Sherret and Wilmsmann at the heels of Thompson and Deromedis as ski cross heads for Gudauri

Five talking points as the FIS Ski Cross World Cup tour heads to Gudauri for the first time this week, with qualification on Wednesday and Thursday and races on Friday and Saturday...

Who can topple Thompson and co.?

The race for the women’s Crystal Globe is getting tight at the top.

Marielle Thompson started the season it typically dominant fashion by getting on the podium three times in the first three races. Thereafter there was a slight wobble in the next two stops on the tour, but in the last four races the Canadian has finished ninth on one occasion and first in the other three.

As a result, the four-time Crystal Globe winner is top of the overall with 710 points.

India Sherret is in second place on 690 points, having put together a run this season in which she has never failed to finish outside the top five. She won the small final in the first race of the season in Val Thorens and in the most recent race of the season in Val di Fassa, but has otherwise made it to the big final in every other stop so far.

The two Canadians are neck and neck at the top, with Germay's Daniela Maier on 639 points in third, and last year's second-place finisher Marielle Berger Sabbatel currently in fourth with 554 points. Switzerland's Fanny Smith (536) and Italy's Jole Galli (491) are just about within reach, but would have to put together a big run in these last six races if they are to haul down all the women ahead of them.

Maier herself has six podiums this season - including a double win in Innichen - while Berger Sabbatel has been nearly as consistent as she was last season, only finishing outside the top five on three occasions so far.

There are plenty of races left and still everything still to play for, but if the leaders continue their impressive form, the chasing pack will surely run out of runway to do anything about it.

'I was a bit intimidated'

They may be friends and rivals now, but Sherret remembers watching Thompson before being able to line up alongside her in a start gate.

"I started ski cross the same year that Marielle joined the World Cup circuit, back in 2010, so you could definitely say I’ve watched a lot of races that she’s been in," Sherret says.

The 28-year-old reveals that she was intimidated by Thompson when she first joined the Canadian ski cross setup, but is now relishing being on equal footing with someone she looked up to as a young athlete.

"When I first started racing World Cup I was fairly quiet and shy. Mar was always friendly but I didn’t talk to her often because I was a bit intimidated," Sherret said.

"She had a lot more seniority within the team and there was also a big discrepancy of skill, so I mostly tried to stay out of the way.

"Over the years we’ve gotten to know each other better. We’re also now much more equal when it comes to skiing so we can bounce ideas off each other and it’s a more collaborative relationship."

The two Canadians are now hot favourites to be in the mix when the Crystal Globe is handed over at the end of the season. Sherret says the fact she has been able to keep up with Thompson this season is an indicator that she’s doing the right things on the snow.

"One of Marielle’s most impressive qualities as an athlete, to me, is her level of consistency," Sherret said. "That’s something I’ve been working on for myself the last few years.

"To be this close in the overall says I’m doing something right in that regard, and it’s very cool for it to be with someone I looked up to for so long.

"If you told 15-year-old India she would be here one day, I don’t think she’d believe it.”

Deromedis and Wilmsmann playing hot potato

Simone Deromedis is the current leader of the men’s overall, but the golden bib has proven a hot potato that the Italian and his German rival, Florian Wilmsmann, have been passing to each other since last year.

Deromedis won the first race of the season in Val Thorens, and since then has stood on top of the podium in the first race in Veysonnaz.

Wilmsmann, meanwhile, won the first races in Innichen and Reiteralm. Deromedis has six total podiums this World Cup season, while Wilmsmann has four.

It has all meant that the pair have been trading the golden bib across the season, with neither apparently able to shake the other at the next stop.

Deromedis currently holds a 19-point lead over Wilmsmann in the overall – but on past form isn’t sure that’s necessarily a good thing.

“I joked about how the golden bib does not bring me the best luck because every time I have it I pass it to Wilmsy,” he says.

“But I think it’s the same for him because almost every race we pass it to each other.

“In the end the only thing that matters is who has it on the last day.”

The pair have maintained good levels through the seasons, and in particular in recent times. In 2025, they have only been outside the top five in two races each.

“I didn’t know that, but that’s good news,” says Deromedis. “I just hope it goes on like this. You go heat by heat, race by race and you try to win them all. That’s the goal, or the mindset.

“I’m super happy with the consistency I’ve had this year that I couldn’t find other years, and I’m pretty confident that I can go on like this.”

With 78 points separating Wilmsmann from Reece Howden in third, the Canadian and the rest of the field surely need to ensure the two at the top aren’t on the podium on the upcoming race days in Gudauri on Friday and Saturday if things aren't to run away from them.

Don’t count out Mobaerg and the others

David Mobaerg was far off the top of the overall at the start of last year, but mounted a late fightback to challenge for the Crystal Globe.

His results in his last seven races last time out were: 1, 2, 9, 9, 1, 1, 1.

Mobaerg would lift the Crystal Globe as a result of that run, narrowly edging out Howden and Switzerland’s Alex Fiva.

However, the Swede did not start this season well. Finishes of 10th and 55th in the opening weekend in Val Thorens were followed by a third-place finish in Arosa, before results of 35th and eighth in Innichen.

However, he has two podiums to his name as things stand, and his incredible fightback at the tail end of the last campaign has given him faith that there is still time with six World Cup races still remaining. In his own words: “It ain't over until it's over.”

“It's never too late to make good results and gain points,” he continued.

“It's actually lots of races before the season ends. I am just going to race my best and see how it goes at this point.

“I’ve never really been thinking too much about the overall standings except the last two races in Idre last year.”

If there is one thing counting in Mobaerg’s favour, it’s the fact that he has happy memories in Georgia, host of this week’s latest stop on the FIS Ski Cross World Cup. In World Cups in Georgia - specifically, Bakuriani - he has never failed to make a podium in four attempts, and in the 2023 World Championships he won gold in the Mixed Team Ski Cross with Sandra Naeslund.

“I’ve had some great results since we started racing in Georgia,” he said.

“I’ve just liked the course in Bakuriani - for me it's almost been a perfect course with all the terrain to gain speed with.

“Gudauri is a bit different compared to Bakuriani, but with this entirely new venue I think I can be fast.

“Usually I'm pretty quick to adapt with new terrain. I am really motivated for the upcoming races!”

Georgian cuisine at the ready

In terms of what the athletes can expect this week in Gudauri, ski cross' race director Klaus Waldner has described the track as being similar to the one seen in Val di Fassa earlier this month.

“It’s a new venue and it’s quite similar to the new venue in San Pellegrino two weeks ago," Waldner said. "It’s flat and the layout has a lot of elements and not too many turns.

“Technically it’s not the hardest slope, it’s more of a speed track and you have to hit all the landings.

“You have to have a really good feeling for the elements and to hit every landing otherwise you will slow down a lot.”

The slope is being used for the snowboard cross World Cup early next month, with much of the course remaining the same - which will prove testing for ski cross athletes this week.

"The elements are quite similar, I don’t think they will rebuild much," Waldner said. "The second-last turn is a negative, whereas snowboard has a positive, that’s the only difference.

"It’s on the snowboard side for sure, the course, but in the end if you want to win the overall title you have to be good at every slope the whole year."

Waldner said this week's venue will suit the bigger, heavier athletes on the circuit: “Weight is better than being light on this slope for sure.”

Not the biggest athlete on the tour is Canada's Jared Schmidt, who upon taking in the track from above said he would need to take on a fair bit of the local cuisine to help him along this week.

"Lots of khachapuri and khinkali for this one," he joked.

Qualification takes place in Gudauri on Wednesday 26 and Thursday 27 February for races on Friday 28 February and Saturday 1 March.