Freestyle Skiing 2016 - 2017 Discussion Thread

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Zacher and Flisar seeing double in Cross Alps Tour finale Innichen

 

The final stage of the 2016 Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup Cross Alps Tour took to the slopes of Innichen/San Candido (ITA) this week for a pair of back-to-back competitions on Wednesday and Thursday, and when it was all said and done we would see a pair of repeat winners in Heidi Zacher (GER) and Filip Flisar (SLO) while the big trophies for Cross Alps Tour overall winners would go Marielle Thompson (CAN) and Jean Frederic Chapuis (FRA).

 

In the ladies’ final on Thursday Zacher was matched up against World Cup and Cross Alps Tour points leader Thompson and two athletes in the midst of comeback seasons that continue to grow more impressive as the 2016/17 season rolls on - Fanny Smith (SUI) and Marielle Berger Sabbatel (FRA). 

 

As she had been throughout most of the two days of competition in Innichen Thompson was a rocket out of the gate into an early lead, but it would not last long.

 

Something about the Innichen course seems to bring out the best in 28 year old Zacher, with two of her career World Cup wins before Thursday’s competition coming on the challenging Dolomiten track, and she was quickly able to catch and pass Thompson through the middle rollers section and hold the Canadian off to the top of the course’s “Super G” final descent. 

 

There, just before entering the twsiting Super G section, Thompson hit a rut and spun out, forcing Smith and Berger Sabbatel into evasive action as Thompson slid across the course. 

 

Way ahead Zacher cruised easily across the line for her second win in as many days, while Smith would hold off Berger Sabbatel to take second.

 

“I love it here,” said a beaming Zacher from the finish area, “There are big turns, it’s icy, it’s steep, there’s a tough finish slope… Always if I come to Innichen there are good vibes for me and I love to ski fast here.”

 

Zacher’s win moved her into second spot on the final Cross Alps Tour rankings with 324 points, while Fanny Smith with her runner-up finish for the day and fourth-place finish in Wednesday’s race, ended December with 293 points and moved up to third overall on the tour standings, above injured Anna Holmlund (SWE) and the also-sidelined Sandra Naeslund (SWE). 

 

Thompson, with 475 points, was safely in possession of the tour overall trophy before competition began on Thursday.

 

(More information on the condition of Anna Holmlund can be found HERE, or at the Swedish Ski Association website, HERE.)

 

Flisar matches Zacher, powers to second straight

 

It was deja-vu all over again in the men’s competition in Innichen on Thursday, as Filip Flisar (SLO) replicated Zacher’s performance on the ladies’ side by taking his second win in two days while also, like Zacher, moving himself into second overall on the World Cup and Cross Alps tour rankings.

 

While his march to victory was by no means uncontested, Flisar’s incredible starts from first to final heat on the day ensured that he began nearly every run by forcing his competitors to chase him. 

 

In the big final, matched up against Christoph Wahrstoetter (AUT), Arnaud Bovolenta (FRA), and another athlete with back-to-back Innichen wins in his career, David Duncan (CAN), Flisar was again able to find the perfect rhythm though the tough top section and pull ahead.

 

All three of the the final men behind Flisar stayed in contention throughout the big final, before Warhstoetter looked to make an inside move on Flisar over the final jump and across the line. However, the big Slovenian was able to keep his speed and his cool to take the win, with Wahrstoetter in second followed by Bovolenta in third.

 

“To be honest, I’ve had enough messing around,” Flisar said of his mindset heading into the Innichen competition, “I knew I was in good shape at the start of the season, I came to Val Thorens and smashed the training runs, but then something went a bit wrong in the qualies and my attitude just started going down and I didn’t perform good in the first races. 

 

“It’s kind of hard to get back after that. I was doubting myself a bit - Can I do it? Can I not? But now I’m back in the groove. I’ve got my confidence back. I feel like I can win every time, now.”

 

Thursday’s win gave Flisar 282 points on the season, 77 points back of Chapuis who, despite his 13th place finish on Thursday, finished December with 359 points to take the Cross Alps Tour win. Alex Fiva (SUI), 14th on Thursday, would finish the Tour ranked third. 

 

Canada takes Cross Alps Tour Nations trophy

 

Lead by Thompson on the ladies side and Brady Leman on the men’s side, the Canadian squad claimed the trophy for top nation on the Cross Alps tour, despite missing Chris Delbosco, (second overall on the ski cross World Cup last season) for half the Tour competitions.

Delbosco, Duncan, Kevin Drury, Georgia Simmerling, and Kelsey Serwa all helped score points for the Canadians, and by the end of Thursday’s competition in Innichen they would hold a 190 point advantage over the second-place French - 1270 to 1080. 

 

 

Full Results of Wednesday 21st Women and Men

 

 

 

 

Full Results of Thursday 22nd Women and Men

 

 

 

 

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Cancelled Ski Cross WC Megève (FRA) rescheduled in Watles (ITA)

 

This is to inform you that the Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup in Megeve (FRA), 21.-22.01.2017 has been cancelled due to weather conditions which have prevented enough snow accumulation for the course to be prepared.
 
The cancelled competitions will be rescheduled in Watles (ITA) with the following competition programme:
 

• Friday, 13.01.2017: Qualifications for both competitions
• Saturday, 14.01.2017: 1st competition - CET 11:00 (replacement for Megève)
• Sunday, 15.01.2017: 2nd competition - CET 11:00 (as originally planned)

 

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Cox and Reiherd conquer icy Lake Placid

 

 

The first event of a big weekend in Lake Placid (USA) took place on the famed Whiteface Mountain moguls pitch in frigid conditions on Friday with Britteny Cox (USA) and Dmitriy Reiherd (KAZ) both scoring their second career victories, though under drastically different circumstances. 

 

Cox came into the day as the World Cup leader after taking a win - the first of her career - at the season-opening competition in Ruka (FIN) in December, and throughout the day she skied the icy Whiteface course like she very much deserved her place at the top of the standings. 

 

Coming out of qualifications in top spot, Cox never looked back, once again topping the field in final one before laying down a near-perfect run in the big final, linking clean turns on the slick moguls course and stomping her 360 and laid-out backflip airs. Combined with her top time in the big finals it was enough to give her a score of 75.27 and her second win in as many contests this season. 

 

“I’m super stoked to get back-to-back wins,” said a beaming Cox from the finish area, “After my win in Ruka it was my goal to come here and do it again. The course got more challenging as the day progressed and I’m happy I was able to adapt and finish the day on top.

 

“It’s a really nice feeling to hold on to the yellow bib. I know Perrine (Laffont) is hot on my heels and I just need to keep skiing strong from week to week.”

As Cox mentioned, young French phenom Laffont is indeed hot on her heels, as the 18-year-old has now finished runner-up to Cox in both this seasons events. While Laffont held the slight edge in turning scores over Cox, she finished with a score of 74.20, and she’ll need to up her jumps and speed if she hopes to topple the Aussie in the next competition.

 

Third on the day went to the USA’s Morgan Schild, who made an impressive return to competition after sitting out of competition for 22 months with a serious knee injury. Heralded by some as the USA’s heir-apparent to the great Hannah Kearney before her injury, 19-year-old Schild skied with increasing confidence throughout the day, and her inverted 720 on the bottom air bump was one of the most impressive jumps of the competition for any of the ladies.

 

Reiherd earns first win in nearly 9 years 

 

While Cox went two-in-a-row to get her second career win, top man Dmitriy Reiherd had to wait nearly nine years between his first and second victories, with his last one coming back in March of 2008 in Are, Sweden.

 

Rieherd skied perhaps the most aggressive runs of any man on the day on Friday, throwing an off-axis 1080 off the first jump that could easily have spelled disaster with the steep, dark, and icy pitch he faced upon landing. However, the burly Reiherd was unfazed and his risk payed off, as he earned the highest jumping and turning scores of the big final. 

 

Finishing with a score of 82.20 for a decisive victory, Reiherd also overtook Canada’s Mikael Kingsbury atop the World Cup leaderboard, and leaves Lake Placid wearing the yellow bib.

 

“My first win was in 2008,” Rieherd smiled, “Nine years ago. I felt like this was a strong course, and I had to ski strong on it. My first jump went well, my second jump was good, and I had a fast time. Conditions were difficult but I didn’t make any mistakes and it was good for me.”

 

Second place went to Ben Cavet (FRA), for his second podium of the season after he scored third in Ruka. Cavet skied smoothly and quickly on his was to a score of 80.73, and he now sits tied with Kingsbury for second on the moguls World Cup leaderboard with 140 points. 

 

Third on the day went to another US athlete, as Bradley Wilson consistently laid down the most blistering times and biggest airs of the day to earn a score of 78.08 and cap off a strong day for the host squad. 

 

Surely pushed by Reiherd’s performance just ahead of him, Kingsbury had an uncharacteristic blowout in his big final run, and as a result the typically unbeatable Canadian found himself sitting in sixth place at the end of the day and stripped of the yellow bib for the first time since the 2013/14 season. 

 

From Lake Placid the moguls World Cup now moves up to Canada’s Val Saint Come for competition on Saturday, January 21, where the typically-strong Canadian squad will be looking to get back on track on home soil after being shutout of the podium in Lake Placid. 

 

 

 

Full Results Women and Men

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Naeslund and Niederer with the victory in the first race in Watles

 

After several delays and setbacks due to windy, snowy, and foggy weather conditions, the Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup finally got down to business for the first time in 2017 on Saturday, with Sandra Naeslund (SWE) claiming the first victory of her ski cross career in ladies’ competition and Armin Neiderer (SUI) winning his first World Cup in over four years in the first of back-to-back competitions this weekend in Watles (ITA).

 

Friday was supposed to be a big day in Watles with two separate round of qualifications scheduled - one for each of the weekend’s two races. However, with dynamic - and generally bad - weather conditions forecast throughout the day on Friday, qualification rounds were cancelled and officials elected to instead go with an extra round of heats for both the ladies’ and the men on Saturday in order to hold a fair competition. 

 

While morning weather in Watles looked uncertain, by the time competition rolled around the skies had brightened and it was all systems go. However, the previous day’s snow and a lack of traffic on the course meant that speed and softness on the track would challenge competitors throughout the day.

 

Naeslund, however, would show no ill effects of this on her way to taking her first World Cup victory in what was an emotional and uplifting performance for a Swedish team still reeling after star skier Anna Holmlund suffered a serious injury in December.

 

In the big final Naeslund was out of the gate and into the first corner shoulder-to-shoulder with Georgia Simmerling (CAN) - the only skier who had bested her at any point in the day when the Canadian won the semi-final over the Swede. However, on exiting the corner, Naeslund found another gear and set about building a lead the would go unchallenged through the rest of the course.

 

"This is my first World Cup victory so I'm super happy.” Naeslund said following awards, “I had a good start coming in the lead right basically right out of the gate and I had a good run all the way until the finish line. I'm happy with my skiing today and of course happy to get this win.”

 

With Fanny Smith (SUI) dropping off the pace right from the start, Simmerling was left to battle with Heidi Zacher (GER) for runner up, with the two trading places through the Watles middle section before Simmerling was able to pull away and take second spot for her best result of the season. 

 

Zacher, with her third place result, now has four straight podiums, though she still sits 136 points behind Marielle Thompson (CAN) for top spot on the ladies ski cross World Cup leaderboard.

 

In the men’s competition, Armin Neiderer was finally able to put it all together and carve out a victory after showing the speed and technique that seemed destined for the top of the podium throughout a December where he was several times the victim of bad luck. 

 

The big final saw Neiderer lined up alongside World Cup leader Jean Frederic Chapuis (FRA), second overall Brady Leman (CAN), and Bastien Midol (FRA).

 

Out of the gate it was Leman with the best start, though the Canadian’s speed quickly became a liability as he landed flat on the first jump and was passed by Chapuis and Neiderer, with Chapuis taking the lead through the courses middle section.

 

Typically, once Chapuis’ is out front there’s no looking back for the two-time reigning crystal globe winner, but on Saturday some small mistakes by the Frenchman combined with canny line choices by Neiderer and Leman saw Chapuis overtaken twice in quick succession, including a daring high-line pass by Leman on the negative corner that nearly gave the Canadian the speed to overtake Neiderer as well. 

 

However, Neiderer would be able to hold on for his first podium of the season and his first win since late 2012. 

 

“I had a great day today,” Neiderer said after the race, “In the final I wasn't so fast right at the start and had to fight with Brady all the time. I was behind Chapuis on the last section of the course but I had a little bit more speed so I tried to pass him. It paid off and I'm really happy with the win.”

 

The victory moved the Swiss skier up to sixth on the Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup men’s leaderboard, while Leman’s runner-up performance vaulted him into second overall with 327 points, 83 back of Chapuis’ 419. 

 

With favourable weather conditions expected to continue through to tomorrow and another night for builders to work on the track, the second of the back-to-back Watles competitions promises to be bring even better racing to Italy on Sunday. Preliminary heats in Watles will get underway at 9:30 CET, with the finals set to begin at 11:00 CET.

 

 

 

 

Full Results Women and Men

 

 

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Ledeux and Williams awarded wins in abbreviated Font Romeu slopestyle World Cup

 

For the second day in a row the weather was the major player at the first slopestyle World Cup of the season in Font Romeu. In the abbreviated competition it was Tess Ledeux (FRA) and McRae Williams (USA) to be awarded with the wins at the end of the day.

 

After the ladies' qualifications were called off yesterday due to the bad weather conditions, Saturday unfortunately brought little to no improvement in the situation. Following what was sort of stop-and-go marathon the ladies were only able to complete one qualification run today. As it often happens in the mountains, the Mother Nature had different plans from those of the organizers and athletes and as the storm begun to gain on its intensity, the course got covered with dense clouds accompanied by strong winds and heavy snowfalls.

Given the priority to athletes' safety, after several delays and postponements of the program, the jury decided to call it a day and cancel the finals. With no more possibilities to run the show, the qualifications results were taken to stand as the final rankings.

 

In the ladies' competition it was 15 years-old Tess Ledeux who was able to step it up in the challenging conditions and score her first-ever World Cup win. By gaining 100 points in the overall standing, Ledeux was also awarded with the yellow World Cup leader bib, what surely made this day a special one for the young French rider.

 

"It was a very hard day to compete, but I'm super happy to land my tricks and ending up on top of the podium," Ledeux said after the race, "Today's result motivates me to keep the hard work and further improve my skiing so I can win more competitions in the future".

 

The second place went to Johanne Killi from Norway with the Canadian skier Anouk Purnelle-Faniel rounding out the ladies' podium.

 

On the men's side top qualifier from Thursday's heat 1 McRae Williams ended up taking the first place with the score of 92.80. Similarly to Leduex, also Williams grabbed his first-ever World Cup victory at the slopestyle competition in Font Romeu.

 

“I’m super stoked,” said Williams. “We had an awesome qualifier—sunny weather, great course. I’m glad things panned out well the other day.”

Williams was joined on the podium by Sweden’s Jesper Tjader in second and Alex Bellemare of Canada in third.

The slopestyle World Cup continues at the end of the month in Seiser Alm (ITA). The qualifications are scheduled for Thursday, January 24, with the finals taking place on Saturday, January 26.

 

 

 

 

Full results Women and Men

 

 

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Caldwell and Kushnir clean up in Lake Placid

 

A fantastic couple days of freestyle skiing wrapped up in Lake Placid (USA) on Saturday, as the long-time FIS Freestyle Skiing World Cup venue saw the USA’s own Ashley Caldwell claim victory in ladies’ aerials and local boy Mac Bohonnon come runner-up to the great Anton Kushnir (BLR) in the men’s competition.

 

The expert crew at Lake Placid did a phenomenal job preparing the venue at the Lake Placid’s Olympic Jumping Complex after a thaw-freeze weather system threatened to make some challenging conditions for aerials competition. However, come time for game day, the venue was in perfect shape for what was a highly entertaining competition under the lights on Saturday evening.

 

Though she squeaked through qualifications in the 10th spot (out of 12) Caldwell held the trump card in her pocket from the start of competition, as she was the only lady on hand prepared to throw triple jumps once things got serious in finals. 

 

And come time for finals she did just that, stomping a lay, full, full to earn top marks in final one before stepping it up a notch further in the big final with an authoritative full, full, full to clock a score of 99.63 and a decisive victory. 

 

“It feels amazing to win here in Lake Placid,” said Caldwell, “I’ve trained here for five years, so to be able to come out here and show all these people that all the work I’ve put in here is still paying off is a nice feeling.” 

 

When pressed on her approach to competition and throwing triples when none of her competitors are stepping up to the big jumps, Caldwell went on, “I love doing triples. It’s exhilarating and difficult and scary and challenging but ultimately rewarding, and all the tough stuff I go through make days like today worth it.” 

 

Caldwell was followed up by Danielle Scott (AUS), who qualified in the top position and jumped superbly throughout the night. Despite earning relatively higher scores than Caldwell for her big final jump, the lower degree of difficulty on Scott’s double full, full left her with a score of 92.00 and second place on the evening. 

 

Scott did, however, earn one other important accolade, as she leaves Lake Placid with sole position of the yellow bib as aerials World Cup leader.

 

Third place on the night went to 18-year-old Kristina Spiridonova (RUS), who earned her first World Cup podium in just her fifth World Cup competition. 

 

Kushnir’s comeback continues to shine

 

Over on the men’s side of things, Anton Kushnir’s comeback season grows more impressive with every jump, as the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games gold medallist scored his second victory in three events this season after taking nearly three years off following the Games. 

 

Kushnir progressed steadily throughout the evening, qualifying in ninth and coming out of the first final ranked second, before stepping up with all the pressure on and nailing a full, double full, full to earn the win with a score of 120.36. 

 

“Man, I was surprised again tonight,” Kushnir said of his second victory of the season, “I just tried to prepare and focus on the next jump, next jump, next jump. Our plan was for me to be in good form by the end of the season and I’m not sure I've had the right feeling yet, but the memory (of how to jump) is still in my head and this is helping me.”

 

With his win, Kushnir also claimed the yellow World Cup leader’s bib, overtaking China’s Qi Guangpu, who was not in attendance at Lake Placid.

 

Capping off an excellent weekend for the host US squad was Mac Bohonnon, as the local favourite topped qualifications and then powered through close calls in the landings of both of his finals jumps to earn a score of 119.46 and his first podium of the season.

 

“I won the wrong round today,” Bohonnon said, referring to his top qualification score, “I was hoping to get that win so that Ashley and I could share a win together, but it’s exciting nonetheless. We both got into this program here in Lake Placid back in 2008 and have been teammates ever since. Sharing a podium with any teammate is always fun, but with Ashley is really special.”

 

Not to be lost in what was an excellent day for the US team was also a very exciting day for the Russian squad, as 18-year-old Maxim Burov scored third place for the first podium of his career, matching his teammate Spiridonova’s performance on the ladies’ side. 

 

From Lake Placid, the FIS Freestyle aerials World Cup now moves to Utah for the annual tour highlight competition in Deer Valley on February 3rd. 

 

 

 

 

Full Results Women and Men

 

 

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Thompson and Fiva back on the podium in the second race in Watles

 

The second of this weekend’s back-to-back Audi Ski Cross World Cup competitions in Watles (ITA) took to the Sud Tirolian resort’s sweeping SX track on Sunday morning, and by race’s end it was Marielle Thompson (CAN) and Alex Fiva (SUI) emerging triumphant from a pair of thrilling big final heats.

 

Thompson headed into Sunday’s competition as the ski cross and freestyle overall World Cup leader, despite getting shut out of Saturday’s Watles big final and being forced to settle for fifth place. On Sunday the smooth Canadian was clearly on a mission, looking to steal some momentum back. from the previous day’s winner Sandra Naeslund (SWE).

 

The stage was set for a hard-fought battle between the two ladies big final after the 20-year-old Naeslund took top spot in their semifinal heat, and come time for the big show the two speedsters did not disappoint.

 

While Thompson was able to grab the hole shot, Naeslund would not let her pull away, staying hard on her tails throughout the first 3/4s of the course and making several pass attempts that Thompson was only just able to fend off. However, while it looked like it would go down to the wire between those two ladies, Naeslund got caught in some softer snow just before the final straight and had to watch powerlessly as first Fanny Smith (SUI) and then Marielle Berger-Sabbatel (FRA) slipped by her and on to the podium.

 

“I feel awesome,” said Thompson of her fourth victory in eight 2016/17 competitions, “Today went as good as it possibly could. I was looking for some redemption because I wasn’t very satisfied with the fifth place yesterday, after crashing with no reason in the semifinals. So today it feels really good to put down those runs and I'm happy to go back home with a win.”

 

While Thompson extended her World Cup lead to nearly 200 points, Smith was able to vault into second on the leaderboard in a comeback season that continues to grow more impressive with every race.

 

“I'm really happy about my second place today,” Smith said following the race, “Step by step, race by race, I'm starting to feeling better in my skiing, so I'm confident and looking forward to the next World Cup races.”

 

Also in the midst of an impressive comeback season, Berger Sabbatel’s third place performance  was her third podium in the last six races.

 

Fiva scores second 2016/17 win 

 

No less exciting then the ladies competition, and surprisingly similar in outcome, was the big final on the men’s side, where Alex Fiva found himself locked in a battle with men’s World Cup leader Jean-Frederic Chapuis (FRA) and Brady Leman that looked like it could have gone three ways, before Fiva was able to take the fast line through the Watles negative turn and leave Chapuis, Leman, and Saturday’s Watles winner Armin Neiderer (SUI) to sort out the final podium spots behind him.

 

“I had a good start in the big final and was up front,” a smiling Fiva said from the finish, “Then at the end of the flat section I felt someone next to me, but I didn't know who it was. So I just put my head down and concentrated on my skiing and I tried to be as fast as possible. It worked out pretty well and it feels amazing!” 

 

As Fiva pulled away and into the homestretch Leman was able to take the same high line through the negative turn that he took to score second place in the previous day’s race, and he once again passed Chapuis to slide into the runner-up spot - his fourth such result in 2016/17. With his consistency, Leman is slowly closing the gap on Chapuis for top spot on the World Cup, and now sits just 62 points back.

 

“Obviously I wanted to win,” said Leman, “But to be in the finals two days in a row, and score two second places seems like a really good weekend. I'm really happy with my performance. Today I was really close to passing for the first, but not quite so I'll just try to keep it rolling for the next race.”

 

With Chapuis sliding low as Leman went high, Neiderer spotted an opening through the middle, and he too was able to muscle past Chapuis, taking third on the day and his second podium of the weekend in Watles.

 

With Sunday’s Watles race acting as a reschedule for the cancelled Megeve competition that would have taken place on January 21 the Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup now has an extended break between races, with the next competitions coming up on February 4 and 5 at a new ski cross World Cup venue in Feldberg, Germany.

 

 

Full Results Men and Women

 

 

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Canadians dominant on home soil in Val St. Come moguls

 

A trip back to home soil was just what the Canadian moguls team needed after getting shut out of the awards last week in Lake Placid, as the host squad took four out of a possible six spots on the podium in Val St. Come (CAN), with Justine Dufour-Lapointe leading a Canadian sweep of the ladies’ podium and Mikael Kingsbury taking the win and reclaiming the yellow World Cup leader’s bib for the men. 

 

Mild temperatures in Val St. Come meant that the Alex Bilodeau moguls course got progressively tougher as the day went on, as each run through the soft snow carved deeper grooves around each bump. However, come big final time, the last six ladies and men were locked in and ready to put on a show for the big crowd in the heart of Quebec’s moguls country.

 

After being blanked off the podium in both previous events of the 2016/17 World Cup season, the typically strong Canadian ladies’ team came into Val St. Come desperately looking to right the ship. And, lead by Justine Dufour-Lapointe, with her teammate Andi Naude and sister Chloe Dufour-Lapointe coming in second and third, the Canadian ladies were able to do just that.

 

Justine skied stronger as the day went on; qualifying in third place, bumping World Cup leader Britteny Cox for top spot after final one, and then putting it down solid in the tough conditions of the big final to earn a score of 78.36 - just enough to edge her teammate Naude’s score of 78.10 for the win.

 

“Sometimes the toughest part is having to speak to everybody about ‘Oh, those two rough competitions you’ve had,” said Justine of her slow start to the season, “Yes, it was rough, and it creates some doubt, but on the other hand I learned a lot that I wanted to improve on, and today I think I showed those improvements. I stayed focused, I fought to the end, and I had fun. I skied for me, and I skied with my guts, and it felt right.”

 

For Naude, who now has four career podiums, it was a thrill to share the podium with her teammates.

 

“I really couldn’t be happier. It’s been a tough road for me so far this year. I know there were only two events before today, but to be able to stand on the podium here in Canada with my teammates is going to give me a huge boost heading into the rest of the season. I’m super excited.”

 

With a fifth place performance, Cox was able to retain her lead atop the moguls World Cup, with 245 points to second overall Perrine Laffont’s 196.

 

Kingsbury back on top of men's field 

 

For Kingsbury, it was back to business as usual after a disappointing sixth place finish last week in Lake Placid that resulted in him losing the yellow World Cup leader’s bib to Dmitriy Reiherd (KAZ).

 

“I’m happy to be back doing my full run with the full degree of difficulty - with the double full and the 1080 (airs),” said Kingsbury about his performance on Saturday, “This was my plan and I stuck to it. In Lake Placid I got a bit excited with the speed and my run fell apart. Today still wasn’t my best skiing, but it’s good for me to still have something to work on, and just to get back to winning and do it at home is a great feeling.”

 

Not to be lost in the Canadian triumphs were the performances of Sacha Theocharis (FRA) and Walter Wallberg (SWE), second and third respectively and both claiming the first podiums of their careers, though both doing so at vastly different stages.

 

27-year-old Theocharis is a veteran of 54 World Cup competitions dating back to the 2010/11 season, and his best performance before Saturday was an eighth place last season in Deer Valley. On Saturday he found another level, picking his way smoothly through the soft Val St. Come course to score 82.20, edging Wallberg by just .01.

 

Wallberg, meanwhile, is in his first full World Cup season, and Saturday was just the fourth competition of his very young career. Coming off a fifth place result last weekend in Lake Placid, Wallberg looked mature far beyond his 16 years, topping the qualifications and then laying down two strong final runs with no signs of feeling any pressure.

 

“I’m really happy,” Wallberg said from the awards area, third-place trophy in hand, “I brought a lot of self-confidence from my last competition in Lake Placid and I wanted to really just focus on my run and not on the results today. It ended up really working well.”

 

Kingsbury now sits atop the men’s moguls World Cup with 240 points, with Reiherd in second at 182 points.

 

From Val St. Come the FIS Freestyle moguls World Cup now moves to Calgary for the second Canadian competition of the 2016/17, returning to one of the longest-running and most historically significant venues on tour in Calgary, Alberta. Competition in Calgary gets underway next Saturday with qualifications beginning at 9:25 and finals set for 13:30 MST. 

 

 

Full Results Men and Women

 

 

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Zuzana Stromková qualified for the slopestyle final in Seiser Alm world cup race   http://medias2.fis-ski.com/pdf/2017/FS/8327/2017FS8327RLQ.pdf

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Hoefflin and Stevenson claim wins in Seiser Alm

 

Sarah Hoefflin (SUI) and Colby Stevenson (USA) have both claimed victories and the World Cup yellow bibs in the slopestyle World Cup finals held in Seiser Alm.

Following the semi finals held earlier in the morning, top 8 ladies and top 16 men showed up at the starting gate, on top of the award winning snowpark in Italian ski resort Seiser Alm, to compete in the second slopestyle World Cup stop of the season.

 

In the ladies' competition Swiss rider Sarah Hoefflin grabbed her first ever World Cup victory on her only fourth appearance on tour. Not only did she took the win, but she also gained precious 100 points in the World Cup ranking as she jumped over Tess Ledeux (FRA) to take the overall lead.

 

"I can't believe it," Hoefflin said following the awards ceremony, "I would never think in a million years to do so well and it just makes me feel so pumped. The course here in Seiser Alm is amazing and all the girls were riding so well today. It feels awesome."

The second place on the day went to the French rider Colline Ballet-Baz, while representing USA Caroline Claire rounded out the ladies' podium.

 

On the men's side it was all about Colby Stevenson, who also took his first career's World Cup win with 89.20 points for his first run. Stevenson excelled on both rails and jumps leaving no doubts about who was the best rider on the day. With the big win in Italy, the American freeskier has joined his US teammate Mcrae Williams on top of the slopestyle World Cup standing, with both skiers now having 100 points after two competitions.

"It's unreal man," Stevenson said looking at his yellow World Cup bib, "I did the best I could and ended up on top. I couldn't be more happy right now. With my dad and all my friends in here it's just the best time."

Another rookie on the World Cup tour throwing it down for Switzerland Colin Wili finished the competition as the runner-up on second, while the Australian veteran and the two times World Championships' medalist Russ Henshaw finished the day on third.

 

The FIS Freestyle Skiing World Cup tour continues next week with both, a halfpipe and slopestyle competition slated to take place in Mammoth Mountain (USA) from February 1 to 4, 2017.

 

 

Full Results Men and Women