Watch LIVE TIMING at Lake Louise and Beaver Creek
Young Canadian skiers draw on support ahead of World Cup debuts
LAKE LOUISE, ALTA. (Dec. 1, 2011) – Two young Canadian speed skiers are drawing strength from a small army of well-wishers as they prepare to make their World Cup debuts in Lake Louise, Alta., on Friday.
Sarah Freeman, 19, of Pincher Creek, Alta., and 20-year-old Tess Davies, of Canmore, Alta., struggled in their final downhill training run at the Lake Louise Winterstart World Cup on Thursday, but they are hoping the support of friends, family and community members will help calm their nerves on race day.
Freeman officially finished 57th in training Thursday but missed a gate at the top of the course, while Davies did not finish after falling near the tricky Fall Away section.
“I really wanted to build on yesterday’s training run,” said Freeman, a former member of the B.C. Ski Team and now part of the Canadian Alpine Ski Team women’s prospect training group. “But I know there are a lot of people out there supporting me and they don’t care if I’m last or I’m in the top 30. They are just excited for me.
“Both my sisters have been so cute. They text me every day saying, ‘good luck’ and call me every night to give me positive words. Both my parents will be here tomorrow as well. I hope I can just focus on skiing again and being totally powerful and on it.”
Switzerland’s Dominique Gisin set the pace in training Thursday when she clocked a time of one minute, 53.04 seconds. USA superstar Lindsey Vonn was second-fastest (1:53.23), followed by Switzerland’s Marianne Kaufmann-Abderhalden (1:53.31). Temperatures cooled Thursday, and flat light meant visibility was poor, especially for those starting near the back of the pack.
Davies, a former member of the Raymond James Alberta Ski Team, went down near Fall Away for the second successive day.
“It was the exact same spot, but this time it was just bad luck,” said Davies, also a member of the women’s prospect training group. “Today, my inside ski crossed onto my downhill ski so there was really nothing I could do about that. I tried to uncross it a couple of times but it’s the fastest part of the course.
“It’s not the way I wanted to start the race but that’s OK. It’s almost better. Now, I can just concentrate on making it down instead of freaking out and saying, ‘I want to go faster here or here.’ ”
Like Freeman, Davies is hoping to put aside any sense of disappointment over Thursday’s training run as she prepares to take the big step of making her World Cup debut.
“The support has been overwhelming,” said Davies. “I saw my gym teacher from middle school up here skiing today. She said, ‘I hear you’re in the World Cup – it’s so exciting.’ People have been unbelievably supportive.”
Hugues Ansermoz, head coach of Canada’s women’s team, said his message for both girls is very simple.
“They need to concentrate on the basics,” he said. “The only message is to stick to the plan, ski on the middle of your skis, move and do everything right.
“It was tough with the light,” he added. “You couldn’t see the terrain very well. That’s why you need to be in a good position.”
With veterans Kelly VanderBeek, of Kitchener, Ont., and Larisa Yurkiw, of Owen Sound, Ont., continuing to work their way back to competitive racing following long-term injuries, Freeman and Davies will represent Canada in the World Cup downhill races Friday and Saturday. Emerging World Cup star Marie-Michèle Gagnon, of Lac-Etchemin, Que., and youngster Madison McLeish, of Whistler, B.C. – both Canadian Alpine Ski Team members – are expected to compete in Sunday’s super-G. Women’s prospect training group members Freeman, Davies, Julia Roth, of Waterloo, Ont., and Sarah Elliot, of Oyama, B.C., are also expected to compete in the super-G.
Dec. 1 – Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup – Downhill training 3 – Lake Louise
|
Rank |
Bib |
Name |
Year |
Nation |
Time |
|
1 |
8 |
GISIN Dominique |
1985 |
SUI |
1:53.04 |
|
2 |
15 |
VONN Lindsey |
1984 |
USA |
1:53.23 |
|
3 |
5 |
KAUFMANN-ABDERHALDEN Marianne |
1986 |
SUI |
1:53.31 |
|
4 |
6 |
FISCHBACHER Andrea |
1985 |
AUT |
1:53.81 |
|
5 |
20 |
REBENSBURG Viktoria |
1989 |
GER |
1:53.84 |
|
6 |
19 |
ROLLAND Marion |
1982 |
FRA |
1:53.94 |
|
7 |
10 |
FENNINGER Anna |
1989 |
AUT |
1:54.42 |
|
8 |
9 |
MERIGHETTI Daniela |
1981 |
ITA |
1:54.61 |
|
9 |
29 |
RECCHIA Lucia |
1980 |
ITA |
1:54.68 |
|
10 |
28 |
COOK Stacey |
1984 |
USA |
1:54.70 |
|
10 |
27 |
AUFDENBLATTEN Fraenzi |
1981 |
SUI |
1:54.70 |
|
*** |
|||||
|
57 |
56 |
FREEMAN Sarah |
1992 |
CAN |
2:01.19 |
DID NOT FINISH: DAVIES Tess (CAN)
Photo finish
Media can download hi-res photos from Thursday’s Lake Louise Winterstart World Cup women’s training run: https://alpinecanada.box.com/s/7vr9fahjlpij4k9811nn. Mandatory credit: Malcolm Carmichael/Alpine Canada.
Up next
It’s race day at the Lake Louise Winterstart World Cup. The first downhill goes Friday, followed by a second downhill Saturday and the super-G Sunday. For more information about the Lake Louise Winterstart World Cup, visit http://www.alpinecanada.org/winterstart.
Men's team in action
Robbie Dixon, of Whistler, B.C., was the fastest Canadian for the second straight day during men’s World Cup downhill training in Beaver Creek, USA. Dixon, wearing bib No. 36, was 16th-fastest with a time of 1:45.21. Austria’s Hannes Reichelt was the fastest man down the mountain on Thursday after clocking a time of 1:43.64. Conrad Pridy, of Whistler, B.C., was 35th (1:46.11), Calgary’s Jan Hudec was 40th (1:46.17) and Erik Guay, of Mont-Tremblant, Que., was 44th (1:46.29). Nine Canadians in all took part in the training run. The World Cup downhill race is scheduled for Friday, followed by the super-G Saturday and the giant slalom Sunday.
Préfontaine strikes gold again in Nor-Am Cup
Canada’s Marie-Pier Préfontaine won a Nor-Am Cup giant slalom race for the second successive day in Aspen, USA, on Thursday. The native of Saint Sauveur, Que., clocked a two-run combined time of 2:05.41 to finish 1.31 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher, Corinne Suter, of Switzerland.
“Marie-Pier knows the hill well – she can ski at speed and be dominant,” said Jim Pollock, technical head coach of Canada’s women’s team. “She crushed it. To win both runs, that’s a great day.”
Madison Irwin, of Toronto, Ont., had a solid 10th-place finish (2:08.88), while Erin Mielzynski, of Guelph, Ont., was 11th (2:09.10). Ève Routhier, of Sherbrooke, Que., was 16th (2:10.23). Other Canadian Alpine Ski Team members competing were Brittany Phelan, of Mont-Tremblant, Que., and McLeish, who did not finish their first runs.
Watch the action on TV
Friday’s Lake Louise Winterstart World Cup downhill is due to be shown live on CBCSports.ca and CBC Bold at 2:25 p.m. ET. The race will also be shown Saturday on CBC and CBCSports.ca at 12 p.m. ET. Saturday’s second downhill race will be screened on CBC and CBCSports.ca at 2:30 p.m. ET on Saturday. Sunday’s super-G will be shown on CBC on Sunday at 3 p.m. local time. It will also be on CBCSports.ca and CBC Bold at 12:55 p.m. ET on Sunday. Sportsnet is broadcasting the men’s downhill in Beaver Creek on Friday at 4 p.m. ET in Ontario (start times vary in different regions). Saturday’s men’s super-G will be shown on Saturday on CBC and CBCSports.ca from 1 p.m. ET. Sunday’s men’s giant slalom will be on Sportsnet at 7 p.m. MT on Sunday on Sportsnet West (start times vary in different regions). For a full broadcast schedule, go to http://www.alpinecanada.org/tv
INFORMATION:
Keith Bradford
Director, Communications | Directeur des Communications
Alpine Canada Alpin
#153, 401 – 9th Avenue SW, Calgary, AB T2P 3C5
C 403.620.2362