With the close of a successful and exciting Alpine Championships, I wanted to share some highlights from my view in the bleachers. This article initially appeared in SkiRacing.com last February

So here goes my Top 5 for the 2023 World Championships:

#5– Winter finally arrived!

The French resort venues, Courchevel and Méribel, provided superb conditions for World Championship racing.  A firm snowpack, sub-freezing overnight temperatures, and excellent work by course crews was a refreshing change to this season’s depressing string of canceled events, spring conditions, and stockpiled snow draping the landscape like a thin white ribbon in a sea of dry forests and snow-starved mountain peaks.  I think this was very welcomed and long overdue for most of us.

#4 – Team USA strikes gold and redemption in the mixed team parallel!

The United States collected its first World Championships gold medal when Americans Paula Moltzan, Nina O’Brien, River Radamus, and Tommy Ford edged out Team Norway 3-2 in the event’s gold medal round. The road to the 1st place finish came after strong competition from Poland in the first round, a 3-2 win over Italy in the quarterfinals, then moving on to face Norway after defeating Canada 3-1 in the semifinals. The win signifies not only an all-important confidence boost for the American team but a feeling of redemption for Moltzan, Ford, and Radamus, who fell just short of the podium skiing a narrow 4th place finish in the mixed team parallel event at last year’s Beijing Olympics.

MERIBEL, FRANCE,14.FEB.23 -FIS Alpine World Ski Championships, mixed team parallel. Nina O Brien, Paula Moltzan, Katie Hensien (front), Tommy Ford, River Radamus and Luke Winters (USA) . Photo: GEPA pictures/ Mario Buehner

#3 – Mikaela Shiffrin continues to soar to new heights

Shiffrin is among the top of a small group of elite athletes who have become legendary in the sport. Coming into the World Championships, the 27-year-old Colorado native had already notched an impressive 11 wins this season and, in the process, surpassed the women’s record for most World Cup wins (83), and is now eyeing Ingemar Stenmark’s record, which stands at 86.

MERIBEL, FRANCE,18.FEB.23 – FIS Alpine World Ski Championships, Slalom, ladies, medal photo shoot. Mikaela Shiffrin (USA). Photo: GEPA pictures/ Agence Zoom/ Courchevel Meribel 2023

Shiffrin continued to break records in Méribel, earning two silver medals in the super-G and slalom and capturing the gold medal in the giant slalom.  In doing so, she now holds the modern record for the most individual World Championship medals at 14, climbing ahead of Sweden’s Anja Pärson (retired), who had the record at 13. The Shiffrin machine is definitely still cranking full throttle, and it will be exciting to watch as she expands medal counts and world records right through the end of this season and beyond.

#2 – The Women’s Slalom

The Women’s Slalom in Méribel was by far the most exciting race at the championships and one of the most exciting races I’ve watched.. Shiffrin, as expected, after the first run, topped the leaderboard with a narrow lead over Switzerland’s Wendy Holdener, followed by Canadian Laurence St-Germain, who skied to an impressive third place (after kicking out of the gate with bib #18).  Then it got interesting.

In run two, Italy’s Lara Della Mea skied her heart out, posting a 49.48 second run time (the second run’s fastest time), landing her in the leader’s chair where she watched skier after skier fail to match her combined time. Eventually, a string of veteran names would strip the underdog Della Mea from her seat, with the leading times changing hands until, with three skiers left to race, Germany’s Lena Duerr took the lead (-0.02) over Norway’s Mina Fuerst Holtmann..  

However, St-Germain would have the run of her life in the next run, crossing the line (-0.69) ahead of Duerr,  guaranteeing her a place on the podium. Then came Wendy “Sendy” Holdener.  The Swiss veteran kicked out of the gate with her trademark aggressive style attacking the course one gate after the next, building a (-0.72) lead only to straddle a gate late in the course, leaving Holdener and fans shocked and heartbroken. Shiffrin was the last to ski.  The hands-down race favorite laid down a respectable run, but not her best or enough to outpace St-Germain.  This win proved to be one for the history books as St-Germain leaves the Méribel with Canada’s first Women’s World Championship slalom medal since 1968.

MERIBEL, FRANCE,18.FEB.23 – ALPINE SKIING – FIS Alpine World Ski Championships, Slalom, ladies. Mikaela Shiffrin (USA), Laurence St Germain (CAN) and Lena Duerr (GER). Photo: GEPA pictures/ Daniel Goetzhaber

#1 – Oh, Canada!

Team Canada’s overall performance at the World Championships was the hands-down winner of my top highlights. In the men’s category, Jack Crawford kicked off the Canadian party with a stunning gold medal finish in the super-G, stunning the crowd and edging out favorite Aleksander Aamodt Kilde (NOR) by a tenth of a second.  This was the 25-year-old Crawford’s first World Championship medal earned from a string of strong performances this season, including two podium appearances and four more top-ten showings. Three days later, teammate Cameron Alexander skied his way to a bronze medal in the downhill. Although the Canadian won a Downhill in Kvitfjell last season, this was nothing less than a stunner as the 25-year-old has had a sluggish season with only four top-30 appearances. This was a significant result for Cameron and on a big stage.

COURCHEVEL,FRANCE,12.FEB.23 – FIS Alpine World Ski Championships, Cameron Alexander and James Crawford (CAN). Photo: GEPA pictures/ Mathias Mandl

Crawford and Alexander’s teammates jumped on the Canadian bandwagon when the quartet of Valérie Grenier, Jeffrey Read, Britt Richardson, and Erik Read skied their way to a bronze medal in the mixed team parallel.  It’s fair to say the team’s performance, in addition to individual wins, reveals just how young and robust the Canadian team is. 

Then there was Canada’s grand finale with Laurence St-Germain’s skiing to a gold medal in the slalom.  Perhaps no one was more surprised than St-Germain herself when she remarked following the race, “I was really not expecting this, obviously. It’s unbelievable. I attacked, had a bit of a mistake, just thinking go down, go down, go down, and it worked out, I guess.” Laurence, it worked out, and you treated fans across Canada and beyond to a sweet conclusion to the women’s competition in Méribel. 

Final Thoughts

This World Championship was a resounding success by any measure. Athletes and fans were treated to two weeks of stirring competition, nail-biting runs, dramatic finishes, and good sportsmanship. Blue skies and good course conditions leveled the playing field for all racers and allowed the contests to proceed without a hitch. As the championships closed out, the season’s next competition moves to Palisades Tahoe (USA) for men’s giant slalom and slalom competitions and Crans-Montana (SUI) for women’s downhill and super-G races.