Superb skiing in Lillehammer on a weekend of weather impacts in Sweden, and high-octane action in Beijing
Musgrave and Davies to the fore in high-grade Cross-Country showing
The British Cross-Country team, racing as part of Team AkerDaehlie, laid down a marker at the Lillehammer World Cup with a slew of excellent performances across the weekend’s competitions.
The best results of the weekend came on the final day’s racing, where Andrew Musgrave raced to a brilliant sixth place in the 10km/10km Classic/Free Skiathlon, with Joe Davies managing a new career-best finish in 15th spot, and Andrew Young making it three top-30 results with a 30th place finish. Amid a highly-competitive race, Musgrave led with just over 2.5km to go, before being reeled in but securing his first top-10 finish of the World Cup season, hot on the heels of an 11th place finish in the earlier 10km F races.
In the same 10km F race, Davies had matched his previous best World Cup finish with an excellent 16th place, while Young took 43rd and Gabriel Gledhill came in in 51st.
The weekend’s Sprint races saw James Clugnet take 42nd in the Sprint F, with Andrew Young in 46th, and Gledhill in 82nd.
Secret Garden Halfpipe action sees signs for encouragement
Zoe Atkin, Liam Richards, and Siddhartha Ullah all showed encouraging signs at the Secret Garden Halfpipe World Cup, with Atkin’s seventh place the pick of the results.
Qualifying for the Women’s Freeski Finals in 3rd, Atkin pushed outside of her established routine’s comfort zone, and was close to landing a superb run that would’ve challenged the higher medal positions in Finals, but fell marginally short to leave her in a still impressive seventh spot.
In the Men’s Freeski competition, Liam Richards skied brilliantly in only his second World Cup since transferring to the British system over the summer, just missing out on Finals and showing much of the rich promise that has marked him out as one of the sport’s most exciting young athletes to watch.
Meanwhile in the Men’s Freestyle Snowboard competition, Siddhartha Ullah finished in 34th spot in only his seventh World Cup start.
Weather interrupts Moguls programme in Idre Fjall
Having seen relatively few weather disruptions to the early part of the season’s calendar, the Idre Fjall Dual Moguls competition fell victim to heavy fog on the Swedish slopes, leaving the weekend shorn of the latter half of its competition schedule.
In the individual Moguls events, Cali Carr took 26th and Mateo Jeannesson 34th, with the team now entering a period away from competition after the Alpe d’Huez World Cup which had been planned for the coming weekend was called off having failed snow control procedures.
Beijing hosts the latest Halfpipe World Cups, while Lillehammer and Idre Fjall play host to Nordic and Moguls contests
Halfpipe World Cups, Secret Garden, China
Zoe Atkin, Liam Richards, and Siddhartha Ullah represent Britain’s latest World Cup interest in China as Secret Garden plays hosts to the latest of the season’s Halfpipe World Cup contests. In a midweek start, the Women’s Freeski Halfpipe qualifiers were postponed due to bad weather, with qualification and Finals now set for the weekend. Conditions held off long enough to permit the Men’s Freeski contest to get underway, where Richards skied brilliantly but just missed out on qualification for the weekend’s Finals.
In the Snowboard Halfpipe contest, Siddhartha Ullah is set for his first World Cup of the season and only the seventh of his career, with qualifiers set for early Friday morning.
Secret Garden Halfpipe – British Line-Up:
- Zoe Atkin
- Liam Richards
- Siddhartha Ullah
Cross Country World Cup, Lillehammer
The full Cross-Country World Cup squad is set to compete for the first time on this season’s World Cup calendar across the weekend’s Lillehammer World Cup races. Joe Davies will be looking to build on excellent performances at last weekend’s Ruka World Cup, while James Clugnet, Gabriel Gledhill, Andrew Musgrave, and Andrew Young will be taking to their opening World Cup start lines.
All five are due to compete in the 10km Free and Sprint Free races, while the Skiathlon 10/10km Classic/Free will see a three-man team of Davies, Musgrave, and Young in the line-up.
Lillehammer World Cup – British Line-Up:
- James Clugnet
- Joe Davies
- Gabriel Gledhill
- Andrew Musgrave
- Andrew Young
Moguls World Cup, Idre Fjall
The next stop on the Moguls World Cup circuit will Cali Carr and Mateo Jeannesson in the Idre Fjall World Cup, with Will Feneley set to make a late decision on whether to compete as he ramps up his return from injury. Amid exceptionally cold and icy conditions, competition is set to take place across 6-7 December, at a venue that has seen three previous top-10 finishes for British skiers, all from Makayla Gerken Schofield, as well as an 11th place finish for Feneley in 2020, and 12th place for Jeannesson last year.
Idre Fjall World Cup – British Lined-Up:
- Cali Carr
- Will Feneley
- Mateo Jeannesson
Header Image: Liam Richards
Super snowboarders cap stunning week of British snowsport
Brookes brilliant in Beijing
Mia Brookes took the first of what are sure to be many career World Cup victories with a superlative performance at the Beijing Big Air World Cup. With a World Championships title and five World Cup podiums under her belt going into the Beijing contest, Brookes’ maiden World Cup victory came courtesy of a dominant Finals performance that showcased her new Dub 12 backed up by the Cab 1440 to put her top of the podium.
Elsewhere in Beijing, Maisie Hill‘s first Big Air World Cup appearance of the season landed a 21st place finish, while Txema Mazet-Brown finished the men’s contest in 38th place having come close to landing a Cab-18 on two attempts in qualification.
In the Freeski contest, Chris McCormick was again the pick of the bunch finishing 17th with a score of 156.75, with James Pouch in 34th and Tom Greenway placing 44th.
Hill lands Bronze in Landgraaf
The opening Para Snowboard World Cup of the season saw Ollie Hill take Bronze in the second of the week’s double header races. Qualifying for the Small Final, Hill’s time of 34.80s was enough to land him a podium spot ahead of America’s Zach Miller, in a reversal of the first day’s results. Gold and Silver were taken on both days by Italy’s Emmanuel Peranthoner and Australia’s Ben Tudhope respectively.
Elsewhere in Landgraaf, James Barnes Miller finished just outside the medals with a second day fourth place following fifth on the first day’s racing, while Matt Hamilton bagged a pair of eighth place finishes, and Nina Sparks took seventh and eighth.
Davies matches career-best World Cup result
Joe Davies demonstrated his rich potential at the Ruka Cross Country World Cup, finishing 16th in the 20km Free Mass Start, equalling his previous career-best World Cup finish in the process. The 23-year-old, racing in only his third year on the World Cup circuit, raced brilliantly to finish in a time of 46:36.5 a little over 20s outside of the top-10. In the first of the weekend’s races and in his less favoured discipline, Davies managed a 54th place finish in the 10km Classic.
Moguls season underway with promising results for Carr and JEannesson
The Moguls World Cup season got underway with promising performances from a youthful British World Cup Squad pairing of Cali Carr and Mateo Jeannesson. Carr, 17, finished 24th in a strong field for her best single Moguls World Cup result to date, while Jeannesson, who enjoyed a breakout season in 2023-24, finished 19th for a fifth top-20 finish since the start of his World Cup career in the 2021-22 season.
Palla builds experience in Killington
Victoria Palla‘s World Cup career continued with a sixth World Cup start, and her first in North America, at the Killington Slalom World Cup, ending in a first run DNF.
Taylor’s Telemark season opens with FIS race podium
Jaz Taylor‘s 2024-25 season got underway with a third place finish at the season-opening FIS Sprint races in Hintertux. The reigning Crystal Globe holder came in in 2:16.55 to finish in the Bronze medal slot, behind Goril Strom Eriksen in second and Argeline Tan Bouquet in first.
Season openers for Para Snowboard, Cross-Country and Moguls join Park & Pipe and Slalom World Cup meets
Para-Snowboard World Cup, Landgraaf
The Para Snowboard squad are set for their first World Cup of the 2024/25 season with a four-athlete line-up set for back-to-back Banked Slalom races on the indoor slopes of Landgraaf.
The full World Cup squad of James Barnes-Miller, Matt Hamilton, Ollie Hill, and Nina Sparks are set to compete at a venue which has seen notable prior British successes, including Gold and Silver medals for Hill in 2022.
Landgraaf Banked Slalom – British Line-Up:
- James Barnes-Miller
- Matt Hamilton
- Ollie Hill
- Nina Sparks
Moguls World Cup, Ruka
The Finnish resort of Ruka will play host to the opening Moguls World Cup competition of the season and the first contest in the Milan-Cortina qualification period.
Three Brits are slated for the start line, with Cali Carr and Mateo Jeanneasson, alongside Will Feneley who is set to make his long-awaited return from a serious knee injury which caused him to miss the whole of the 2023/24 World Cup season.
For Jeannesson and Carr, the competition marks their first competitive action since the World Junior Championships in April, from which the former emerged with Gold and Bronze medals.
Ruka Moguls World Cup – British Line-Up:
- Cali Carr
- Will Feneley
- Mateo Jeannesson
Cross-Country World Cup, Ruka
Ruka also sees the Cross-Country World Cup season get underway with 10km Interval Classic, Sprint Classic, and 20km Mass Free races across a three day stretch.
British interest will come in the shape of 23-year-old Joe Davies, in his sixth World Cup meet and first in Finland.
Ruka Cross-Country World Cup – British Line-Up:
- Joe Davies
Park & Pipe Big Air World Cup, Beijing
The world’s only permanent Big Air ramp will host the Beijing Big Air World Cup, with Freeski and Freestyle Snowboard athletes both set to compete in the Chinese capital.
Mia Brookes starts as Britain’s most highly-favoured athlete with her second Big Air World Cup start of the season with Maisie Hill and Txema Mazet-Brown rounding out the Freestyle Snowboard line-up.
In the Freeski competition, Tom Greenway, Chris McCormick, and James Pouch are slated to appear in a repeat of the line-up that skied impressively at the Stubai Slopestyle World Cup last weekend.
Beijing Big Air World Cup – British Line-Up:
- Mia Brookes (Freestyle Snowboard)
- Tom Greenway (Freeski)
- Maisie Hill (Freestyle Snowboard)
- Txema Mazet-Brown (Freestyle Snowboard)
- Chris McCormick (Freeski)
- James Pouch (Freeski)
Alpine Slalom World Cup, Killington
Vici Palla will make her third World Cup start of the season at the Thanksgiving Weekend Slalom races in Killington, USA, in her first competition in North America since triumph in the NorAm Slalom Cup in 2023/24.
The Killington slope was the location of a top-30 finish for Charlie Guest in 2021, who also lined up for the North American races in 2022 and 2023.
Killington Slalom World Cup – British Line-Up:
Vici Palla
How to Watch:
The Killington Slalom, Ruka Cross-Country, Ruka Moguls and Beijing Big Air are all available for UK viewers to watch on Eurosport. The Landgraaf Para Snowboard World Cup results will be tracked live on FIS-Ski.com
Five-athlete squad look to build on strong 2023/24 showings
GB Snowsport have confirmed that the 2024/25 season Moguls World Cup Squad will feature two Olympians and a reigning Junior World Champion, with five athletes selected to represent the nation on this season’s World Cup circuit.
Beijing 2022 Olympians Makayla Gerken Schofield and Will Feneley will be joined by Mateo Jeannesson, who took the Junior World Championships Gold alongside Bronze in the Dual Moguls last season, as well as Cali Carr and Thomas Gerken Schofield, both of whom also return from last season’s World Cup Squad.
With a string of solid performances behind them from last season, including four World Cup top-10 finishes, the squad enter the new season looking to confirm their status as one of the most exciting young teams in world Moguls skiing.
Full SQuad List:
- Cali Carr
- Will Feneley
- Makayla Gerken Schofield
- Thomas Gerken Schofield
- Mateo Jeannesson
20-year-old also takes Dual Moguls bronze to conclude superlative season
Mateo Jeannesson confirmed his status as one of Britain’s most exciting young athletes by taking the Moguls Junior World Championships title on Friday, before adding a Bronze medal in the Dual Moguls event on Saturday.
In a season which has seen Jeannesson deliver a number of excellent results, including his first two World Cup top-10 finishes, the Junior World Championships in Chiesa in Valmalenco built on an excellent showing last year which saw him finish fifth in Moguls and third in Dual Moguls.
Jeannesson’s victory in the first day’s action came with a score of 79.60, enough to take the title ahead of South Korea’s Daeyoon Jung with 78.46 and American Asher Michel, who finished with 75.77.
In the Dual Moguls, Jeanesson was pitted in the Small Final against the USA’s Michel, triumphing 28.00 to 7.00, with Jung again taking Silver and Japan’s Ikkei Fujimura in the Gold medal spot.
In the women’s competition, Cali Carr made her World Junior Championships debut, taking a highly respectable tenth place in Moguls and 19th in Dual Moguls to conclude a successful first season in British colours for the highly-rated 17-year-old.
Two Moguls and Five Ski cross athletes named for April Championships
GB Snowsport are pleased to confirm the selection of two Moguls and five Ski Cross athletes for next month’s World Junior Championship competitions.
The Moguls WJC, held in Valmalenco from 3-6 April, will see Mateo Jeannesson and Cali Carr represent Britain in Moguls, Dual Moguls, and Mixed Team Dual Moguls.
The Ski Cross WJC meanwhile sees Tommy Dade, Jake Dade, Scott Johns, Emily Keen, and Alex Rose Green selected to compete in Idre Fjall with Individual and Team events both in the running.
Moguls WJC – Valmalenco – 3-6 April – Selected Athletes
- Cali Carr
- Mateo Jeannesson
Ski Cross WJC – Idre Fjall – 14-15 April – Selected Athletes
- Jake Dade
- Tommy Dade
- Axel Rose Green
- Scott Johns
- Emily Keen
GB Snowsport congratulates all selected athletes, and wishes them good luck in the coming Championships.
Charlotte Bankes’ run of hot form continued, while Mia Brookes and Zoe Atkin impressed at Dew Tour
Bankes takes Gold in Cortina
Charlotte Bankes’ sensational recent form continued at this weekend’s Cortina Snowboard Cross World Cup, with the reigning Crystal Globe holder taking her third solo victory and fourth individual podium of the season.
In a scintillating display of Snowboard Cross racing, Bankes took top spot in qualifying and followed that up with first place finishes at Quarter and Semi Final stages, before putting in another outstanding performance to clinch victory.
Bankes now sits third in the overall season standings on 427 points, just 95 points behind Chloe Trespeuch in top spot.
Brookes and Atkin on fire at Dew Tour 20th anniversary competition
Mia Brookes and Zoe Atkin both took podiums at Dew Tour as the invitational event celebrated its 20th anniversary.
Brookes, competing in the Snowboard Streetstyle, put in a dominant display to further enhance her reputation as one of the world’s great rail riders, taking victory and best trick in commanding fashion. Atkin, meanwhile, added yet another podium to her season collection with Silver in the Freeski Superpipe contest, with her score of 94.00 coming just short of Eileen Gu’s 96.33 in first place, while also tying for highest amplitude recorded at 12’3”.
Gerken Schofield into top-10 in Almaty
Makayla Gerken Schofield notched their second top-10 of the season with tenth spot at the Almaty Moguls World Cup. After an injury-impacted season, Gerken Schofield’s tenth place finish marked their first Single Moguls top-10 of the season and eighth overall, as they looked to be getting back towards the form that saw them record seven top-10 finishes including a podium in the 2022/23 season, while they also recorded a 16th place finish in Dual Moguls.
Mateo Jeannesson finished just outside of the top-10 in both Single and Dual Moguls taking 23rd and 21st spots respectively.
Alpine and Para Alpine circuits fall victim to climate conditions
The Men’s Slalom and Para Alpine races scheduled for Kranjska Gora were cancelled owing to poor snow conditions amid on-going warmer weather conditions across Europe. The cancellations mean the end of Billy Major and Laurie Taylor’s Slalom World Cup seasons, while Dave Ryding will go on to compete at the Slalom Final in Saalbach. Para Alpine will be seeking to reschedule their own Finals, pending the outcome of negotiations with alternate venues.
British Alpine history was made on the slopes of Kitzbuehel and Gangwon on a superb weekend of British snowsport action
Kitzbuehel sees three in top-20
All three members of the Men’s Slalom team finished inside the top-20 at the Kitzbuehel Slalom, marking the first time in modern history that Britain has delivered three top-20 finishes at an Alpine World Cup.
Billy Major roared out of the first run to finish in joint-10th spot alongside teammate Dave Ryding at the end of the first run, while Laurie Taylor showed superb grit to see out tricky conditions and qualify for the second run in 29th spot.
From there, with five skiers failing to finish the second run, Dave Ryding delivered his now typical second run brilliance with the second fastest second run of the day to catapult himself to the top of the standings, before being overhauled in the latter stages of the race for an eventual fifth place finish. Taylor landed the seventh best second run of the day to bring himself a 19th place finish and a person best, while Major also secured a World Cup personal best with 13th spot, less than 0.3s outside of the top-10.
Elsewhere on the Alpine World Cup circuit, Charlie Guest finished just outside of the top-30 at the Jasna Slalom World Cup, missing out on the second run by hundredths of a second.
Carrick-Smith takes Gold in Gangwon
Zak Carrick-Smith delivered a sensational performance in Team GB colours at the Youth Olympic Games in Gangwon to take Britain’s first ever Alpine gold medal in an Olympic competition, with victory in the Alpine Combined.
Find out more about Carrick-Smith’s history-making victory here.
Taylor goes four-from-four in stunning Telemark SPrint run
Jaz Taylor’s sensational World Cup season rolled on with back-to-back victories in the Carezza Dolomites Telemark Sprint World Cup, leaving her with four victories from four World Cup races this season, and a firm grasp on top spot in the overall rankings.
The wins, the 10th and 11th of Taylor’s career, mean she has now equalled the best season of her career which saw her take four victories across the 2017/18 season, just four races into the season.
Makayla Gerken Schofield, Maisie Hill, and Katie Ormerod make injury comebacks
Moguls skier Makayla Gerken Schofield, and Freestyle Snowboarders Maisie Hill and Katie Ormerod all made their World Cup comebacks this week after significant injury lay-offs. Hill and Ormerod were both back in action at the Laax Freestyle Snowboard Slopestyle World Cup finishing in 15th and 12th spots respectively, while Gerken Schofield marked their return with a 19th place finish at the Val St. Come Moguls World Cup.
Elsewhere in Laax, Mia Brookes cruised through to Finals in the Freestyle Snowboard Slopestyle competition before finishing eighth, while Matty Cox marked his first World Cup in British colours with a 36th place finish in the Men’s Freestyle Snowboard Slopestyle contest. Siddhartha Ullah’s sixth World Cup appearance finished with a 38th place in the Men’s Halfpipe.
In Freeski, Ash Clayton was the pick of the bunch taking tenth place in the Women’s Freeski Slopestyle in only their second World Cup appearance.
In Moguls, Mateo Jeannesson came 33rd in Moguls and 17th in Dual Moguls in the first World Cup of 2024, with the latter marking the best Dual Moguls result of his World Cup career to date.
Davies takes 16th in Nakisaka
Ollie Davies’ World Cup season took off with an excellent 16th place finish in the Nakisaka Ski Cross World Cup. In a difficult season, Davies showed serious grit and application to make it through to the Quarter Final stage, and the best result of his season to date.
Andrew Musgrave returns from illness in Oberhot
Andrew Musgrave returned from the bout of illness that put paid to his Tour de Ski endeavours, finishing just outside the Top-20 at the Oberhof 20km C Mass Start World Cup. A 21st place finish there along with a run out in the Sprint C event marked his first appearance of the year, having had to drop out of the 2023/24 Tour de Ski after the 10km C on 31 December.