VAL GARDENA, ITA (December 19, 2009) – Manuel Osborne-Paradis (Vancouver, BC) won for the second time early in the 2009 / 2010 World Cup season, taking today’s classic Saslong downhill in Val Gardena, ITA.
Today’s race can be seen of the GMC Alpine Ski Series on CBC beginning at 5 p.m. ET as well as on www.cbcsports.ca.
Osborne-Paradis, who won the Bombardier Lake Louise Winterstart super-G last month, is the first Canadian to win twice in a season since Thomas Grandi won two giant slalom races in three days in December of 2004.
"Before Christmas normally I don’t ski that well," said Osborne-Paradis, who now has two World Cup wins in his career. "But I have been getting better and I am figuring out these courses more and more, just becoming so much more confident on every course."
"This is the first year that I have had a game plan on every course before I have got here, just with the experience that I have. I have put in my time and now it’s just paying off with me being able to know the courses," he said.
It was a very solid day overall for the Canadians, with Robbie Dixon (Whistler, BC) placing sixth in 2:01.77 and Erik Guay (Mont-Tremblant, QC) 11th in 2:02.13. Jan Hudec (Calgary, AB) finished in 36th place.