Canada's Howden claims silver at World Cup ski cross event in Switzerland

Canada's Reece Howden came up just short in his quest for a fourth consecutive gold-medal win at a World Cup ski cross event on Friday Veysonnaz, Switzerland.

The Cultus Lake, B.C., native led Friday's big final almost wire-to-wire but took silver after French skier Youri Duplessis-Kergomard overtook the Canadian at the tail end of the course.

Switzerland's Tobias Baur rounded out the podium with a bronze-medal result.

Howden retained his overall lead in the tour standings, compiling a total of 433 points so far this season. Duplessis-Kergomard is the next closest competitor, 152 points back of the Canadian.

Canada's Jared Schmidt finished second in Friday's small final to end up in sixth place.

On the women's side, Sweden's Sandra Naeslund won gold, with Germany's Daniela Maier and Katrin Ofner of Austria finishing with the silver and bronze medals, respectively.

Ottawa's Hannah Schmidt was the top Canadian finisher, winning the small final to end up fifth overall on the day.

Action continues from Veysonnaz on Saturday, with live streaming coverage on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem beginning at 8 a.m. ET.