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Get in TouchCalgary, AB. (December 21, 2025) — Canada’s Reece Howden (Chilliwack, BC) enters the holiday break on a career best three race win streak after todaysFIS Ski Cross World Cup stop in Innichen (ITA). Today’s win extends Howden’s lead atop the ski cross standings and gives him his fourth career victory in Innichen.
Howden not only won the two races this weekend, he also won all of his heats for a dominant performance leading into the break.
“It’s special to have a weekend like this in a place like Innichen,” said a smiling Howden. “It’s a tough track and everyone turned it up and layed it down today. I was able to stay focused on my skiing and my line, and to carry speed even with the other guys breathing down my neck.”
“Today was hard for sure, it was a battle and the legs are a little tired. This is a great way to start the Christmas break and looking forward to getting home and hoping for some powder skiing over the holidays.”
Kris Mahler (Canmore, AB) raced to a season’s best sixth place today, Kevin Drury (Toronto, ON) finished 11th, and Jared Schmidt (Ottawa, ON), the last Canadian man to win three races in a row, was 13th.
In the women’s race, Hannah Schmidt (Ottawa, ON) delivered a season’s best seventh place, and Brittany Phelan (Mont-Tremblant, QC) had her fourth top 10 this season finishing eighth.
At the FIS Ski Women’s World Cup Super-G (SG) today in Val D’Isère (FRA), Valérie Grenier (St. Isidore, ON) had her best SG result of the season with a 19th place finish, Grenier has now scored World Cup points in six of nine races this season, while Cassidy Gray (Panorama, BC), in her 50th World Cup start, and eight SG start, placed 41st.
At today’s FIS Ski World Cup Giant Slalom in Alta Badia (ITA), Erik Read (Canmore, AB) missed out on qualifying for the second run by less than .1 of a second finishing in 32nd place.
Also today, at the FIS Para alpine slalom (SL) World Cup in St. Moritz, Kalle Eriksson (Kimberley, BC), and guide Sierra Smith (Ottawa, ON), competing in men vision impaired, stood on the podium for the second day in a row, and for the fourth time in five races this season, with a second place finish.
The other man competing today, Samuel Peters (Kelowna, BC) was 16th after the first run and didn’t race the second run, while on the women’s side Michaela Gosselin (Collingwood, ON) was fifth and Florence Carrier (Orford, QC) had a season’s best ninth in women’s standing.
Next races:
Men race again in Alta Badia (ITA) with a SL December 22
Women race GS and SL in Semmering (AUT) on December 27-28
Para alpine race again in Saalbach (AUT) January 13-17
Ski cross next race in Veysonnaz (SUI) January 23-24
Follow Canada’s Ski Team this season on Alpine Canada’s website, across our social media accounts and subscribe to our newsletter here.
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For more information or media inquiries please contact:
Mark Halliday
Alpine Canada
403 777 3204
media@alpinecanada.org
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