Reece Howden heads to Milano Cortina 2026 off World Cup bronze

Reece Howden will head to Milano Cortina 2026 with momentum after stepping onto the podium in the final Ski Cross World Cup before the Olympic break.

The 27-year-old is one of Canada’s top medal contenders, having collected four gold medals, one silver, and one bronze across his last seven World Cup appearances.

Starting from lane three in the big final, Howden lined up alongside teammate Kevin Drury, Italy’s Simone Deromedis, and Germany’s Florian Wilmsmann. Out of the gate, Howden, Deromedis and Wilmsmann surged into the lead.

Drury briefly pulled ahead into second position, but his charge was cut short after a crash in the middle section of the course, knocking him out of medal contention. Deromedis broke away from the pack and never gave up his advantage. From the first intermediate split through the final turns, he held off the field to take the win.

Howden battled through to secure the bronze medal. He crossed the finish line in 56.96 seconds, 0.14 seconds behind the winner.

READ: Team Canada’s alpine skiing and ski cross athletes named for Milano Cortina 2026 

A three-time Crystal Globe winner, Howden enters the Olympic break leading the overall World Cup standings. He sits atop the rankings with 593 points, holding a 133-point advantage over Deromedis, his nearest challenger.

The three-time Crystal Global winner (2021, 2023, 2025) will make his second straight Olympic appearance. At Beijing 2022, he finished ninth in men’s ski cross.

Marielle Thompson claims 75th career World Cup podium

Previously on Friday, Marielle Thompson secured the 75th World Cup podium finish of her career, continuing a strong return to form on the ski cross circuit.

Italy’s Jole Galli captured gold, while France’s Marielle Berger Sabbatel earned silver. Thompson finished third, marking a second consecutive World Cup bronze medal.

The result builds on Thompson’s return to the podium last weekend in Veysonnaz, Switzerland, where she advanced through quarterfinals for the first time this season after battling a knee injury. The injury forced the 33-year-old to withdraw from several events during the 2025–26 campaign, following a dominant previous season in which she won five World Cup gold medals.

READ: Thompson looking to turn injury adversity into Olympic success – again

“I’m just starting to come back into my own,” said the 33-year-old. “I’m feeling strong. I’m getting better day by day.

“Veysonnaz was a nice confidence booster and today is the same. I’ll take that into tomorrow, step one, and then hopefully the Olympics. Keep it going.”

Thompson, who will compete in her fourth Olympic Games this winter, was recently named one of Team Canada’s Opening Ceremony flag bearers alongside three-time Olympic moguls medallist Mikaël Kingsbury. She won Olympic gold in ski cross at Sochi 2014 and added a silver medal at Beijing 2022.

READ: Olympic champions Kingsbury & Thompson named Team Canada’s flag bearers for Milano Cortina 2026 

Ski cross competition at the Milano Cortina Winter Games is scheduled for February 20 and 21 (Days 14 and 15) at Livigno Snow Park in Livigno.