ALPINE SKIING Preview: World Cup in Lake Louise and Killington this week

Defending World Cup overall champ Mikaela Shiffrin (USA)

The annual North American stops on the FIS Alpine World Cup start this week with competitions in Canada and the U.S.:

Men’s Downhill and Super-G at Lake Louise

The Lake Louise Ski Resort in western Alberta (CAN) has been the site of races since 1980 and starts the first of two weekends of FIS World Cup action with the men this week and the women next week. The first Downhill of the season is scheduled for 24 November and a Super-G for Sunday (25th).

Last season’s discipline standings showed:

Men/Downhill:
1. 682 Beat Feuz (SUI)
2. 612 Aksel Lund Svindal (NOR)
3. 446 Thomas Dressen (GER)
4. 386 Dominik Paris (ITA)
5. 384 Vincent Kreichmayr (AUT)

Men/Super-G:
1. 400 Kjetil Jansrud (NOR)
2. 320 Vincent Kreichmayr (AUT)
3. 274 Aksel Lund Svindal (NOR)
4. 267 Hannes Reichelt (AUT)
5. 226 Max Franz (AUT)

At Lake Louise last season, it was eventual winners Feuz and Jansrud who won the Downhill and Super-G, respectively. Matthias Mayer (AUT) and Svindal were second and third in the Downhill and Franz and Reichelt were 2-3 in the Super-G.

Watch out for Svindal, who has won eight Lake Louise races: two Downhills (2012-15) and six in the Super-G in 2005-07-11-12-13-15! NBCSN has coverage at 2 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday and 4 p.m. Eastern on Sunday. Look for results here.

Women’s Giant Slalom and Slalom in Killington

The FIS Alpine World Cup returned in a big way to Killington, Vermont (USA) last season, with big crowds and excellent competition in both races, won by Viktoria Rebensburg (GER) and American Mikaela Shiffrin.

The first two early-season women’s races have been in these events:

Giant Slalom at Soelden: 27 October
1. Tessa Worley (FRA)
2. Federica Brignone (ITA)
3. Mikaela Shiffrin (USA)

Slalom at Levi: 17 November
1. Mikaela Shiffrin (USA)
2. Petra Vlhova (SVK)
3. Bernadette Schild (AUT)

The amazing Shiffrin, still just 23, has 44 career World Cup wins to her credit – including Levi – and 64 podium finishes. The Killington events are her strongest: she has 33 wins and 41 World Cup medals in the Slalom, and six wins and 15 medals in the Giant Slalom.

Last year at Killington, Rebensburg won the Giant Slalom, with Shiffrin second and Italy’s Manuela Molegg (ITA, now retired) third. Shiffrin won the Slalom, followed by Vlhov and Schild.

NBCSN has coverage at 1 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday. Look for results here.