Howden and Thompson win to cap off dominant week for Team Canada

Reece Howden and Marielle Thompson won their respective races on day two of the FIS Ski Cross World Cup in Alleghe to cap off a strong week for Team Canada.

Howden won the men's big final to extend his lead over team-mate Jared Schmidt in the overall standings, while Thompson stood top of the podium alongside compatriot Brittany Phelan who finished second - a day after their team-mate India Sherret had won her first World Cup in Friday's races.

Howden, who came fifth on the first day of racing, was joined on the podium by Germany's Florian Wilmsmann and Austria's Johannes Aujesky, while Alex Fiva of Switzerland finished fourth following a disqualification in the big final.

However, a place in the big final was enough to send Fiva into second in the overall standings as he continued his recent good form since returning from injury.

Schmidt now lies in third in the standings, while Terence Tchiknavorian - who didn't make it past the first heat of the day - is fourth after finishing outside the top 20 on Saturday.

"I'm just stoked to be on top again and stoked to see the good results coming from the team," said Howden, whose other victory came in Nakiska last month.

"Good to see some of the younger guys getting in there really well and Marielle back on top is amazing. We're firing and I'm super stoked."

Howden overtook Schmidt in the standings on Friday after victory in the small final, and is now 65 points ahead of the chasing pack.

"I knew that I needed to get a great result to further my lead in the overall and I just knew I had to be dominant coming out of the start and focus on myself,” the defending Crystal Globe winner said.

"I knew that if I could just get through that first section at the start and build speed out of it I could usually pull ahead and that's what I did. It was an awesome battle and I'm happy.

“They did a great job with this course, the volunteers all worked really hard and I want to thank them and also thank the sponsors.”

Wilmsmann, who finished eighth on Friday, said: "It was a tough battle yesterday, and not such a good semi-final for me.

“Today I just wanted to keep the starts going like yesterday. It was working out better on the course and I'm really happy with second place.”

Swede David Mobaerg, whose brother Erik had won on day one, was victorious in the small final and was followed by Adam Kappacher, Fredrik Nilsson and Tristan Takats.

‘It's a great day for Canada’

Meanwhile, Thompson claimed her second victory of the season to move within three points of overall leader Hannah Schmidt, who finished fourth in Saturday’s big final.

With Phelan having taken second spot, France's Marielle Berger Sabbatel took third to go with her fourth-place finish on Friday.

"It's a great day for Canada with both Reece and I on top of the podium, and to share it with Brit, my team-mate, is awesome," said Thompson, who won the small final on day one in Alleghe.

"I knew in the final I had to ski fast and really execute the start section effectively because I knew two of my team-mates were right behind me and Marielle from France always has a lot of speed.

"So I'm really with happy with how I skied and to leave here with a fifth and a first is awesome. I'm feeling good and ready for the rest of the season with lots of confidence."

Phelan said: "I was pretty inspired by India, my team-mate, winning yesterday. We started racing World Cup around the same time eight years ago, and to see all her hard work and everything she's been building towards pay off yesterday, that really fired me up.

"I was so stoked for her and just tried to bring that inspiration into today.

"To be one-two with Marielle there on top, that was awesome, and for Reece to win on the men's side it's a great day for the team for sure."

Berger Sabbatel echoed Thompson's thoughts on the hard-fought big final.

"We have to be aggressive. It's ski cross - if you leave a little space someone will take it," the Frenchwoman said. "It was a tight race, a tight final, and a good fight against the Canadians."

The small final featured a repeat of Friday's podium, with Sherret finishing ahead of Swiss pair Talina Gantenbein and Saskja Lack, while Austria's Katrin Ofner was eighth overall.

Berger Sabbatel now lies third in the standings after once again featuring in both big finals - a feat she has achieved at every event this season with the exception of St. Moritz following a disqualification.

Phelan is fourth overall and Switzerland's Fanny Smith - who did not take part in racing on either day after a fall in qualifying - is in fifth place.

The skiers now head to Bakuriani for qualification days on 8 and 9 February for races on 10 and 11 February.