AROSA, Switzerland (Dec. 20) - Olympic gold medalist Seth Wescott (Sugarloaf, ME) threw down the fastest runs to win the first snowboardcross World Cup of his career in Arosa on Saturday.

"This is a good start to the season. I'm riding good comparatively to everyone else in the world and I just feel like I need to take advantage of that," Wescott said. "I'll hopefully get a few more World Cup wins in Austria and then go get my World Championship title back."

U.S. Snowboarding Head Coach Peter Foley said Wescott had all the focus and training he needed to be able to win.

"I'm super excited about Seth. I feel like at camp in Telluride he put it in his head that he wanted to come here and win," Foley said. "He worked so hard and was focused here and he put all the pieces together to win."

Teammates Nick Baumgartner (Iron River, MI) and Graham Watanabe (Sun Valley, ID) both raced in the small final with Baumgartner ending up fifth and Watanabe in seventh.

For the race, Wescott had an added tool in his kit that gave him the boost of confidence it took for the win.

"I brought my own wax tech over - Curtis Bacca the guy that [worked with] me at the Olympics - and he and I have never not won a race together, so I just had a good feeling going into the week," Wescott said.

Prior to the World Cup, Wescott, along with the rest of the U.S. snowboardcross crew, spent a week training on one of only two snowboardcross courses in the world at Telluride Resort in Colorado in preparation for the season.

"They rolled out the red carpet for us and built out two course sections so we got to work a lot of starts and a lot of rollers. This course here was mostly rollers and a lot of small features and those are some of the things I'm good at," Wescott said. "We got a lot of good mileage in at Telluride and I think I was ahead in terms of days and hours ridden coming in here. That early season training and the early season mileage really paid off."

For Wescott, an Olympic and World Champion, finally having his first World Cup win under his belt makes the day all the more better.

"I have had so many times where I've made mistakes," Wescott said. "It's nice to get it done. Standing in the gate before the last heat I looked at the guys around me and I thought, 'there's no way.' I was feeling confident and I got it done. It was nice to get it over with."

In the women's heats, Sandra Frei of Switzerland won followed by Norway's Helene Olafsen in second and Nelly Moenne Loccoz of France in third. Lindsey Jacobellis (Stratton Mountain, VT), who won the opening World Cup in Chapelco, Argentina, in September, crashed in the second round, finishing ninth.

The athletes now break for the holidays before heading to Bad Gastein for two competitions Jan. 10-11.

OFFICIAL RESULTS
2009 LG SNOWBOARD FIS WORLD CUP
Arosa, Switzerland - Dec. 20, 2008

Men's Snowboardcross
1. Seth Wescott, Sugarloaf, ME
2. Markus Schairer, Austria
3. David Speiser, Germany
4. Alex Pullin, Australia
5. Nick Baumgartner, Iron River, MI
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7. Graham Watanabe, Sun Valley, ID
17. Nate Holland, Squaw Valley, CA
22. Jonathan Cheever, Saugus, MA
35. Shaun Palmer, South Lake Tahoe, CA
45. Pat Holland, Squaw Valley, CA
48. Jayson Hale, Sierraville, CA

Women's Snowboardcross
1. Sandra Frei, Switzerland
2. Helene Olafsen, Norway
3. Nelly Moenne Loccoz, France
4. Simona Meiler, Switzerland
5. Dominique Maltais, Canada
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9. Lindsey Jacobellis, Stratton Mountain, VT
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For complete results click here.