GB Snowsport

GB Snowsport have confirmed a six-athlete World Cup squad as part of a wider 33-person Alpine team who will represent the country across the 2025/26 season

Dave Ryding, who confirmed this week that the coming season will be his last on the World Cup tour, will be joined in the World Cup squad by fellow Slalom specialists Billy Major and Laurie Taylor, while Roy Steudle is selected to the World Cup squad for the first time following his recovery from injury and excellent performances across last season. Reece Bell and Victoria Palla, meanwhile, are also first time World Cup squad selections following a series of highly encouraging performances across last year including excellent showings at the 2025 Alpine World Ski Championships in Saalbach.

Ten athletes will compete as part of the Europa Cup squad, with Freddy, Luca, and Zak Carrick-Smith being joined by Max Laughland, Dominic Shackleton, Owen Vinter, Jack Irving and Calum Langmuir, while the women’s EC team will feature Molly Butler and Giselle Gorringe, with all ten EC athletes having demonstrated exceptional potential across the Alpine circuit last season.

In the FIS Development squad, Nicole Wordley, Honor Bartlett, Maisie Blyth, Olivia Howeson, Liv Imregi, and Tia Freshwater make up a six athlete women’s team, while Lucas Ellie, Christian McCourtie, Toby Jennings, Aidan Urquhart, Toby Stephen, Harry Duncan, Emerson Proctor, William Freear, Lewis Parton, Hamish Blyth, and Matteo Padoan represent the men’s selections.

This year’s selections follow an update to the GBS Alpine selection policy criteria, with the major change seeing a higher standard assigned to selection for the FIS Development squad alongside an age cut-off meaning all FIS Development athletes competing for Britain are aged 21 and under.

Commenting on selections, GB Snowsport Performance Director Kearnan Myall said:

“The achievements of the whole Alpine squad last season can’t be overstated, and the selection of so many talented athletes into the World Cup, Europa Cup, and FIS Development squads this year is testament to the depth of talent in the British Alpine ranks.

“This has the potential to be an enormously exciting season, and from our World Cup squad through to every level of competition, we are really confident that British Alpine skiers will continue to show that they’re among the best in the world over the coming year.”

Full Squad Selections:

World Cup squad

Europa Cup squad

FIS Development squad

Country’s first ever Alpine World Cup winner confirms 2025/26 season will be last on international circuit

Dave Ryding, the only British skier to win an Alpine World Cup race and widely recognised as the best British Alpine skier in history, has confirmed today his intention to retire at the end of the 2025/26 season.

The 38-year-old, a regular on the World Cup circuit since 2009, made the announcement today ahead of a season which will see Ryding push for a fifth Olympic Winter Games appearance in Milan-Cortina in February.

Having established himself as one of Britain’s finest winter sport athletes over the course of his career, Ryding made history in January 2022 with victory at the Kitzbuehel Slalom World Cup, one of seven career World Cup podiums to date, as one of only four British Alpine skiers to record career World Cup podiums following Gina Hathorn (1967), Divina Galica (1968 x 2), and Konrad Bartelski (1981).

In a career packed full of record-breaking achievements, Ryding also boasts three World Championships top 10 finishes including a sixth place in the 2025 World Championships which marked Britain’s best Men’s Alpine World Championships result since 1934, and two Olympic top 10 finishes from the 2018 PyeongChang Games with ninth in the Slalom and fifth in Team Parallel.

Long recognised as the standard bearer for British Alpine skiing, Ryding’s 2024/25 season saw him record three World Cup top-10 finishes in Gurgl (seventh), Val d’Isere (ninth), and Alta Badia (eighth) alongside World Championships sixth place, which will see him enter his final season on the international circuit as Britain’s highest ranked Alpine skier ahead of World Cup squad teammates Laurie Taylor and Billy Major.

Announcing his decision to retire at the end of the season, Dave said:

“Competing internationally, representing my country on the World Cup circuit, and going to four Olympic Games so far has been the privilege of a lifetime. I’ve always said that I’d only carry on for as long as I think I can perform to my best level, and making this decision now frees me up to give one last push to try and go one step further over the next season.

“I know I’ve still got it in me to perform at the top of my game, but I’m also really aware that I’m at a different stage in life than I was even a few years ago. I’ve had the most incredible support along the way from so many people, but nobody more than my family, and making this decision now is also about making a decision to prioritise time with the people I love in the years to come.

“I’m so grateful for all the support I’ve received along throughout my racing career, from the fans, teammates, sponsors, the media, and everyone who’s helped me live out my dream over the past fifteen years. I hope in doing that, I’ve also showed for other Brits that you can do what I did, start out on the dry slopes, work hard, and make it to the top.

“There’ll be time to reflect as the year goes on, but for now I’m just focused on getting my head down, training hard this summer, and making sure I’m in the best possible shape to go out with a bang this season.

“It’s been one hell of a journey, and I’ve loved every second of it. Now it’s time to make this final season a special one.”

Vicky Gosling, GB Snowsport Chief Executive, said:

“What is there to say about Dave that hasn’t already been said? He’s an icon, a legend of the sport, and a man who embodies everything it is that makes British sport so incredible.

“His accomplishments on the slopes will be spoken about for decades, but the way he’s inspired people across the country and helped bring British Alpine skiing to another level is one of British sport’s great success stories.

“Every one of us involved in this sport owes Dave a huge debt of gratitude for what he’s done, and for what he continues to do. His dedication and drive to succeed is a model for anyone who wants to reach the top of their game, no matter the field they’re in, and I know he’s going to show that again throughout his final season on the circuit.”

Dave Ryding career highlights:

Young Alpine talent delivers across three camps in 2024/25

The British Children’s Ski Team attended three international race camps this winter, achieving excellent results.

At the first camp in Arcalis Borrufa, Andorra, a full team of U14 and U16 athletes, many competing internationally for the first time, secured six podiums and a further 9 top-10s. While a lack of snow led to the cancellation of the speed events, a full program of tech events saw Max Chapman secure two silvers in the U16 slaloms, Agatha Favill a silver also in the U16 slalom, and Audrey Curtis and Alfie Croft take bronzes in the U14 girls’ giant slalom and U14 boys’ slalom. There were top 10s for Freya Tresidder (fourth and tenth – U16 GS and SL), Victoria Meneghetti (fifth and eighth – U16 SL and GS), Favill (seventh – U16 SL), Curtis (ninth – U14 SL) and Lottie Williams (2 x 10th U14 SL and GS). Further success saw Britain take third in the team event.

The second camp in Ricky V Orlickych Horach, Czechia, saw another host of top 10s for the Brits in the U16 slalom event from Sebastien Anthony (sixth) in the boys’ race, and Amelia Pietrzak (eighth) and Gracie Duncan (ninth) in the girls’ race. Scarlett McLaughlin was the best placed of the U14s with a tenth place in the giant slalom.

The third camp in Folgaria, Italy, widely known as the Children’s World Championships, delivered some fantastic results for Lily Flitton who took a bronze in U14 slalom and a fourth place in the U14 giant slalom. Further impressive top 10s in the U16 slalom races included: girls – Allegra Turton (sixth); boys – Harris Humphries (seventh) and Ryan Faber (ninth), with Harrison Adkins taking ninth in the boys U16 giant slalom race and Edward Lloyd placing a terrific ninth in the boys’ U14 slalom race.

In addition to the camps that the Children’s Ski Team attend, entries can be made for athletes to attend further FIS international children’s races on the FIS calendar. Humphries (first – U16 SG, third – U16 SL) had standout results at the La Scara races in France. Cecilia Hamer (first – U14 GS, first U14 SL, first overall) and Flitton (second – U14 GS, sixth – U14 SL) enjoyed success at the late season races in Taernaby, Sweden.

Warm congratulations to all athletes, coaches, and team members involved in delivering excellent results, performances, and a demonstration of the depth of Britain’s prowess in Alpine skiing.

British Alpine talent in fine form in Santa Caterina

The 2025 GB Alpine Championships’ Santa Caterina debut saw British Alpine athletes in excellent form as the traditional season-closer delivered a range of exceptional performances across FIS and Children’s Week races.

Overall podiums for Owen Vinter (1st – Men’s NC DH, 1st – Men’s NC SG), Max Laughland (2nd – Men’s NC SG, 1st – Men’s NJC U21 SG), Nicole Wordley (1st – Women’s NJC U21 SG, 2nd – Women’s NJC U21 GS), Freddy Carrick-Smith (1st – Men’s NC GS, 1st – Men’s NJC U18 SL), Jack Irving (1st – Men’s NJC U21 GS, 2nd – Men’s NJC U21 SL), Zak Carrick-Smith (1st – Men’s NJC U18 GS, 2nd – Men’s NJC U18 SL), Molly Butler (2nd – Women’s NC SL, 2nd – Women’s NJC U21 GS), George Brown (3rd – Men’s NJC U18 GS), Tabitha Milkins and Emily Turner (joint 3rd – Women’s NJC U18 SL), Laurie Taylor (1st – Men’s NC SL), and Billy Major (2nd – Men’s NC SL) provided the highlights of the week’s FIS races with Vinter awarded the overall Victor Ludorum title and the Sir John Ritblat Cup with Holly Tutt in second place, receiving the DHO Challenge Plate.

British Titles – National Championships:

British Titles – National Junior Championships

Children’s Week saw a number of outstanding showings across the U16/U14/U12/U10 categories. Lily Flitton won both GS and SG titles in the U14 girls’ races and was also awarded with the U14 girls’ Combined title. Edward Lloyd won SL, SG and Combined awards in the U14 boys. In the U16s, Ryan Faber won the GS and Combined titles and finished joint 1st with Harrison Adkins in the SG race, with Adkins also taking the U16 boys’ SL title. Allegra Turton won both GS and Combined titles for U16 girls.

New awards this year, saw U10s and U12s being awarded trophies for overall performances: Athena Makonnen and Lola Landman – Overall U10 girl, Arthur Prenelle and Lewis Gallacher – Overall U10 boy, Scarlett Lapidus-Ewin – Overall U12 girl, Marcus Pop – Overall U12 boy.

Other noteworthy results came from Cecilia Hamer (1st – SL U14 Girls), Alice Bond (1st – SL U16 Girls), Charlie Miller (1st – GS U14 Boys), Darcey Davies (1st – SG U16 Girls). Lily Flitton was alwo awarded with the Cairngorm Quaich which recognises outstanding international achievement for athletes selected to the British Children’s Team. Ambition won the Overall Children’s Team titles for both U14 and U16.

Kirsty Muir topped the podium, Billy Major climbed into the top-10, Maisie Hill landed a career best World Cup result, and Mia Brookes took the overall Globe in another superb week for Brits on snow

Muir breaks new ground in Tignes

Kirsty Muir‘s comeback from injury went into overdrive at the Tignes Freeski Big Air and Slopestyle World Cup, with two Finals appearances culminating in a career first World Cup victory in Slopestyle.

Following a serious knee injury sustained in December 2023, Muir spent more than 14 months out of action before making an encouraging return at the Aspen World Cup in February, immediately returning to the top-10 with an eighth place finish in the Slopestyle contest. Following another top-10 in Stoneham in late February, Muir landed another in the Tignes Big Air competition, finishing seventh, before raising her game to new levels to finish top of the standings in the Slopestyle event.

Elsewhere in Tignes, the best British performance came from Chris McCormick with 25th place in the Men’s Slopestyle, with James Pouch also notching a top-30 finish, coming 29th in Big Air.

Mia Brookes misses Flachau, wins Crystal Globe, while Maisie Hill secures career best finish

Mia Brookes put the seal on a stunning World Cup season by taking the Overall Snowboard Park & Pipe Crystal Globe, despite missing out on the Flachau Slopestyle World Cup.

Brookes was one of a number of athletes who elected to sit out the season closing World Cup competition, which saw the Men’s competition abandoned due to declining conditions across the week, but with final results taken from qualification runs, Brookes nevertheless ended up clear at the top of the Crystal Globe standings, taking her first Overall title and her second Globe of the season following confirmation of the Big Air crown earlier in the season.

Maisie Hill, meanwhile, performed superbly to finish in fifth place off the back of a superb qualifying round which had put her into third spot in her heat, a result that gives the 24-year-old her best ever World Cup finish just a year on from her return from career-threatening injury.

Billy Major breaks top-10 with excellent performance in Hafjell

Billy Major‘s Slalom World Cup season drew to a close with a best-ever World Cup finish, finishing ninth in Hafjell.

Sitting 14th at the turn, Billy delivered the sixth fastest second run in the field to propel him into the top 10 of a World Cup for the first time in his career and put a proud finish to another excellent season for Britain’s Men’s Slalom World Cup team.

Dave Ryding took a ninth World Cup top 20 of the season with seventeenth spot, while Laurie Taylor recorded a first run DNF in a nevertheless excellent season.

Meenagh podiums in Torsby to end Para Biathlon season in top-3

Scott Meenagh notched his first Para Biathlon World Cup podium of the season in the final World Cup race of 2024/25, finishing third in the Torsby Sprint World Cup.

The result, which comes off the back of a season of remarkable consistency from Meenagh, helped propel him into the top-3 of the overall standings, and delivered a richly deserved podium moment for one of Britain’s most trailblazing para snowsport starts.

And the rest…

The Moguls World Cup season drew to a close with World Cup Finals in Livigno, taking place on the course scheduled to host the event at next year’s Olympic Winter Games. Mateo Jeannesson finished 19th in Dual Moguls and 29th in Individual Moguls, while Makayla Gerken Schofield finished 15th and 22nd in Duals and Individuals respectively.

The Cross-Country squad followed up their successful World Championships campaign with a return to the World Cup tour in Oslo, Andrew Young taking the team’s best result with a 32nd place finish in the 10km F.

Britain’s superb 2025 continued with World Cup, World championships, and Junior world Championships successes

Bankes’ brilliance returns fifth World Cup gold of season

Charlotte Bankes demonstrated the skill and resilience that makes her one of Britain’s greatest contemporary athletes with a fifth World Cup victory of the season in the second of the weekend’s two World Cup races in Gudauri, Georgia.

A shock qualification stage elimination in the first of the weekend’s races was put swiftly in the rear-view mirror as Bankes showed her trademark dominance to come through the second of the weekend’s double header contests in first place, giving her a commanding lead in the overall standings in the process.

In the Men’s competitions, Huw Nightingale delivered one of his best performances of the season to finish in the top-30 for the third time this season, taking 28th place following a 1/8th final stage exit.

Cross-Country team secure three top-10 World Championships finishes

The Trondheim Cross-Country World Championships drew to a close at the weekend with Britain delivering a raft of memorable results, including three top-10 finishes across the Championships.

Andrew Musgrave secured the best result of the competition, with sixth place in the 50k Free providing a best British individual World Championships result since 2017. Elsewhere, a monumental effort in the Relay saw Musgrave, James Clugnet, Gabriel Gledhill, and Andrew Young take ninth place, while Joe Davies was in excellent form in the Skiathlon on his way to a 24th place finish.

Read our dedicated Cross-Country World Championships round-up here.

Alpine next generation make history in Tarvisio

The next generation of British Alpine skiers showed superb form in the Tarvisio World Junior Championships, as the team demonstrated why there’s so much excitement building around the future of British Alpine skiing.

Leading the charge was Luca Carrick-Smith, whose bronze medal winning performance in the Men’s Slalom gave Britain its first Alpine World Junior Championships podium since Graham Bell took Downhill silver in 1984.

In the U18s category, Freddy Carrick-Smith secured U18 titles in Slalom and GS, the latter coming in a race which saw three Brits in the top-12 including Jack Irving whose fifth place finish had been the best British Alpine World Junior Championships result since Chemmy Alcott’s fourth place in 2002, prior to Luca’s podium on the final day’s racing.

Taylor dominates in Krvarvec

Jaz Taylor‘s incredible run of form continued in the Slovenian resort of Krvarvec, as she returned a silver and two gold medals from two Sprint events and one Classic race, extending her lead in the overall Telemark World Cup standings in the process.

Indeed, so remarkable is Taylor’s form that she currently stands atop the Overall, Sprint, and Classic leaderboards with a remarkable ten World Cup podiums with fourteen of the season’s twenty World Cup competitions completed.

Meenagh fourth in Para Biathlon World Cup

Scott Meenagh finished just outside of the podium places at the Torsby Para Biathlon World Cup, coming fourth in the 12.5km Individual races over the weekend.

The result adds to an encouraging body of work for Meenagh in Para Biathlon this season, which has seen him edging ever closer to the podium with strong skiing and excellent shooting execution.

Carpenter into top 10 in Alpine Snowboard World junior Championships

Sam Carpenter showed his rich promise in at the Alpine Snowboard World Junior Championships with a seventh place finish in the Parallel Slalom in Zakopane/Suche.

The result comes in 18-year-old Carpenter’s fourth appearance at a World Junior Championships, and marks his best result at that level, coming hot on the heels of a breakthrough FIS level victory in Val Saint Come last month.

First British Alpine World Junior Championships podium since 1984

Luca Carrick-Smith capped a sensational Alpine World Junior Championships for Britain’s Alpine team with a first British podium since Graham Bell took Downhill silver 41 years ago.

Sitting fourth at the turn, 19-year-old Luca delivered a sensational second run to propel him into third spot, less than half a second off the lead, and into British Alpine skiing history.

As well as marking Britain’s first Overall age category podium at an Alpine World Junior Championships since 1984, the result also gives Britain its first ever Slalom World Junior Championships medal, and comes amid a season of astonishing results in the Alpine ranks, ranging from Dave Ryding’s barnstorming sixth place and Reece Bell’s 20th spot at last month’s Alpine World Championships to the remarkable performances of Luca’s siblings Zak and Freddy Carrick-Smith at the European Youth Olympic Festival.

In the age-group rankings, Freddy Carrick-Smith’s overall seventh spot was enough to comfortably seize the U18 Men’s Slalom title, coming hot on the heels of his defence of the U18 GS title, a race which saw Jack Irving finish in fifth place, and three British men feature in the top-12.

Britain added three more World Cup podiums on another impressive week of action

Bankes and Nightingale take Turkish podiums

An impressive weekend of Snowboard Cross performances yielded podiums in the Women’s and Team events, with Charlotte Bankes continuing her run of dominant form.

In the individual competitions, Bankes was once again flawless as she executed a well-developed race strategy to secure Gold in the women’s competition, taking a fourth consecutive World Cup win in the process. Having finished fourth in the season’s opening competition, Bankes hasn’t missed a beat since and currently sits atop the overall standings with the World Cup season now more than halfway to completion.

The following day’s Team event saw Bankes and Huw Nightingale combine for a superb Silver medal winning performance behind a highly-rated Australian team. The result continues a rich vein of form for Bankes and Nightingale in the team event, with sights firmly set on the next Team race in Montafon before the pair set out to defend their Team World Championships title in St Moritz.

Barnes-Miller secures first World Cup podium of season in Steamboat

James Barnes-Miller grabbed his first Para Snowboard World Cup podium of the 2024-25 season with a third-place finish in the Snowboard Cross event in Steamboat, Colorado.

Having finished fifth in the week’s opening races, Barnes-Miller broke through into the Big Final in the second of the double-header competition, before coming through in third place to notch his first podium appearance this season.

In the women’s races, Nina Sparks took a heavy fall in the opening competition on her way to consecutive eighth-place finishes, with the team now set to be reunited with fellow World Cup squad members Ollie Hill and Matt Hamilton for the Para Snowboard World Championships in Big White, Canada, which kick off this week.

Musgrave and Clugnet impress in Trondheim

Andrew Musgrave and James Clugnet were the pick of the performances in the opening races of the 2025 Cross-Country World Championships with a seventh-place finish in the 20km Skiathlon and 19th place in the Sprint Free respectively.

In a nail-biting Skiathlon race, Musgrave was right up in the leading pack from the midway point, leading with 2.5km to go before a brutally fast finish saw him nudged back into seventh place for a result which confirms his continued status as one of the world’s top Cross-Country skiers.

In the opening races of the Championships, James Clugnet demonstrated his enduring Sprint capabilities with a top 20 placing in the Sprint Free event, registering one of the best British Sprint results of the season to date in the process.

Elsewhere, Joe Davies looked in excellent form in his sole World Championships appearance finishing 24th in the Skiathlon, with Gabriel Gledhill taking 55th spot.

Jeannesson at the double in Almaty

Mateo Jeannesson delivered another pair of solid performances at the Almaty Mogul World Cups, landing 15th in Dual Moguls and 24th in Individual Moguls. In a season where Jeannesson has delivered consistent top-30 finishes, the 20-year-old’s Almaty performances continued to show why he is rated as one of the sport’s brightest young talents, and a real prospect in the coming seasons.

Two top 30s for Brits in Kranjska Gora

Billy Major and Dave Ryding secured top 30 berths in the Kranjska Gora Slalom, with Laurie Taylor narrowly missing out on the second run with a 33rd place finish.

On a famously challenging surface, Major was the pick of the Brits coming 22nd after a solid second run performance, with Ryding marginally back from him in 24th spot.

Davies and Johns both in top 30 in Gudauri

Ollie Davies and Scott Johns both featured in the top 30 in the Gudauri Ski Cross World Cup races, finishing 29th and 30th respectively in the second of the weekend double header.

Having struggled in qualification for the first World Cup, the British pair looked in immediately better form in the second coming through comfortably in qualification, before delivering solid races to finish inside the top 30 positions in the Georgian resort.

14 athletes set to compete at Championships in Tarvisio

GB Snowsport are delighted to confirm a fourteen-athlete squad will represent the nation at the Alpine World Junior Championships in Tarvisio.

The Championships, which run from 24 February to 6 March, will see eight male and six female skiers compete in British colours, representing some of Britain’s brightest young Alpine skiing talent.

In the Men’s ranks, Luca, Freddy, and Zak Carrick-Smith will be joined by Lucas Ellis, Jack Irving, Toby Jennings, Max Laughland, and Dominic Shackleton, while the Women’s squad comprises Honor Bartlett, Maisie Blyth, Molly Butler, Charlotte Holmes, Olivia Howeson, and Nicole Wordley.

The Championships programme commences with Downhill Training on 25 February with the Women’s and Men’s Slalom races closing the schedule on 5 and 6 March respectively.

Everyone at GB Snowsport wishes the best of luck to all fourteen athletes set to compete.

Men’s Squad:

Women’s Squad: