What you should know about the alpine skiing World Cup finals

SUN Valley, Idaho — Mikaela Shiffrin has a head start in the Olympic season. First, though, she and the rest of the world’s best skiers must finish this one.

The World Cup finals, the penultimate event on a circuit that began in late October, commence on Saturday. While the focus will be on the season titles that have yet to be determined, skiers will also be looking to add to their point totals in order to improve or cement their starting places for the next year.

And for Shiffrin and the rest of the Americans, it’s an opportunity to show the world that the US team will be formidable in next year’s Milan-Cortina Olympics.

Six of the 14 skiers on the U.S. squad for the finals, which run through March 27, have finished on the podium in a World Cup event or the World Championships. That doesn’t even include Lindsey Vonn, who terminated her five-year career last autumn after undergoing partial knee surgery.

Shiffrin, who suffered a major gash in her oblique muscles during a fall at the World Cup in Killington, Vermont, will receive a lot of attention. She just won her 100th World Cup at Sestriere, Italy, and is expected to be a favourite in the next slalom final.

However, GS has proven more difficult, with Shiffrin admitting to suffering from PTSD as a result of the incident. She did not qualify for the GS race at the World Cup finals, but uploaded photographs of herself practicing on Thursday with the remark, “GS Season 2025/26 starts now…” “Buckle up, Buttercup.”

Here’s all you need know regarding the World Cup finals:

What are the World Cup Finals?

The World Cup finals are the season’s concluding event, including the best male and female skiers in downhill, super-G, giant slalom, and slalom races. Only the top 25 men and women in each discipline qualified for this World Cup race, which was smaller than others.

This is skiers’ last chance to win points for the season rankings, which also determine starting list places for next year.

Where are the World Cup Finals being held?

All events will take place on the International Trail on Bald Mountain in Sun Valley, Idaho.

Have the World Cup finals been held in the United States before?

This will be the fourth World Cup finals hosted in the United States since the event’s inception in 1993. They were in Vail in 1994, 1997, and Aspen in 2017.

Which US skiers qualified?

Shiffrin, who has won more World Cups than any other skier in history, heads the 14-person U.S. team. It is also a star-studded group. In addition to Shiffrin, who won three slalom World Cups and was third in another, five other Americans finished on the podium this season.

Lauren Macuga won a super-G and took silver in the downhill. Paula Moltzan earned two giant slalom bronze medals, while Breezy Johnson got a downhill bronze. All three medaled in the world championships, with Johnson winning the downhill and team combined, Macuga claiming bronze in the super-G, and Moltzan winning bronze in the slalom.

Jared Goldberg earned silver in super-G, while Ryan Cochran-Siegle won bronze in downhill.

What races do skiers in the United States participate in?

The Americans will have at least one competitor in each event, with Macuga, Cochran-Siegle, Moltzan, and Lindsey Vonn all qualifying for two races.

Here is the lineup:

Women

Downhill: Johnson, Macuga, Vonn, and Jacqueline Wiles.

Macuga and Vonn in Super-G.

Giant slalom: Moltzan, Katie Hensien, AJ Hurt, Nina O’Brien.

Slalom: Shiffrin and Moltzan.

Men

Downhill: Cochran-Siegle and Bryce Bennett.

Super-G: Cochran-Siegle, Goldberg.

Giant Slalom: River Radamus

Slalom: Ben Ritchie

What is the schedule?

Saturday, March 22.

1 p.m. Men’s Downhill

2:30 p.m. Women’s Downhill

Sunday, March 23.

1 p.m. Women’s Super-G

2:30 p.m. Men’s Super-G

Tuesday, March 25.

11:30 a.m., first run, women’s giant slalom.

2 p.m., second run, women’s giant slalom.

Wednesday, March 26

11:30 a.m., first run, men’s giant slalom

2 p.m., second run, men’s giant slalom.

Thursday, March 27

11 a.m., first run, women’s slalom.

Noon, first run, men’s slalom

2 p.m., second run, women’s slalom.

3 p.m., second run, men’s slalom.

How do I watch the World Cup final?

NBC will broadcast live coverage of the World Cup finals across its different platforms, as well as a highlights program on March 29. Outside+ streams all races live.

Here’s the NBC schedule:

Saturday, March 22.

1 p.m. on NBC, Peacock.

Sunday, March 23.

1 p.m., NBC, Peacock.

2:30 p.m. CNBC, Peacock.

Tuesday, March 25.

2 p.m. USA Network

Wednesday, March 26

2 p.m. on USA Network

Thursday, March 27

2 p.m. on USA Network

Saturday, March 29.

2 p.m., NBC, Peacock.