Sam Morse Stifel Success NorAm Cup downhill leader: PHOTO USSS Jay Riley

The US men’s speed team showed their pace at the Stifel Success NorAm Cup speed races. Two downhills, including the Toyota U.S. Alpine Championship and two super-G races, took place at Copper Mountain, Colorado. World Cup regulars topped the podium while recovering Sam DuPratt celebrated his return to speed and the NorAm podium.

Downhill

Stifel U.S. Alpine Team invitee Sam Morse won the opening downhill by over a second. Unfortunately, Morse recently missed scoring World Cup points in the Beaver Creek downhill by 0.02 seconds, finishing 31^st. However, Morse found his speed in Copper and redeemed himself by claiming the National Championship. Two other Stifel U.S. speed members Kyle Negomir and Erik Arvidsson finished second and third.  Furthermore, teammate Jay Poulter finished 11^th and won the Junior Championship title.

“Erik and Sam both did great in the downhill,” said Negomir. “It’s really a privilege to be able to train with and be pushed every day by such good guys and skiers. I’m lucky to have this good young group on the speed team.”

In addition, Arvidsson grabbed the second downhill win, followed by Morse in second and Negomir in third. Just off the podium was teammate Sam DuPratt. DuPratt had been sidelined for two years recovering after breaking both legs at the Val Gardena World Cup in 2020. However, a long prep period at Copper Mountain left DuPratt comfortable on the hill and eased post-injury nerves.

“I thought I did well in the downhill but just missed the podium,” said DuPratt. “Those top three guys are hard to beat.”

Super-G

The super-G races brought beautiful weather and fast skiing for the double-header races. This time, Kyle Negomir was the man to beat. Negomir took both super-G wins ahead of DuPratt, who finished with double silver medals. As a result, Arvidsson and Morse were left fighting for third, each earning a bronze in one race.

“Similar to how we all push each other in training, I just tried to feed off that energy,” said Negomir. “I think we’re all feeling confident in our skiing and will hopefully have slightly better start positions moving forward. We’re really looking forward to resuming the World Cup calendar in Italy.”

Despite missing the downhill podium, DuPratt claimed second in both super-G races. His NorAm success proved he has more to give to the sport and is still able to compete with the best.

“Negomir is very hard to beat and even harder to beat in a Copper super-G, so I’ll let him have this one,” joked DuPratt. “It felt really good to be on the podium again after two years of rehab.”

DuPratt will join his teammates in Europe to compete on the Europa Cup circuit. Negomir, Morse, and Arvidsson have touched down in Val Gardena and have kicked off their training runs for the World Cup downhill on Thursday.