Australians Laura Peel, Josie Baff and Cam Bolton win World Cup gold

Australian skier Laura Peel clinched victory at the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup aerials event in Almaty, Kazakhstan, while her compatriot Danielle Scott secured the bronze medal. Peel's outstanding performance has laid a solid foundation for her to win the overall Crystal Globe title at the end of the season, boosting her confidence for future competitions.

Meanwhile, in Erzurum, Turkey, Cam Bolton and Josie Baff delivered a thrilling performance to defeat the British team and win gold in the mixed team snowboard cross World Cup event. Baff added another medal to her tally this weekend, securing gold with Bolton in the mixed snowboard cross team event, following her bronze medal in the individual event on Saturday, demonstrating her versatility and skill.

Bolton's excellent performance gave the team a great start, leading the Americans by three-hundredths of a second. Baff carried this narrow lead into her run, holding off a fast-charging Charlotte Bankes, the women's World Cup leader, ultimately winning the gold medal by a mere four-hundredths of a second, showcasing the intensity of the competition.

Baff, 22, currently ranks third in the women's overall standings, marking her fourth World Cup podium finish this season and her third career gold medal. "Cam and I have been wanting to team up for a while, and he gave me the perfect lead," Baff said. "I knew if I could ride my own run, I'd be hard to pass, so it all worked out today, and we're super happy," emphasizing their teamwork and strategy.

This is 34-year-old Bolton's first World Cup gold medal since February 2019, his second career gold, and his 10th podium finish overall. "It's so good to team up with Josie," Bolton said. "We're close friends and teammates. She's riding so well, and I just wanted to do my job and make sure I rode just as good and give her every opportunity to shine, and she certainly did," highlighting their strong bond and mutual support.

The next stop on the snowboard cross World Cup circuit is a double-header in Gudauri, Georgia, on March 8th and 9th. In Georgia, Peel highlighted her fighting spirit with a brilliant victory over the reigning Olympic champion – even though she only narrowly made it into the finals, showcasing her resilience and determination.

Peel only qualified for the 12-woman final in 12th place and progressed to the final six in fourth place. But that didn't matter as she went all out, scoring a high score of 115.91 with a stunning back double full-full-full. China's 2022 Olympic champion Xu Mengtao couldn't match the Australian's aerial prowess, finishing second with 101.74 points. Fellow Australian Danielle Scott took third place with a back lay-full-full.

This is Peel's fourth World Cup victory of the season and puts her in a leading position to claim the overall Crystal Globe at the final event of the season in Livigno, Italy, on March 13, where next year's Winter Olympics will be held. "I'm feeling amazing, really relieved," Peel told FIS TV. "I think I got a bit lucky, I just scraped into finals, so I was happy to be in the mix," expressing her gratitude and excitement.

Abbey Willcox also made the super final, finishing sixth, and Airlee Frigo finished 12th. Elise Coelli missed the final, finishing 13th, while Riley Flanagan finished 31st in the men's competition. The two-time world champion will be hoping for a solid performance on the Olympic course in Italy as she prepares for the World Championships in Lake Placid later this month.

Peel is a three-time Olympian who has won everything except an Olympic medal. The 35-year-old maintains a comfortable lead in the overall World Cup standings and needs only to finish 12th or higher in Livigno to secure her third Crystal Globe. "I'm in a good position, but I don't want to get too far ahead of myself. One jump at a time, but I'm really happy," remaining focused and cautiously optimistic about her chances.