FREESTYLE:

Potent Canadian freestylers target game-day performance

Feb. 10, 2010 — The Canadian Press          ►Photo: Alex Bilodeau in training (Mike Ridewood, CFSA)

They’re the ski-toting daredevils of the Olympic Games, caroming against snow mounds, contorting themselves in mid-air and hurtling down treacherous slopes.

If they live up to their pre-Games billing, members of the Canadian Olympic freestyle ski team will find themselves climbing a few podiums, as well.

Next to the powerhouse short- and long-track speedskating teams, freestyle skiers are expected to provide the country's greatest medal haul at the Vancouver Olympics. Freestyle ski officials have set a goal of five medals — a bounty that would far surpass the output from the 2006 Games in Torino, where Jennifer Heil's gold medal in moguls was the lone bright spot in an otherwise unimpressive showing.

According to Peter Judge, CEO of the Canadian Freestyle Ski Federation, the 2010 edition has more than enough firepower to atone for the debacle of four years ago — particularly thanks to the debut of ski cross, a discipline in which Canada has several medal favourites.

"I think that pound for pound, this is the strongest team we've ever fielded,'' said Judge. "Of the 18 athletes we'll send to Vancouver, 12 have won World Cup events. That's a pretty significant stat, certainly something that can't be ignored.''

The women's ski cross entry will be led by Whistler, B.C., native Ashleigh McIvor and Kelsey Serwa of Kelowna, B.C., who head into the Games in the top three of the World Cup standings. Julia Murray of Whistler, ranked fourth in the world, tore ligaments in her knee in a training session last month and is questionable for the Games.

American Chris Del Bosco is the top contender in men's action, with two World Cup gold medals to his credit this season.

"For our team, based on what we did last year, we should be medalling at the Olympics,'' said ski cross coach Willy Raine. "We should have the ability to take a medal, and maybe even a couple of them.

"Those are our goals, and that's what we want to do. And our team and the staff and the athletes want to make sure we do that.''

Danielle Poleschuk of Winnipeg, David Duncan of London, Ont., and Stanley Hayer of Calgary — the 2009 X Games champion — round out the ski cross team.

The country's top moguls skiers are also expected to challenge for podium berths.

Defending Olympic champion Heil enters the Games on the hottest run of her career, having won her last four World Cup races. The Spruce Grove, Alta., resident anchors a strong moguls team that includes two-time World Cup medallist Kristi Richards of Pemberton, B.C. on the women's side. The two rank first and fifth, respectively, in the overall standings, giving Canada a potent 1-2 punch.

Heil will face the added pressure of being Canada's first gold-medal threat, taking part in women's moguls on the first full night of competition. Having won in Torino four years ago, Heil is no stranger to the golden moment — and Judge believes she's the perfect athlete to deal with the pressure of vying for Canada's first Olympic gold as the host country.

"I think more than anything, Jenn has steely-eyed competitive gene in her that makes her a phenomenally tenacious competitor,'' said Judge. "She's very hungry and won't let anything lie.''

Third-year national team member Chloe Dufour-Lapointe of Montreal rounds out the women's team.

On the men's side, defending World Cup overall champion Alexandre Bilodeau of Rosemere, Que., leads an all-French tandem that includes Maxime Gingras of St-Hippolyte, Que., Vincent Marquis of Quebec City and Pierre-Alexandre Rousseau of Drummondville, Que.

Veronika Bauer of Toronto is the lone Canadian in women's aerials, but she's recovering from post-concussion syndrome and will be able to compete only if given the all-clear by team physicians. If she isn't, Sabrina Guerin of Laval, Que., would take her place.

The men's team is led by Steve Omischl of North Bay, Ont., a four-time World Cup champion who has yet to hit his stride this season. The three-time Olympian is joined by Calgarians Warren Shouldice and Kyle Nissen, who are entering their second Games.

Despite being strong across all three disciplines, the Canadians will face plenty of tough opposition across the board — beginning with a former countryman now competing in moguls for Australia.

Dale Begg-Smith, who grew up in Vancouver, comes in as the defending Olympic champion and padded his World Cup resume earlier this year with a pair of victories at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary. The Australian believes the home team will face some stiff opposition from several countries, including the rival U.S.

"There are a lot of good Canadian guys that are skiing well, and some American guys skiing well,'' said Begg-Smith. "The field's really strong now, so a lot of the countries will be doing well, and I think that'll make it a good show.''

Belarusian star Anton Kushnir is the man to beat in aerials, after registering three victories in his first five World Cup events. Behind him sit a host of contenders, including Omischl, who suggested that the race for gold will be wide open.

"Minimum 10,'' Omischl replied when asked how many men's aerialists have a shot at gold. "If you had asked me who would have won in (Torino), and what kinds of jumps they would have attempted, I wouldn't have guessed in a million years.

"(It's) the nature of sport. Good people, consistent people, sometimes they have an off-day, and some people overperform and some people underperform ... who knows? All you can try and do is put yourself in the best position to win.''

Men's ski cross is also expected to be a hotly contested battle between Del Bosco, Michael Schmid of Switzerland, Andreas Matt of Austria and Xavier Kuhn of France.

Heil's greatest challenge in women's moguls will come from a group of impressive Americans, led by Heather McPhie, Hannah Kearney and Shannon Bahrke. The trio swept the podium at the final pre-Olympic competition in Lake Placid; Heil skipped the event to rest up.

The Chinese are the biggest threats in aerials, with Nina Li, Xinxin Guo and Mengtao Xu occupying the top three spots in the overall standings. There are five Chinese skiers in the top seven heading into Vancouver, so a podium sweep is possible.

The greatest threat to a Canadian sweep in women's ski cross will come from Ophelie David of France, who has won the World Cup title six years in a row. Fanny Smith of Switzerland will also contend.

The pressure to succeed will be immense for the Canadian freestyle athletes, who were given more than $11 million by Own The Podium. To date, the results indicate it was money well-spent — since Torino, Canada has earned more than 100 World Cup medals across all three disciplines, and will come into Vancouver with podium favourites in five of the six events.

Best of all, the team's confidence appears to be at an all-time high. Serwa was blunt when asked for her assessment of the squad's Olympic chances.

"We're the best team out there.''  SRC