Nakiska, AB (March 31, 2011) – Conrad Pridy (23) of Whistler, BC and Madison McLeish (18) of Canmore, AB win the Coupe GMC Cup today following successful results in the slalom event at the GMC Canadian Championships.
Pridy is a member of the BC Ski Team and the Whistler Mountain Ski Club (WMSC) and his experience and accomplishments on the Nor-Am Cup circuit provided him with the tools he needed to race consistently across all disciplines this week at the Canadian Championships and bring home the Coupe GMC Cup.
Pridy was admittedly a little nervous heading into today’s races, “The second run went much better than the first- it should have been easier- but the ruts made for a difficult run. The first run really didn’t work out all that well. In the end, I’m happy with my result.”
“I’m honoured to win the GMC Cup. All the guys that have won this Cup before have gone on to do great things,” said a smiling Pridy.
Heading into today’s races, Jeffrey Frisch (Mont Tremblant, QC), held a marginal lead – but left the Coupe GMC Cup title open for Pridy’s taking by choosing not to participate in today’s slalom event.
A challenging course set eliminated other potential contenders for the men’s overall championship with numerous DNFs in the first run.
Joining Conrad Pridy as a champion is young Madison McLeish of the Alberta Ski Team. McLeish’s outstanding performances this week have landed her on the podium numerous times.
The race for the ladies’ Coupe GMC Cup was a tight one throughout the week. Close behind Madison McLeish was the 2010 Coupe GMC Cup champion Victoria Stevens (Mont Tremblant, QC). The 21-year-old Stevens earned a gold medal at the Coupe GMC Cup event at Camp Fortune earlier this month in slalom, but was unable to produce a strong enough result in today’s event to hold her lead in the Coupe GMC Cup rankings.
Both the male and female winner of the overall Coupe GMC Cup receives five thousand dollars in prize money and joins an impressive group of alumni including CAST team members Marie-Michele Gagnon (Lac Etchemin, QC) and Ben Thomsen (Invermere, AB).
The awards for the GMC Canadian Champion in slalom, and the Coupe GMC Cup were presented at the Calgary Olympic Park following the GMC Provincial Dual slalom. The slalom event, where the top eight male and female skiers from Alberta, Quebec, and Ontario go head to head to win $3,500 for their team, was won by the Alberta Ski Team.