Completed Event: Skiing versus 20K Freestyle (M) on March 8, 2025 , , 1st
Final Score
Skiing
1st
vs 20K Freestyle (M)
Tuesday, February 6
Dillon, CO
All Day
University of Utah
vs
Slalom
Photo by: Hunter Dyke/Utah Athletics
Four Podiums as Utes Take Lead at Halfway Point of Denver Invitational
2/6/2024 6:47 PM | Skiing
Utah takes top two in men’s slalom; gold and bronze on women’s side
LOVELAND SKI AREA, Colo. – Headlined by a victory for Kaja Norbye and the first collegiate win by Raphael Lessard, the Utah Ski Team had four individual podium performances in the second slalom race of the Denver Invitational and climbed atop the team standings as the alpine part of the meet concluded on Tuesday.
Utah now has 350 points in the meet—with the alpine portion consisting of two slaloms. The Utes lead second-place Denver by 23 points and Colorado is in third place, 62 points back. The Utes also had the top team score of today's second slalom, tallying 197 points.
Mikkel Solbakken continued a great stretch of skiing with a silver medal on the men's side, while Madison Hoffman remains strong in her return from the World Cup circuit and skied to the podium with bronze.
"To have four out of six podiums today was pretty cool," said head alpine coach JJ Johnson. "Raph stuck to his process and is in such a strong headspace. He skied so well, especially on the second run. The girls were great on the second run as well. I can't put into words how close this team is right now. Everyone wanted to do as well as the others. Everyone is skiing so relaxed and executing. The atmosphere they're building is cool to see. You can really feel it."
Lessard took home the men's victory with a time of 1:36.61 and Solbakken was right behind him, clocking a 1:36.70. Gustav Vøllo totaled a 1:37.14 between his two runs, ensuring all three Utah scorers came out of the top-seven. Sindre Myklebust added a top-10 performance as well.
Lessard vaulted to the top all the way from 14th place at the break, speeding down the hill in 49.07 seconds in the afternoon—the second-best run in the field. Myklebust clocked a top-five second run, while Solbakken and Oliver Parazette put down fast openers to enter the break in second and third place, respectively.
Along with Norbye (1:38.81) and Hoffman's (1:39.52) podiums in the women's competition, Michelle Kervén (1:41.51) finished in the top-10 after winning the second run. It was a great afternoon that saw Utah record the four fastest second runs. Kervén was down the hill in 49.04 seconds, Claire Timmermann clocked 49.08 seconds and both Norbye and Hoffman were each into the finish area in 49.11 seconds.
Norbye and Hoffman also were in the top-three for the day's first run.
Said Norbye of the recent stretch, "The last couple races have been nothing but fun! The team is doing great, both on and off the hill. I am very thankful to be a part of that."
Next Up
The Utes will be returning to action on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 9-10 as the Nordic portion of the Denver Invitational comes into focus. A 10K classic is set for Friday with a 5K freestyle to follow on Saturday. Both races will be held in Minturn, Colorado, at Maloit Park.
Alpine teams around the RMISA are now off until Thursday, Feb. 22, when a giant slalom extra qualifier race will be held at Big Sky Resort in Big Sky, Montana. It'll lead into the 2024 RMISA Championships, which run from Feb. 23-25 and will be hosted by Montana State.
Follow the Utah Ski Team
Follow the Utes on social media (@utahskiteam).
Utah now has 350 points in the meet—with the alpine portion consisting of two slaloms. The Utes lead second-place Denver by 23 points and Colorado is in third place, 62 points back. The Utes also had the top team score of today's second slalom, tallying 197 points.
Mikkel Solbakken continued a great stretch of skiing with a silver medal on the men's side, while Madison Hoffman remains strong in her return from the World Cup circuit and skied to the podium with bronze.
"To have four out of six podiums today was pretty cool," said head alpine coach JJ Johnson. "Raph stuck to his process and is in such a strong headspace. He skied so well, especially on the second run. The girls were great on the second run as well. I can't put into words how close this team is right now. Everyone wanted to do as well as the others. Everyone is skiing so relaxed and executing. The atmosphere they're building is cool to see. You can really feel it."
Lessard took home the men's victory with a time of 1:36.61 and Solbakken was right behind him, clocking a 1:36.70. Gustav Vøllo totaled a 1:37.14 between his two runs, ensuring all three Utah scorers came out of the top-seven. Sindre Myklebust added a top-10 performance as well.
Lessard vaulted to the top all the way from 14th place at the break, speeding down the hill in 49.07 seconds in the afternoon—the second-best run in the field. Myklebust clocked a top-five second run, while Solbakken and Oliver Parazette put down fast openers to enter the break in second and third place, respectively.
Along with Norbye (1:38.81) and Hoffman's (1:39.52) podiums in the women's competition, Michelle Kervén (1:41.51) finished in the top-10 after winning the second run. It was a great afternoon that saw Utah record the four fastest second runs. Kervén was down the hill in 49.04 seconds, Claire Timmermann clocked 49.08 seconds and both Norbye and Hoffman were each into the finish area in 49.11 seconds.
Norbye and Hoffman also were in the top-three for the day's first run.
Said Norbye of the recent stretch, "The last couple races have been nothing but fun! The team is doing great, both on and off the hill. I am very thankful to be a part of that."
Next Up
The Utes will be returning to action on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 9-10 as the Nordic portion of the Denver Invitational comes into focus. A 10K classic is set for Friday with a 5K freestyle to follow on Saturday. Both races will be held in Minturn, Colorado, at Maloit Park.
Alpine teams around the RMISA are now off until Thursday, Feb. 22, when a giant slalom extra qualifier race will be held at Big Sky Resort in Big Sky, Montana. It'll lead into the 2024 RMISA Championships, which run from Feb. 23-25 and will be hosted by Montana State.
Follow the Utah Ski Team
Follow the Utes on social media (@utahskiteam).
Players Mentioned
Alpine
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