Under clear blue skies, and chilly temperatures, the men took to the slopes for the final day of World Cup races at Lake Louise in super-G.
It was a tough start for the Canadian men when Vincent Lavoie of Longueuil, Quebec, took a fall just uphill of the finish in front of thousands of concerned fans. He suffered a left leg fracture and was taken to Banff's Mineral Springs Hospital for surgery.
Sunday's top finisher was American Bode Miller with the time of one minute, 28.18 seconds, his second victory of the Lake Louise World Cup this weekend after he claimed the gold in downhill with his remarkable one minute, 42:75 seconds Saturday.
Austrian superstar Hermann Maier took second with the time of one minute, 28.32 seconds while fellow teammate Michael Walchhofer took the podium for the second time this weekend with the time of one minute, 28.73 seconds.
Last season's CIBC Lake Louise Winterstart World Cup downhill silver medallist, Erik Guay of Mont Tremblant, Quebec, missed the top-20 by one spot today with his time of one minute, 29.81 seconds. “The weekend was a successful comeback for me and I am looking forward to Beaver Creek. Yesterday was a great day for our team; it's a big deal because every time you finish in the top-30 you get more world cup spots.”
Jan Hudec skied into 32nd place with a time of one minute, 30.21 seconds. “My result was disappointing today, I'm known more for super-G and I was hoping for top-30.”
Ken Read, President of Alpine Canada Alpin, was satisfied with the Canadian Alpine Ski Team's overall performance at the season opening downhill and super G races in Lake Louise.
“All of the efforts our athletes have invested, both on and off the hill, are paying off. Each race, we are seeing more Canadian athletes finish in the top 30 and it is particularly gratifying for our program when we get to share these successes with our fans here in Canada,” said Read.
He added “it's unfortunate about Vincent's injury. As a veteran on the team, Vincent brought great insight to the younger racers.”
The first segment of the CIBC Lake Louise Winterstart World Cup has been a success thanks to the contribution of hundreds of volunteers and dozens of sponsors, including CIBC, which assumed the title sponsorship of the event for a second year in a row.
The CIBC Lake Louise Winterstart World Cup will resume on Tuesday with the first of the women's downhill training runs. The first downhill race is scheduled for Friday at 12:30.
Racing action on the men's World Cup circuit will continue Thursday of this week at Beaver Creek, Colorado with events in all four disciplines; super-G, downhill, giant slalom and slalom, respectively.
TOP-15
1. MILLER, Bode, USA 1:28.18; 2. MAIER, Hermann, AUT 1:28.32; 3. WALCHHOFER, Michael, AUT 1:28.73; 4. GRUGGER, Johann, AUT 1:28.84; 5. RAHLVES, Daron, USA 1:28.86; 6. RAICH, Benjamin, AUT 1:28.94; 7. SCHEIBER, Mario, AUT 1:29.06; 8. KNAUSS, Hans, AUT 1:29.25; 9. DEFAGO, Dieder, SUI 1:29.38; 10. ECKERT, Florian, GER 1:29.40; 11. HOFFMANN, Ambrosi, SUI 1:29.45; 12. BUECHEL, Marco, LIE 1:29.52; 13. LANZINGER, Matthias, AUT 1:29.60; 14. AAMODT, Kjetil Andre, NOR 1:29.70; 15. JAERBYN, Patrik, SWE 1:29.73
Canadian Results
21. GUAY Erik, Mont Tremblant, QC, 1:29.81
32. HUDEC, Jan, Calgary, AB, 1:30.21
39. BOURQUE Fran