Canadian skier Reece Howden of Cultus Lake, B.C., won gold in the men's ski cross World Cup in Kopaonik, Serbia, on February 28, 2026, extending his record to 23 World Cup golds and leading the standings with 743 points. He dedicated the victory to teammate Kevin Drury, who earned silver in Friday's race despite a severe leg injury in a crash and announced his retirement.
The FIS Freestyle Skiing World Cup in Kopaonik, Serbia, delivered dramatic men's ski cross action over the weekend. On Friday, a chaotic big final saw Reece Howden clip skis with Germany's Florian Wilmsmann while battling for the lead, causing Wilmsmann to fall. Toronto's Kevin Drury then crashed into the downed skier, suffering a severe right leg injury. Howden finished first but was disqualified for a line deviation, awarding Drury the silver medal despite not crossing the line. Germany's Tim Hronek was upgraded to gold.
Drury, 37, shared an Instagram photo of his immobilized leg, captioning: "Not the way I wanted to end my career but I'll take the podium." The medal was his 20th World Cup podium (six golds, seven silvers, seven bronzes) in his final season.
Howden rebounded on Saturday, dominating his heats, quarterfinal, semifinal, and final to win gold ahead of Wilmsmann (silver) and France's Youri Duplessis-Kergomard (bronze). The victory brought Howden's career total to 37 World Cup medals (23 golds, nine silvers, five bronzes) and his fifth win this season. He now leads the standings with 743 points ahead of Wilmsmann's 547, with three races left, next in Montafon, Austria, on March 12.
"Today wasn't about me, it's about Kevin Drury," Howden said. "I'm pretty broke up by what happened yesterday. Kevin has been a huge role model for me on and off the snow." He asked fans to sing "O Canada" for Drury on the podium.
Other Canadians: Jared Schmidt 5th (small final), Hannah Schmidt 5th in women's (small final), Kris Mahler 20th, Kaleb Barnum 22nd, Gavin Rowell 23rd, Marielle Thompson 14th (women's). Women's podium: Sweden's Sandra Naeslund (gold), Germany's Daniela Maier (silver), Switzerland's Saskja Lack (bronze).
