Reiteralm to premiere as Audi FIS Ski Cross host

With the FIS Ski Cross World Championships in the books and two newly crowned gold medallists to present, there is not a lot of time for catching a breath, as we are already looking at the next stop on the Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup calendar, which is the Cross park in Austria’s Reiteralm resort.

The Cross park has been developed over the past years especially as a permanent training opportunity for ski and snowboard cross athletes, but also with the idea in mind to host FIS, Europa and ultimately World Cup races. The Cross park offers a variety of lines with different levels of difficulty in regards to the elements and therefore has been established as a popular training opportunity for all levels of athletes, as well as a great venue for competitions.

It is however the first time that the Cross park Reiteralm will host an Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup competition, so we are really looking forward to this premiere.

Naeslund is back on the World Cup tour

Let’s take a look at where we left off before we entered the super exciting World Champ competitions in Idre Fjäll. The last World Cup race actually took place also at the Swedish venue, as the scheduled following races in Feldberg, Germany, sadly had to be cancelled due to weather challenges.

It was there in Idre Fjäll, where Fanny Smith (SUI) managed to jump onto the podium three times in three races within five days. It was also there, where Fanny Smith broke Ophelie David’s record of 26 Ski Cross World Cup victories, making it a total of 27 to her name.

Needless to say, that Smith enjoys the Swedish course and was able to grab the silver medal at the World Champs, despite some difficulties during the big final, which shows just what an amazing athlete she is. Also needless to say, Smith is currently in the lead at the World Cup standings, quite far ahead of Marielle Thompson (CAN) and Idre Fjäll 2021 bronze medallist, Alizee Baron.

BUT there is one fact that could break Fanny Smith’s winning streak and that is brand new World Champion Sandra Naeslund being back at the Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup tour. Having won the gold medal on home soil for sure was a big confidence boost for the Swede, who raced her first competition this season at the World Champs after an injury-induced break since November. This just showed how much Naeslund is on fire and ready to compete again.

We will also have to watch out for Alizee Baron from France, as she made a strong comeback this season, not only getting back on top of the podium, but also winning the World Champs bronze medal and sitting in third at the World Cup standings.

Fiva’s gold as energy boost for the rest of the season?

Not necessarily an everyday-record, but Alex Fiva (SUI) managed to become oldest Ski Cross World Champion in Idre Fjäll at the age of 35. Oldie, but goldie, as some would say. But we just say “congratulations” and are curious to see, if the veteran will now be skiing faster on the World Cup too with a gold medal in his pocket.

World Cup leader Reece Howden (CAN) was on a winning streak at the World Cup tour, winning the last three races in a row with back-to-back victories in Sweden. The 22-year-old managed to win the small final at World Champs, which might have been a little bit of a bummer for the Canadian, but taking under account that it was his first major event, the result and the entire season so far is going pretty well for Howden, we would think.

Idre Fjäll 2021 silver medallist Francois Place already showed before the World Champs that he is in great shape this season, so we probably can expect him to continue with his strong racing.

Sitting in second place at the World Cup standing is Swiss athlete Ryan Regez, who was out of the World Champs competition at the very first heat, so he will for sure want to show that he has still some fuel left in the tank to fight for the first rank in the standings.

But as nobody has ever raced a World Cup at Reiteralm before, it will be interesting to see, who will be able to use their strong sides on the new venue.

And we saved some other good news for the end. German veteran Daniel Bohnacker is returning to the World Cup circuit here in Reiteralm. Bohnacker had been suffering from back problems, but seems to have recovered and ready to rock’n’roll out of the start gate again. We can’t wait to see him back in action.

Time trial qualifications are scheduled for Wednesday, February 17 at 12:00 CET, which you can follow via live timing via FIS App or on our website.

Finals are slated for Friday, February 19 at 11:30 CET. You can watch the finals LIVE on ORF 1 (Austria).

QUICK LINKS:

• Reiteralm data page (live timing/ brackets and results)

• World Cup standings women/ men

• Coursemap Reiteralm

• Pictures

• Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup press kit