CALGARY — The Canadian men's downhill ski team opens an important racing season intent on making a multi-pronged push for the podium.
Their World Cup speed season kicks off in Beaver Creek, Colo., with Friday's downhill and Saturday's super-G.
Like the "Crazy Canucks" of the last century and the "Canadian Cowboys" earlier this century, Alpine Canada's downhillers boast more than one man capable of winning races and challenging for the season's overall crystal globes — provided they can stay on their skis and away from the crash nets in a high-speed sport.
"Our goals are to keep them healthy, first and foremost, and every weekend we want to go out and we want to challenge for podiums, world championship medals and Olympic medals," said head coach John Kucera, the 2009 world men's downhill champion with the Canadian Cowboys.
"The ultimate goal for some athletes in this group is to put themselves in a position to be consistent enough to compete for globes. They're in elite company, a number of them.
"For me, what's important is that we just keep pushing to bring the consistency necessary to be threats every weekend."
Led by reigning world super-G champion James (Jack) Crawford of Toronto and 2023 world downhill bronze medallist Cam Alexander of North Vancouver, B.C., the men embark on the last full season of World Cup racing before the 2026 Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina, Italy.
This is a season in which they can punch their Olympic tickets with the right combination of results at the world championship and on the World Cup circuit.
Calgary's Jeff Read, son of Crazy Canuck Ken Read, earned his first World Cup medal with a super-G silver in February.
Brodie Seger of North Vancouver, B.C., has been a top-10 finisher in world championship and Olympic Games. He's worked his way back from a knee injury at the 2023 world championship.
Crawford's alpine combined Olympic bronze medal in 2022 in Beijing was Canada's first medal in men's alpine skiing since Jan Hudec's super-G bronze in 2014.
Broderick Thompson of Whistler, B.C., isn't expected to race this season, Kucera said.
Thompson, the brother of Olympic champion ski cross racer Marielle Thompson, is still recovering from a training-run crash last year at Beaver Creek where he suffered a brain injury and broken bones.
"He's for sure not racing this year. We'll assess where we're at come spring," Kucera said. "This is one of those things. It's just going to take some time."
The world alpine ski championships Feb. 4-16 in Saalbach, Austria, and the World Cup on the men's Olympic course Dec. 26-29 in Bormio are of interest this season.
But Kucera cautions that Bormio in December is not Bormio in February, when the Olympic Games will be held in 2026.
"The one thing that is interesting about Bormio is it is a much easier mountain to ski in February than it is in December," Kucera said. "It's in the sun in February, whereas in December it's one of the darkest places to race.
"It is one of the iciest and bumpiest tracks. With the dark light, it's incredibly demanding."
Alexander was third in downhill last year in Bormio and Crawford second in 2022.
"It's a hill these guys have had quite a few years on," Kucera said. "It's not a one-off event. It's a race we hit every year and it's a race these guys enjoy. They enjoy how difficult it is. They enjoy the challenge of it."
February's world championship in Austria will be a performance-on-demand dress rehearsal for 2026, Kucera said.
"It's another opportunity for these guys to keep figuring out what it takes to put it together when it matters," he said. "Those are the kinds of skills and experiences that's required to then show up to an Olympic Games every four years and get it done on that day."
The men's alpine team has a pair of slalom racers under its umbrella — Asher Jordan of North Vancouver, B.C. and Liam Wallace of Banff, Alta.
"Due to the injuries that the guys unfortunately had to battle through, they're in a bit of a rebuild so they're with our developmental group targeting Nor Am races at the start of the year just to get their points and their rankings back to where they need to be," Kucera said.
Two-time Olympian Erik Read wasn't named to the alpine team for this season, so the 33-year-old Calgarian is self-funding his World Cup season.
Erik has yet to qualify for a second run after a pair of slalom races and one giant slalom. A GS race is scheduled for Sunday in Beaver Creek following the speed events.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 2, 2024.
Donna Spencer, The Canadian Press