Utah hosting the 2019 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships means a lot to the U.S. Ski & Snowboard teams. The competition on home soil means more confidence on the courses, more family and friends in the crowd, and more ski and snowboard fans being exposed to the extraordinary state of sport that is Utah.

U.S. Freeski Team slopestyle skier and Park City local Joss Christensen is particularly overjoyed that the FIS World Champs are going to be in his hometown in 2019. “You never really know when another major event will happen in Park City, so I think this is a pretty rare opportunity to try and take advantage of,” says Christensen, “I am hyped to hopefully be competing on my home turf again with all my friends and family around to support me.”

Christensen has been an avid skier for the majority of his life. “I guess it was just a product of growing up in Park City. That was just just a way of life and seemed like that was what you were supposed to do.” His parents were ski lovers as well and put him in ski school as soon as they could. As he grew older, Christensen followed his brother into the park to learn the basics: he slid on boxes and rails, hit the jumps, and lapped the park all day long. By age 13, Christensen was in love with the sport of slopestyle skiing.

Growing up with some of the best park facilities in the world at Park City Mountain, Christensen excelled in his freeskiing career. Not only did he train on some of the best available terrain, but he was constantly surrounded by talented skiers. Christensen attributes his dedication, inspiration, and success in the sport to the freeskiing professionals that were formerly based in Park City.

“It was really cool because big names like Tanner Hall and Pep Fujas were riding out of Park City. Being able to see the best in the world at the time and see the pioneers that were pushing the sport and paving the way for future athletes was really awesome.”  

Now Christensen is one of the big names that aspiring slopestyle kids look up to. He has an impressive medal count, topping the podium at numerous World Cup and Grand Prix events, and collecting an X Games medal among his impressive results across slopestyle, halfpipe and big air events. Most would agree that topping all those achievements was his most notable victory - Olympic gold at the 2014 Sochi Olympic Winter Games.

“For me that was just unbelievable. A lot of the times I think back on it and it still doesn’t seem like it actually happened,” Christensen says. His Olympic podium experience was shared with two other U.S. Freeski Team athletes including Gus Kenworthy (Telluride, Colo.) who won the silver medal, and Nick Goepper (Lawrenceburg, Ind.) who won the bronze, making an all American podium sweep. During this time, the U.S. Freeski Team was facing intense competition from a variety of other nations. This high level of international competition still exists today, but with the help of Christensen and an impressive group of veterans that make up the men’s and women’s U.S. Freeski Team, they are fostering an environment of progression and excellence for years to come and inspiring the next generation of athletes who are aiming at the top step of the podium.

As the 2019 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships near, Christensen and his teammates are training hard for a spot on the team, which is never a guarantee with a talent-stacked U.S. Freeski Team. “World Champs is the one competition that I still haven’t really put my foot down on, so my main goal is to make the team,” Christensen says. After dealing with an injury last season, Christensen is working to get back on the snow as much as possible and get his old tricks back with confidence. Luckily, he is feeling more prepared because of his comfort with his local terrain. Riding the same rails and jumps he grew up on and having his hometown crowd cheering him on should help his confidence and mindset.

“The coolest thing is that I am going to be able to get to ride the chairlift I have ridden thousands of times in my life and compete at the place where I have spent the most time on the snow,” Christensen remarks.  

Christensen not only feels more prepared for the chance to compete in 2019, but he feels grateful for the opportunity to share his hometown with both his friends and the world. “I really like showing my hometown to all of my friends that I meet traveling on the road, and the hill that I grew up skiing on,” Christensen says. “It’s also really cool because a lot of my close friends that I grew up with don’t really have the chance to watch a contest live and now all my friends and family get to come.”  

It’s not just the fans that will make this event familiar, but also the fact that he will be skiing with teammates and friends, some of which he has known and skied with all his life on their home turf. “McRae Williams and I actually live together, which is funny because we pretty much hang out everyday,” says Christensen. “We grew up skiing ever since we were about 13 years old so we have a really close relationship. Colby Stevenson was always the younger kid in Park City following us around. I have known him since he was a little kid.”

With familiar courses, teammates, friends and family, as well as a strong love of Utah and Park City, Christensen is in a position to succeed this season. Make sure to look out for one of U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s hometown heroes during the 2019 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships.

U.S. Freeski athletes will start competition with the big air qualifiers on Feb. 2 at 8:15 a.m. (MST) at the Canyons Village - Park City Mountain, finals will follow at 7:00 p.m. Freeski slopestyle competition will commence on Feb. 5. At 8:30 a.m. at Park City Mountain. The final round of competition will begin the following day Feb. 6 at 11:00 a.m.. Don’t miss your chance to to catch this action live and tune in on NBC.

How to Watch the 2019 World Championships

NBC Sports will showcase more than 25 hours of 2019 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championship programming, including more than 10 hours of live coverage, on NBC and the NBC Sports networks.

Additional coverage will also be available on NBC Sports Gold – NBC Sports’ direct-to-consumer live streaming product – and the Olympic Channel digital platforms. A full broadcast schedule will be available on both USSkiandSnowboard.org  and  2019WorldChamps.com.
 

This weekend marks the final stop of the FIS Ski Alpine World Cup circuit in North America with women’s speed events in Lake Louise, Alberta, while the men tackle one of the circuit’s premier courses - Birds of Prey - at Beaver Creek, Colorado. The networks of NBC will broadcast/stream more than 40 hours of coverage this weekend, including more than 30 hours of live coverage.

Mikaela Shiffrin (Avon, Colo.) is fresh off her 45th career World Cup victory at Vermont’s Killington Resort and shifts gears this weekend to take on a pair of downhill races and a super-G, as she looks to build upon her speed resume where she scored her first career World Cup downhill victory last season. Unfortunately, Lindsey Vonn (Vail, Colo.) will not be heading to “Lake Lindsey” after sustaining a minor knee injury while training at Copper Mountain, Colorado.

Following up on a pair of top-20 results at Lake Louise last weekend, Ryan Cochran-Siegle (Starksboro, Vt.) looks to tame the Birds of Prey in three events this weekend - downhill, super-G, and giant slalom. Ted Ligety (Park City, Utah) finally kicks off his World Cup season this weekend at Beaver Creek after the opening GS of the season was rescheduled from Soelden, Austria, due to weather.

The U.S. Cross Country Ski Team returns to the 1994 Olympic site of Lillehammer, Norway, for three events this weekend: men and women’s freestyle sprint Friday; a mass-start women’s 10k freestyle and a 15k mass-start men’s freestyle Saturday; and a 10k classic pursuit for women and 15k classic pursuit for men Sunday.

The U.S. women have fond memories of Lillehammer as Sadie Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.) finished on the podium in the classic sprint last season with a third-place result. Teammate Jessie Diggins (Afton, Minn.) finished sixth, and Sophie Caldwell (Stratton Mountain, Vt.) was ninth.

USA Nordic’s U.S. Nordic Combined Team members Ben Loomis (Eau Claire, Wis.), Taylor Fletcher (Steamboat Springs, Colo.) and Jasper Good (Steamboat Springs, Colo.) kick off the World Cup season in Lillehammer this weekend with three stages comprising the Lillehammer Tour. Friday features an individual HS98m jump with a short 5k cross country race with athletes seeded based on jump results. On Saturday, a mass-start 10k will be followed by one jump on the HS98m hill. Sunday’s finale features another individual event, but athletes will move to the large HS140m jumping hill, and follow with a 10k cross country.

On the ski jumping side, Kevin Bickner (Wauconda, Ill.) will represent the men’s USA Nordic/U.S. Ski Jumping Team in Nizhny Tagil, Russia, for a pair of HS134m events Saturday and Sunday. In the women’s season World Cup opener, Nita Englund (Florence, Wis.), Nina Lussi (Lake Placid, N.Y.) and Tara Geraghty-Moats (West Fairlee, Vt.) will represent USA Nordic’s U.S. Ski Jumping Team in three events in Lillehammer, two HS98m competitions Friday and Saturday, and one HS140m large hill competition Sunday.

HOW TO WATCH
All times EST
*Same-day delayed broadcast

ALPINE
Friday, Nov. 30
12:30 p.m. - World Cup men’s downhill, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBC Sports Gold & NBCSN
2:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s downhill, Lake Louise, CAN - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
5:30 p.m. - World Cup women’s downhill, Lake Louise, CAN - NBCSN*

Saturday, Dec. 1
1:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s super-G, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBC Sports Gold & NBCSN
2:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s downhill, Lake Louise, CAN - NBC Sports Gold & NBCSN
5:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s super-G recap, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBC*
6:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s super-G, Beaver Creek, Colo. - Olympic Channel*
10:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s downhill, Lake Louise, CAN - Olympic Channel*

Sunday, Dec. 2
1:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s giant slalom, run 1, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
1:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s super-G, Lake Louise, CAN - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
2:30 p.m. - World Cup men’s giant slalom, run 2, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBC Sports Gold & NBCSN
5:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s giant slalom recap, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBC*
6:30 p.m. - World Cup women’s super-G recap, Lake Louise, CAN - NBCSN*
11:30 p.m. - World Cup men’s giant slalom, run 2, Beaver Creek, Colo. - Olympic Channel*

CROSS COUNTRY
Friday, Nov. 30
6:00 a.m. - World Cup men and women’s sprint, Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel

Saturday, Dec. 1
4:30 a.m. - World Cup women’s 10k, Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
6:15 a.m. - World Cup Men’s 15k, Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
12:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s 10k, Lillehammer, NOR - Olympic Channel*
9:30 p.m. - World Cup women’s 10k, Lillehammer, NOR - NBCSN*

Sunday, Dec. 2
4:15 a.m. - World Cup women’s 10k pursuit, Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
5:45 a.m. - World Cup Men’s 15k pursuit, Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
2:30 p.m. - World Cup women’s 10k pursuit, Lillehammer, NOR - Olympic Channel*
9:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s 10k pursuit, Lillehammer, NOR - NBCSN*

NORDIC COMBINED
Friday, Nov. 30
5:00 a.m. - World Cup men’s HS98 - Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic
8:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s 5k - Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic

Saturday, Dec. 1
3:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s mass start 10k - Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
8:15 a.m. - World Cup men’s mass start HS98 - Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel

Sunday, Dec. 2
4:35 a.m. - World Cup men’s HS140 - Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
8:05 a.m. - World Cup men’s 10k - Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel

SKI JUMPING
Friday, Nov. 30
9:45 a.m. - Men’s individual HS134 qualifying, Nizhny Tagil, RUS - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
11:30 a.m. - Women’s individual HS98, Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
7:00 p.m. - Women’s individual HS98, Lillehammer, NOR - Olympic Channel*

Saturday, Dec. 1
9:45 a.m. - Men’s individual HS134, Nizhny Tagil, RUS - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
11:15 a.m. - Women’s individual HS98, Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
7:00 p.m. - Men’s individual HS134, Nizhny Tagil, RUS - Olympic Channel*
8:30 p.m. - Women’s individual HS98, Lillehammer, NOR - Olympic Channel*

Sunday, Dec. 2
6:45 a.m. - Women’s individual HS140, Lillehammer, NOR - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
10:00 a.m. - Men’s individual HS134, Nizhny Tagil, RUS - NBC Sports Gold & Olympic Channel
7:00 p.m. - Men’s individual HS134, Nizhny Tagil, RUS - Olympic Channel*
8:30 p.m. - Women’s individual HS140, Lillehammer, NOR - Olympic Channel*

Fans can catch all the action in spectacular high definition via NBC Sports online at NBCSports.com/Live or through the NBC Sports app which is available on the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire. Exclusive commercial-free coverage will be available for subscribers of the NBC Sports Gold Pass, available here: https://www.nbcsports.com/gold/snow

The top ski and snowboard athletes in the USA will have world class snow conditions during upcoming training camps and competitions thanks to PRINOTH snow groomers, who has signed on for a second four-year agreement as Official Snow Groomer for U.S. Ski & Snowboard. PRINOTH will support the team in various events held in North America and, with its European Headquarters located in Northern Italy near the Austrian border, will support the team abroad as well.

PRINOTH has been the Official Snow Groomer of U.S. Ski & Snowboard since 2014 and is proud to continue to support the dreams of U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes through the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing, China. By providing consistent snow conditions for athletes to train and compete on, PRINOTH plays a big role in helping athletes not only prepare for Beijing 2022 but for other world-class events leading up to the Games.

“With over 20 FIS World Cup events per year to operate, including a hometown 2019 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships, U.S. Ski & Snowboard relies heavily on snow grooming from PRINOTH machines to deliver ‘Best in the World’ courses and events for our athletes. This unique partnership with PRINOTH delivers not only on the quality we need for our events but also gives us a competitive advantage with operations at our Fall and Spring training camps.” Dan Barnett, Chief Marketing Officer, U.S. Ski & Snowboard.

“North American ski areas using PRINOTH snow grooming equipment consistently rank as the top resorts in the country for best grooming. By providing the ski areas & training centers with our equipment, PRINOTH ensures optimal training and racing slope conditions for the athletes. Snow is part of our DNA, and PRINOTH has always been committed to support world class athletes such as these of the US Ski & Snowboard Team.” Philippe Gosselin, Marketing Manager of Snow Grooming, PRINOTH North America.

Ryan Cochran-Siegle (Starksboro, Vt.) led the men of the U.S. Ski Team in Sunday’s FIS Ski World Cup super-G in Lake Louise, Canada, grabbing a career-best 12th place super-G finish. Norway’s Kjetil Jansrud won, Austria’s Vincent Kreichmayr came in second, and Switzerland’s Mauro Caviezel rounded out the podium in third.

“I would say this is a pretty outstanding start to the season for me,” said Cochran-Siegle, who finished 20th in Saturday’s downhill. “Even being able to score World Cup points on Saturday was huge—only the second time I’ve scored World Cup points, the last time being six years ago, so to be able to perform on race day with a later bib is a good step for me. In order to move up and get to where I want to be, consistency on race day is what I'm trying to achieve this year. 

"My race mentality today was no expectations—just focus on skiing, and it seems to be working out pretty well for me. I was skiing aggressive and with some good speed, but I wasn't sure if I was doing too much. I was literally shaking my head when I crossed the finish, thinking it wasn't enough, but then looked up and saw I was pretty fast. It was a definitely really cool feeling."

Cochran-Siegle added with a laugh, "Also, it looks like my fantasy [football] team is going to beat River's [Radamus], and the Patriots won, so all in all...a pretty solid weekend."

Travis Ganong (Squaw Valley, Calif.), who is returning from a knee injury sustained in Bormio, Italy last December, is looking more comfortable and grabbed some points with a 17th place. Other American starters included Tommy Biesemeyer (Keene, N.Y.), Nicholas Krause (Northboro, Mass.), Jared Goldberg (Holladay, Utah), Sam Morse (Sugarloaf, Maine), Steven Nyman (Sundance, Utah) and Wiley Maple (Aspen, Colo.).

What's next?! "I am going to use this momentum going into Beaver Creek weekend," Cochran-Siegle said. In the next few weeks, between the downhill, super-G, and giant slalom, Cochran-Siegle will work to stay even-keeled and keep his eye on the prize.

The men's alpine team returns home for the Beaver Creek Birds of Prey FIS Ski World Cup super-G, downhill, and giant slalom races scheduled for Nov. 30 - Dec. 2. Race week begins Nov. 28 with the first day of downhill training. 

RESULTS
Men’s super-G

HOW TO WATCH

Preliminary schedule, subject to change
*All times EST.

ALPINE
Friday, Nov. 30
12:30 p.m. - World Cup men’s Super-G, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBCSN
2:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s downhill, Lake Louise, CAN - NBCSN

Saturday, Dec. 1
1:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s downhill, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBCSN
2:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s downhill, Lake Louise, CAN - NBCSN
5:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s downhill recap, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBC

Sunday, Dec. 2
1:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s super-G, Lake Louise, CAN - The Olympic Channel
2:30 p.m. - World Cup men’s giant slalom, run 2, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBCSN
5:30 p.m. - World Cup women’s super-G recap, Lake Louise, CAN - NBCSN
5:30 p.m. - World Cup men’s giant slalom recap, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBC

Mikaela Shiffrin (Avon, Colo.) skied away with her 45th World Cup victory Sunday, but the fans at Vermont’s Killington Resort were the real winners this weekend. More than 15,000 screaming fans braved mist, rain, and fog to cheer not only the best ski racer in the world to victory, but for the first time in years, three Americans who qualified for the second run. 

“I could hear them [the fans] from the start. It was deafening,” said Shiffrin, who won her second consecutive World Cup slalom of the season, and her third-straight Killington Cup slalom victory ahead of Slovakia’s Petra Vhlova in second and Sweden’s Frida Hansdotter in third. “The crowd really carried me down the hill and it’s just amazing to race here in front of everybody. The atmosphere is just so incredible and it’s really, really a special race.”

Shiffrin skied to a 0.29 second first-run lead over Austria’s Bernadette Schild, and more than a half-second ahead of Slovakia’s Petra Vlhova on an “interesting” first run course set, which challenged a number of racers, in addition to the fog rolling in and out.

“I knew it was going to be a fight because of the tough conditions today, it was pretty sloppy snow, but I figured, ‘well, everybody has to fight, and if I fight harder, we’ll see what happens,’” Shiffrin said. “There were a couple points on the course where I wasn’t actually sure if I was still on the course, but I kept my skis moving and then I was like: ‘I’m in the finish!’ It worked!”

“I was really just hanging on at the end there,” said Nina O'Brien (Denver, Colo.), who made her World Cup debut at Killington in 2016 and finally in her 14th World Cup start, qualified for the second run after coming out of the 48th start position to finish 30th in the first run. “It feels so good to finally make it in there and be a part of the second run. I’ve had a lot of tries, and close calls, and a few not as close…but it’s really a breakthrough today.”

In addition to O’Brien, who finished 23rd, Paula Moltzan (Burlington, Vt.) wowed the home-state crowd with a career-best World Cup finish in 17th.

“It’s super unexpected,” said Moltzan, who was joined at the race by some of her current and former University of Vermont teammates. “It’s typical to have such a great hometown crowd, I’m a little sad that my parents aren’t here, but I’ve got a lot of other people that love me and it is an incredible atmosphere out here.”

Sunday’s race was the first time in years that three Americans have qualified for the second run in slalom, and all scoring World Cup points. Both Shiffrin and O'Brien agreed that it is the start of something special.

“It’s been a while since we’ve had a really strong showing and Nina…I watched her first run today and I was like ‘that’s the kind of fight I’m going to have to have in the second run.’ It was so awesome,” Shiffrin said. “We’ve been training together and I’ve seen these flashes of absolutely brilliant skiing and I saw some of that today.

“We have some really good strong racers, and it’s really cool to have this kind of showing of Americans in the second run and on the final board,” Shiffrin added.

With this victory, Shiffrin ties Switzerland's Vreni Schneider in World Cup slalom victories with 34 and is just one shy of her childhood hero, Austrian Marlies Schild's record of 35 slalom victories

Up next, the women’s World Cup moves on to Lake Louise for a pair of downhills and a super-G. Shiffrin scored her first career World Cup downhill win at Lake Louise last season and plans to compete in all three events next week.

RESULTS
Women’s slalom

HOW TO WATCH
*Preliminary schedule, all time EST
Friday, Nov. 30
12:30 p.m. - World Cup men’s Super-G, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBCSN
2:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s downhill, Lake Louise, CAN - NBCSN

Saturday, Dec. 1
1:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s downhill, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBCSN
2:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s downhill, Lake Louise, CAN - NBCSN
5:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s downhill recap, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBC

Sunday, Dec. 2
1:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s super-G, Lake Louise, CAN - The Olympic Channel
2:30 p.m. - World Cup men’s giant slalom, run 2, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBCSN
5:30 p.m. - World Cup women’s super-G recap, Lake Louise, CAN - NBCSN
5:30 p.m. - World Cup men’s giant slalom recap, Beaver Creek, Colo. - NBC
 

It was a furious first distance race on the FIS Cross Country World Cup circuit in Ruka, Finland on Sunday. Sadie Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.) led the U.S. Cross Country Team, finishing eighth in the women’s individual classic. 2018 Olympic Gold Medalist Jessie Diggins (Afton, Minn.) was close behind in 14th. Erik Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.) led the U.S. men in the in 31st in the 15k classic.

Norway’s Therese Johaug took the victory - her 53rd World Cup win - as Sweden was second and third with Charlotte Kalla and Ebba Andersson respectively. For the men, Russia’s Alexander Bolshunov won, Norway’s Emil Iversen was second and Sweden’s Calle Halfvarsson came in third.

“The downhills were wicked fast, so there was little to no recovery,” said Bjornsen, who is currently 10th in the overall World Cup standings. “I went out hard and did my very best to hang on. Despite losing my ‘fight for the podium’ on my third lap, I feel so excited and encouraged about finishing eighth today. I had good feelings, I had good skis, and I know where I lost my time a bit. It is a long season ahead, and this weekend was a good first checkpoint. I know each race will build on the one before, so I am just loving every second of this process.”

Due to variable snow conditions, the course was changed to three laps of a 3.3k course for the women and four laps of 3.75k course for the men. Despite the challenging conditions, Diggins was happy with her start to the season.

“I always like to build into the season and carry quite a bit of training load into the first few weekends in order to be racing in top form later in the year, so this is right around where I’d hope to be!” said Diggins. “The process of picking skis, being mentally tough and focusing on my best technique during the race went really well so I’m stoked with how the process is going early in the season!”

The FIS Cross Country World Cup season continues next weekend, Nov. 30 - Dec. 2, in Lillehammer, Norway, with men and women’s freestyle sprint; a 10k freestyle for the women, 15k freestyle for the men, and a 10k classic pursuit for the women and 15k classic pursuit for the men.

RESULTS
Women’s 10k Interval Start Classic Ruka, Finland
Men’s 15k Interval Start Classic Ruka, Finland

Bjornsen Top American In Ruka Sprint

Sadie Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.), Sophie Caldwell (Peru, Vt.) and Ida Sargent (Orleans, Vt.) all advanced to the World Cup classic sprint finals in Ruka, Finland on Saturday, with Bjornsen leading the Americans in 11th place.

“It sure was fun to fire the engine for day one of World Cup racing this winter,” said Bjornsen, who was the fifth overall qualifier. “I am excited to get that first sprint race of the season in, and looking forward to building on this start.”

“Today we saw the first hints of great coming seasons out of Sadie, Sophie and Ida, all qualifying in comfortable fashion,” U.S. World Cup Coach Matt Whitcomb said. “We wanted more from today, but we aren’t discouraged. Wanting and expecting are two different things, and we can’t expect a huge day for the team unless we come to Europe three weeks in advance of the World Cup. We need more time on snow, as well as more racing.”

Russia’s Yulia Belorukova won, Sweden’s Maja Dahlqvist and Ida Ingemarsdotter closed out the podium in second and third respectively. For the men, Russia’s Alexander Bolshunov was first and Norway’s Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo and Eirik Brandsdal were second and third.  

RESULTS
Men’s Classic Sprint Ruka, Finland
Women’s Classic Sprint Ruka, Finland

In front of 18,500 screaming fans, Mikaela Shiffrin (Avon, Colo.) ended up just off the podium in fourth place at the Killington Cup giant slalom, where Italy's Federica Brignone wowed the crowd with her solid skiing for the victory, followed by Norway's Ragnhild Mowinckel and Austria's Stephanie Brunner in third. 

The ladies came in charging today on a first run course that was relatively open and straight and laid down some impressively fast, aggressive skiing. There's no question Mowinckel's giant slalom skills are impressive, but her super-G skills came into play that first run too, as she took a more direct line than most of her competitors and secured a big 0.37 second lead over Brignone. However, with "hero snow," only a few tenths separated positions two through eight. Today "Superstar" made a lot of athletes look like superstars. Shiffrin sat in sixth, 0.69 seconds out, but within striking position for a podium. 

Tom "Cowboy" Johnston, who is in charge of the surface, ensured his team put together a bulletproof track, and the snow was perfect - perhaps, even a little too perfect (if that's even a thing) in some athletes' minds. Accustomed to slick, hockey rink-like surfaces on the World Cup, athletes found that today's surface held up so well for the entire field...which is the best "problem" to have. However, that made it harder for athletes to make big gains and separate themselves from the field. Hence, the tight time differential. 

"The first run I had some really good skiing, but some of the turns I was just not aggressive enough. The second run I was much more aggressive, but it wasn't quite enough. Watching Fede (Brignone) go down I was like, 'Well, yeah - that makes sense!" Shiffrin laughed. 

Shiffrin upped the intensity for the second run, cheered on by 18,500 screaming fans. She skied clean and strong, with great tactical precision, and came through the finish in the lead by .32 seconds, but Brunner, Mowinckel and - particularly - Brignone were just extremely sound and solid. They turned up the intensity just a notch higher, and it paid off for them. Last year's Killington giant slalom winner, German Viki Rebensburg, ran into some trouble and skied out, while 2016 Killington giant slalom winner, France's Tessa Worley finished in fifth, just two hundredths behind Shiffrin.

Always a student of the sport, Shiffrin reflected, "I was happy with some of my skiing, but I wasn't happy with the intensity...I want it too, but I was enjoying the feeling first run too much. I was feeling too comfortable." But, she loved competing in front of the 18,500 fans in Killington.

"Being here has been very special, I'm not feeling too much pressure - I'm just excited to race. It was so much fun to ski in front of the 18,500 fans that came out today and cheered so loud. It's really so incredible to be able to hear all of them and to be welcomed into the finish area into such an amazing atmosphere. I am looking forward to skiing for them again tomorrow!"

Six Americans were on Saturday's start list, with some good skiing from two California gals - Nina O'Brien (San Francisco, Calif.) and Foreste Peterson (Berkeley, Calif.) - though they each ran into some trouble with the terrain on the tough Superstar track. Vermonter Abi Jewett (Ripton, Vt.) made her World Cup debut on home soil. Though she did not qualify for a second run, she was happy to get the first race jitters out of the way and compete in front of her family and friends. The women will take on slalom on Sunday, as Shiffrin goes for the hat trick of Killington slalom victories, while the men will ski super-G at Lake Louise, Canada. 

Nyman 11th, Bennett 12th in Lake Louise Downhill
Veran downhiller Steven Nyman (Sundance, Utah) returned from injury to lead the charge for the U.S. Ski Team in Saturday's downhill at the FIS Ski World Cup speed opener in Lake Louise, Canada. 

Seven Americans were on the roster, including Bryce Bennett (Squaw Valley, Calif.), Nyman, Jared Goldberg, (Holladay, Utah), Travis Ganong (Squaw Valley, Calif.), Ryan Cochran-Siegle (Starksboro, Vt.), Thomas Biesemeyer (Keene, N.Y.) and Wiley Maple (Aspen, Colo.)

Austria’s Max Franz claimed the top podium finish, and Italy took second and third with Christof Innerhofer and Dominik Paris, respectively. In his first World Cup back since sustaining a knee injury in Garmisch, Germany last February, Nyman placed 11th followed by Bennett in 12th, and Cochran-Siegle rocketing from bib 54 to land in 20th place.

This week was a bit of a wake-up call for Nyman, in being back on a World Cup surface. "Today was a little nerve-wracking," Nyman said. "I had questions in my head, but being on the World Cup is always different than training. I was skiing well this summer, but we weren't really delivered the greatest training conditions, and World Cup conditions are much different - today it was hard, responsive, strong - and since I haven't skied much in the last two years, I had adapted by equipment to the softer snow. I had to go back to ground zero."

Nyman mentioned the challenging conditions with the wind, and for big guys like Nyman and Bennett, aerodynamics are key. Searching for aerodynamics and "piercing the wind" were important, and Bennett's run inspired Nyman. "I can't let the other tall guy beat me! I nipped him," Nyman laughed. "I'm really proud of him. He stepped it up and he's a proven racehorse. He fought today. 

He added that teammate Cochran-Siegle's performance was key for the speed team. "Super proud of Ryan Cochran-Siegle," noted Nyman. "My injuries are nothing compared to what he went through, and that kid's long-term term goal of achieving things like this, and he has much more to come, but for him to lay down from back there was fantastic and creating another spot for the team is a big step forward, so congrats to him. I have a lot of work to do, myself, but I still believe I can be on the podium and win races."

Sunday’s super-G will be streamed live at 4:00 p.m. EST on both the Olympic Channel and on NBC Sports Gold.

RESULTS
Women's giant slalom
Men's downhill

HOW TO WATCH
*All times EST
 

Sunday, Nov. 25
10:00 a.m. - World Cup women’s slalom, first run, Killington, Vt - NBC Sports Gold*
1:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s slalom, second run, Killington, Vt - NBC
1:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s slalom, second run, Killington, Vt - NBC Sports Gold*
4:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s super-G, Lake Louise, CAN - The Olympic Channel
4:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s super-G, Lake Louise, CAN - NBC Sports Gold*

*NBC Sports Gold, NBC Sports Digital’s direct-to-consumer live streaming product “Snow Pass” provides fans access to live and on-demand domestic and international competitions of seven Olympic winter sports from October 2018 through April 2019.

The Snow Pass provides access to every second of race action throughout the season. Whoever you support, their races will be broadcast on the Snow Pass. NBC will also email you prior to each event to remind you of live broadcast times on Snow Pass, and if you can’t watch live, the entire event will be available to replay, all for under 20 cents per day.

Seventeen-year-old 2018 FIS Junior Big Air World Champion and U.S. Freeski Rookie Team member Mac Forehand (Winhall, Vt.) claimed second at the opening 2018-19 FIS World Cup slopestyle competition in Stubai, Austria for his first-ever World Cup podium. Sweden's Henrik Harlaut topped the podium while Ferdinand Dahl of Norway finished third.

"Practice didn't go that well for me," said Forehand. "I was incredibly hyped to land my run top to bottom."

For the women, Kelly Sildaru of Estonia led the way with one of the most technical rail sections ever witnessed in a women’s freeski slopestyle competition. Swiss teammates Sarah Hoefflin and Mathilde Gremaud continued their dominance on the World Cup tour with a second and third respectively.

Following a stellar first run from Harlaut, Forehand executed a full top-to-bottom run with a beautiful switch double cork 1260 mute, proving this U.S. rookie team athlete would not shutter in the face of the world's best freeski slopestyle athletes. Alex Hall (Park City, Utah) executed a solid first run with one small bobble on the first rail while Borm (Chaska, Minn.) also laced together a very technical run complete with a back 360 switchup as well as a frontside switchup Pretzel 450 pushing him into second-place moving into the final round. Hall would sit in 7th and Forehand in 14th.

On Forehand’s second run he brought it all together with style and moved into second. Congratulating Forehand with no delay was Harlaut, who went on to win the competition. Forehand’s score held against the likes of the 2017 FIS Slopestyle Champion Andri Ragettli of Switzerland, as well as X Games medalists Swedish teammates Oscar Wester and Jesper Tjader. Dropping in last was Borm who put on a show to fly into fourth place, almost joining Forehand on the podium. It was undeniably an amazing day for the U.S. Freeski Rookie Team.

Maggie Voisin (Whitefish, Mont.) and Julia Krass (Manchester Center, Vt.) represented the U.S. Freeski Pro Team for the ladies. Although they would not finish on the podium, they both proved they can take their new bag of tricks to the competition environment. Krass landed her right side double cork 1080 and Voisin landed her left double cork 1260, both which they learned this fall at the Saas Fee Stomping Grounds training camp. Voisin and Krass are two of the few females in slopestyle freeskiing throwing these tricks.

Up next, U.S. Freeski Slopestyle Team athletes will travel to Breckenridge, Colorado for the 2018 Dew Tour Dec. 13-16, and then on to Font Romeu World Cup in France. It’s been a successful start to the season thus far for the U.S. Freeski Slopestyle and Big Air Team with two second-place finishes in the first two competitions as well as Forehand’s victory at the FIS Junior World Championships in August.

Mac Forehand Second-Place Run: Switch left double cork 1260 Mute, right double cork 1260 Japan, switch 270 back 630 Safety, back 360 switchup Pretzel 270, switch right Lipslide 270 Pretzel 270.

RESULTS
Men's slopestyle
Women's slopestyle

Killington Cup, arguably the most highly anticipated FIS Ski World Cup of the season, is on the horizon this weekend in cold and snowy Vermont. With record crowds of 30,000+ east-coast-ski-racing-hungry fans anticipated at the event and an all-star line-up of talent both on and off the hill, the #BeastWorldCup is slated to be a premiere event once again. That’s something to be thankful for if we’re counting Thanksgiving blessings.

Mikaela Shiffrin (Avon, Colo.) is coming hot to Killington, having won the first slalom race of the season in Levi, Finland last weekend, followed by Slovakia’s Petra Vlhova almost six tenths back, and Austria’s Bernadette Schild. It was Shiffrin’s 33rd World Cup slalom victory, and her 44th career victory.

A clear favorite going into the weekend, Shiffrin is the 2016 and 2017 winner of the slalom at Killington. She’ll grab the hat-trick of victories if she prevails in Sunday’s slalom. Shiffrin could also tie Switzerland’s Vreni Schneider’s slalom win count, and will be one victory closer to childhood heroine Austrian Marlies Schild’s record of 35 slalom victories. That’s not all, though. With a second-place finish behind Germany’s Viktoria Rebensburg in last year’s giant slalom, Shiffrin will be on the hunt for the giant slalom “W” too.

The starting line-up for the weekend includes 10 women and will feature veteran Resi Stiegler (Jackson, Wyo.) skiing in her second race back from a knee injury sustained in PyeongChang during the Olympic slalom. Another highlight of the weekend will be the young Abi Jewett’s (Ripton, Vt.) World Cup debut on home soil on Killington in the giant slalom Saturday. Keep an eye on another young up-and-comer in the giant slalom, AJ Hurt (Squaw Valley, Calif.), and the dynamic duo of Dartmouth gals known as “Trish O’Brien”.

With crowds totaling more than 30,000 people each of the last two years, thanks to the close proximity to Boston and New York – and the deep and loyal U.S. Ski & Snowboard club membership base in the east – the Killington Cup is the biggest World Cup event in the States, and among the top five worldwide. I can’t prove that to you, but I can promise you that I know from experience...and my experience is pretty vast.

For a European-focused sport dominated by Austrians with ample resources and less saturation in sport, it’s quite the honor for Killington to be in such good company, including the famed Hahnenkamm at Kitzbühel, Austria, the Schladming “Night Race” in Austria, the “Snow Space Salzburg Princess” in Flachau, Austria and the Lauberhorn in Wengen, Switzerland. Hanging out with the big dogs, Killington! BOOM. Well done.

Moving north to the men’s World Cup Tour, at our plaid-infused neighbor’s house in Lake Louise, Canada – where our favorite jean tuxedo derived from – veterans Steven Nyman (Sundance, Utah) and Travis Ganong (Squaw Valley, Calif.) are both returning to competition from knee injuries and will headline the men’s speed team. Tommy Biesemeyer (Keene, N.Y.) also returns from a heartbreaking Achilles injury sustained in the downhill training run on the eve of the Olympic downhill. After a challenging 2017-18 season full of injuries, Head Coach John “Johno” McBride has big hopes for these guys this season, and the American men’s first downhill title is not out of question.

Downhillers Bryce Bennett (Squaw Valley, Calif.) and Jared Goldberg (Holladay, Utah), who both had flashes of brilliance in the 2017-18 season, will once again look to make their mark on Canadian soil. Wiley Maple (Aspen, Colo.) clocked the sixteenth-fastest time in the first downhill training run on Wednesday, and the fastest among the American men, followed by Ganong. On Thursday, Ganong led the Americans, followed by Nyman. One more downhill training run on Friday for these boys to get their feet under them and dust off the cobwebs, and then it's "go time"! 

You’ll be able to catch all of the action on NBC, NBC Sports Network, NBC Sports Gold, and the Olympic Channel, so make sure to tune in this holiday weekend to get your fill of ski racing. Plus! Current U.S. Ski Team “A” Team athlete, Alice McKennis, who is undergoing rehab for a leg injury, will be making her announcing debut, calling the men’s speed action in Lake Louise, Canada.

See who to watch and where to catch all the action below.

WOMEN’S STARTERS

• Katie Hensien (SL)
• AJ Hurt (GS)
• Abi Jewett* (GS)
• Lila Lapanja (SL)
• Tricia Mangan (GS)
• Paula Moltzan (SL)
• Nina O’Brien (GS, SL)
• Foreste Peterson (GS)
• Resi Stiegler (SL)
• Mikaela Shiffrin (GS, SL)

MEN’S STARTERS

• Bryce Bennett (DH)
• Tommy Biesemeyer (DH, SG)
• Ryan Cochran-Siegle (DH, SG)
• Travis Ganong (DH, SG)
• Jared Goldberg (DH, SG)
• Nick Krause (SG)
• Wiley Maple (DH, SG)
• Sam Morse (SG)
• Steven Nyman (DH, SG)

*Denotes first World Cup Start
**Denotes SG spots up for grabs based on training runs.

HOW TO WATCH
*All times EST
Saturday, Nov. 24
9:30 a.m. - World Cup women’s giant slalom, first run, Killington, Vt. - NBC Sports Gold*
1:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s giant slalom, second run, Killington, Vt. - NBCSN
1:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s giant slalom, second run, Killington, Vt. - NBC Sports Gold*
3:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s giant slalom, wrap up, Killington, Vt. - NBC
4:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s downhill, Lake Louise, CAN - The Olympic Channel
4:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s downhill, Lake Louise, CAN - NBC Sports Gold*

Sunday, Nov. 25
10:00 a.m. - World Cup women’s slalom, first run, Killington, Vt. - NBC Sports Gold*
1:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s slalom, second run, Killington, Vt. - NBC
1:00 p.m. - World Cup women’s slalom, second run, Killington, Vt. - NBC Sports Gold*
4:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s super-G, Lake Louise, CAN - The Olympic Channel
4:00 p.m. - World Cup men’s super-G, Lake Louise, CAN - NBC Sports Gold*

*NBC Sports Gold, NBC Sports Digital’s direct-to-consumer live streaming product “Snow Pass” provides fans access to live and on-demand domestic and international competitions of seven Olympic winter sports from October 2018 through April 2019.

The Snow Pass provides access to every second of race action throughout the season. Whoever you support, their races will be broadcast on the Snow Pass. NBC will also email you prior to each event to remind you of live broadcast times on Snow Pass, and if you can’t watch live, the entire event will be available to replay, all for under 20 cents per day.

RESULTS
Men’s Downhill Training Run 1
Men's Downhill Training Run 2

For the full event schedule at Killington, check out their website. 

The men's alpine speed team was featured in a recent CNN article by Rob Hodgetts entitled, "American downhillers: A need for speed," in which Head Coach John "Johno" McBride talked about his team's unconventional training methods, how they're a "band of brothers" on the road, and what his goals are for the team this season. 

"They all have an understanding of what it means to be downhillers. It's different to slalom skiers. These guys push each other to the edge of destruction. When you're going 90mph down a hill you know that if you go into the red room (the fence) there's a good chance you're going to be injured. There's a lot of consequence to what these guys do and creating this band of brothers, this 'American Downhiller' concept is something the guys can take pride in and support each other and hopefully encourage others to be a part of."

After a challenging 2017-18 Olympic season that saw two of the team leaders—Steven Nyman (Sundance, Utah) and Travis Ganong (Squaw Valley, Calif.)—out of competition due to knee injuries, McBride talks about his optimism for going where no U.S. male downhiller has gone before: the World Cup downhill title. "Have we been able to pull it together to make that happen. No? But I think it's possible," he said. "We've got guys who can win a title if they're healthy. Steven Nyman and Travis Ganong are in a place where they can be contenders."

McBride also discussed his unconventional training methods for spring camps, which have featured hiking 14ers in Colorado two years ago, and undergoing a four-day special forces training camp in Malibu, California this past spring.  

Read the full article at CNN.com