Aksel Lund Svindal of Norway won his third straight World Cup race, holding off teammate Kjetil Jansrud in a demanding downhill at Colorado's Beaver Creek.

Svindal was smooth through a sun-splashed course Friday and finished in 1 minute, 42.34 seconds. He beat Jansrud by 0.30 seconds. Guillermo Fayed of France was third.

The 32-year-old Svindal captured both races in Lake Louise a week ago. He is returning to the World Cup circuit after tearing his Achilles tendon last season.

Jansrud was the defending champion at Birds of Prey and the favourite, especially after winning both training runs. He wasn't as fast as Svindal up top and never made up the time.

Canada's Erik Guay was 11th, Benjamin Thomsen was 23rd, Manuel Osborne-Paradis was 35th, Morgan Pridy was 39th, and Tyler Werry was 46th.

The results were not yet official, with lower-ranked skiers still racing.

With files from CBC Sports