The U.S. National Junior Hockey Team defeated Sweden, 3-1, to capture gold at the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championship on Jan. 5 in Ufa, Russia. The team rebounded from two early-tournament losses to Russia and Canada, winning its final four games to claim the championship. The run to gold included a 5-1 victory over Canada in the semifinals, avenging the earlier defeat.

WIRE TO WIRE

Mikaela Shiffrin (Eagle-Vail, Colo.) dominated the FIS Alpine World Cup slalom event in front of an overflowing crowd in Zagreb, Croatia, winning by an astonishing 1.19 seconds. Shiffrin became the first American to win two world cup races in a single-season before the age of 18. David Chodounsky (Crested Butte, Colo.) led the U.S. men with an 18th-place finish.

BIATHLON

The U.S. relay team of Lowell Bailey (Lake Placid, N.Y.), Tim Burke (Paul Smiths, N.Y.), Russell Currier (Stockholm, Maine) and Leif Nordgren (Marine, Minn.) skied through fog, wind and rain to finish fifth in a time of 1:22:20.3 (0+8 0+3) at the IBU World Cup, which ran from Jan. 3-6 in Oberhof, Germany. In the sprint races, Sarah Studebaker (Boise, Idaho) finished 29th in the 7.5- kilometer sprint with a time of 23:18.1, while Burke was the top-U.S. men's finisher in the 10K, finishing 26th in a time of 26:24.3/1+1. Burke also led the way for the U.S. in the pursuit, finishing a U.S.-best 30th in a time of 35:58.1 with four penalties.

BOBSLED/SKELETON

Katie Uhlaender (Breckenridge, Colo.) and Noelle Pikus-Pace (Orem, Utah) kicked off 2013 with medal-winning performances at a world cup race, held Jan. 4-6 in Altenberg, Germany. Uhlaender finished 0.01 behind the winner to claim silver, while Pikus-Pace used a strong final run to move into third. Brad Stewart (Hastings, Minn.) made his world cup debut in Altenberg, sliding to a 19th- place finish. Stewart's time of 2:03.56 put him just ahead of teammates John Daly (Smithtown, N.Y.) and Kyle Tress (Ewing, N.J.), who finished 20th and 21st.

Mike Dellemann (Oregon, Wis.) and Annie O'Shea (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) led the U.S. skeleton team at the Intercontinental Cup in Igls, Austria, in races held on Jan. 5-6. Dellemann had the top showing for the U.S., finishing seventh with a time of 1:50.21, while O'Shea also notched a top-10 finish, placing 10th in a time of 1:53.64.

BOWLING

Danielle McEwan (Stony Point, N.Y.) and John Szcerbinski (North Tonawanda, N.Y.) rolled into the lead at the 2013 United States Bowling Congress Team USA Trials. At the trials, held Jan. 3-7 in Henderson, Nev., McEwan and Szcerbinski have successfully accumulated the fewest amount of points heading into the final day of competition.

CURLING

Craig Brown (Madison, Wis.) - a two-time U.S. champion - teamed with Kroy Nernberger (Madison, Wis.), Matt Hamilton (McFarland, Wis.) and Jon Brunt (Portage, Wis.) to defeat Brady Clark (Seattle, Wash.) and Washington-based Granite Curling Club at the USA Curling Men's Challenge Round in Hibbing, Minn., on Jan. 5, earning a berth to the 2013 USA Curling National Championships. Greg Persinger (Anchorage, Alaska) and teammates Nick Myers (Mansfield, Texas), Sean Murray (Watertown, Minn.) and Tim Gartner (St. Paul, Minn.) also qualified for the national championships.

Pete Fenson (Bemidji, Minn.), Shawn Rojeski (Chisholm, Minn.), Joe Polo (Bemidji, Minn.) and Ryan Brunt (Portege, Wis.) posted a 2-3 record at the World Curling Tour Mecure Perth Masters, held Jan. 3-6 in Perth, Scotland. Team Fenson, the only U.S. competitors in the 32-team field, won two of its first three games before dropping its final two and being eliminated.