rest of the season. 

“It's always a good start to the season to get on the podium,” said Lillis. My reaction was really more from an execution standpoint, just didn't quite execute that jump the way I wanted to. As we build through the season, I'm gonna be looking to put down bigger and better jumps in the super final for sure. As we get through Secret Garden, I’m looking to build bigger tricks and start throwing some more quints and get ready for the Olympics.” 

In the qualification round, Lillis led the way for the men, taking the top spot, followed by teammate Quinn Dehlinger in second place. Connor Curran qualified in 10th. Ashton Salwan finished the day 13th, Derek Krueger in 21st and Ian Schoenwald in 33rd. On the women’s side, Kaila Kuhn took the top position for the Americans in fourth, followed by Dani Loeb in eighth, Tasia Tanner in ninth and Dossa in 10th. Winter Vinecki took a hard fall in qualification but skied away on her own, finishing 26th. 

In the finals, Dehlinger stayed consistent in second position, and Lillis rounded out the top six that round, advancing to super finals in fifth place. Curran finished 10th overall. Dossa laid down a beautiful full full in finals, advancing in fourth place alongside Loeb in fifth. Tanner ended the day eighth, and Kuhn in 12th. 

Athletes from all nations experienced trouble with landings in the super finals, but Dossa was able to land a clean jump to finish fourth, her best career result, improving from a previous eighth place. Loeb tied her personal best of fifth place. Lillis put down a full double full full, landing in third place and Dehlinger finished fourth. 

Next up, the team will spend a few days training before heading to Secret Garden, China, for their next World Cup, including aerials and mixed aerials team, Dec. 19-20. 

RESULTS
Women
Men