Vail’s Tess Johnson, in ‘dream come true’, wins silver medal at World Championships

The U.S. Ski Team recently issued the following press release on Tess Johnson of Vail winning a silver medal behind teammate Jaelin Kauf in dual moguls at the World Championships at St. Moritz, Switzerland:

A season of highs and lows, successes, failures, and records culminated at the dual moguls event at World Championships when Jaelin Kauf and Tess Johnson defied the odds to finish first and second overall. This is the first time the U.S. has ever gone one-two at World Championships in dual moguls.  

“It feels incredible, especially after singles – a little bit of redemption out here for duals, and it’s been an awesome day skiing against some really strong women and against Tess,” said Kauf. “I was really hoping for a sweep there with Kylie, but our whole team is crushing it, and it’s super awesome to get two of us on the podium today.”  

An overnight freeze and cloudy conditions made for a moguls skier’s nightmare: hard, frozen bumps. The first few rounds of the qualification round were dicey as spectators watched at least one athlete ski out in almost every dual. Despite a few bobbles, the Stifel U.S. Ski Team athletes took their qualification duals in stride, and seven advanced into the finals round of 16. 

In the 1/8th final, Kylie Kariotis took out 2025 moguls World Championship bronze medalist Maia Schwinghammer (CAN), in what would turn out to be the first of a string of incredible duals from the rookie. Kasey Hogg prevailed against Hinako Tomitaka (JPN). All four U.S. women advanced to the quarter-finals along with Charlie Mickel, who won his dual against Rasmus Stegfeldt of Sweden. Nick Page finished the day 14th and Dylan Walczyk in 16th. 

The women’s dual placement couldn’t have been better for the U.S., as no U.S. women would have to go head-to-head until the semi-finals. Jaelin Kauf, Kariotis, and Johnson advanced into the semifinals, meaning they would all have the chance to battle it out for a medal. In the quarter-finals, Johnson took on multi-time World Champion Perrine Laffont from France and, with an exciting outcome, won the dual by one point to advance to the semifinals. Hogg finished the day sixth, tying her dual moguls personal best. Mickel landed in seventh. 

“Perrine Laffont is the World Champion, she just won two days ago so when I was able to beat her just by one point I knew that I could win gold if I wanted,” said Johnson. “I’m just really proud of how I skied today it’s been an incredible season and to end it with a silver at World Champs is kind of a dream come true.”

In semifinal one, Kauf and Kariotis battled it out, and Kauf was untouchable, winning the dual 23 to 12, sending her to the big final and Kariotis to the small final. Johnson went up against Anastassiya Gorodko of Kazakhstan, who has been on fire all season. Despite her success, Johnson was cleaner and quicker through the bumps, putting herself into gold/silver medal contention. 

In the small final, Kariotis met Gorodko in only her second small final appearance of her career. Kariotis kept things close, but ultimately, Gorodko prevailed, and Kariotis finished fourth. 

All eyes and ears in the vicinity of the course were turned to the bumps for the women’s big final, where Johnson and Kauf were set to battle it out for the gold medal. Despite a few mistakes across both athletes, Kauf turned on the gas in the mid-section of the course. Her speed, along with jumps, made her untouchable throughout the day, and the big final was no exception. Kauf took the gold medal alongside teammate Johnson with the silver, the best World Championship result for both athletes. These results mark the best finish for the U.S. in World Championship dual moguls history. 

“Kylie was so close to that bronze medal, and I know it’s coming for her; she is an incredible skier, and she has had an amazing season. We really wanted it [a podium sweep] today, but I know that it is going to come eventually, and I am just really proud of our entire team, the men included, our staff included; it’s been one heck of a season,” said Johnson. When asked what the secret is to the team’s success, she said, “working hard and having fun.” 

As the men finished their final round, Kauf was given the coveted gold ‘2025 World Champion’ bib to wear for the award ceremony, and the crowd roared. Kauf and Johnson went around the spectator area, giving hugs to the many friends and family who had come all the way to Switzerland to support them, and everyone could feel that dreams had come true that day. 

RESULTS
Women
Men