SKI CROSS:

Canada rules ski cross world for 3rd straight season

March 19, 2010 — Canada Ski Cross          ►Photo: Ski cross action from Sierra Nevada (Agence Zoom)

Join the SRC fun on Facebook

SIERRA NEVADA, Spain — The Canadian ski cross team was crowned the top ski cross nation in the world Friday at the World Cup Finals in Sierra Nevada, Spain.

While Canada has been the top ski cross nation for three years running, 2010 marks the first year that the award, created for the discipline of ski cross, was officially handed out. The 20 World Cup medals won this season by the Canadian team athletes set a record for the three-year-old organization and also contributed to Canada taking home the Nations Cup for freestyle for the third straight year.

When asked about the success of the team this season, head coach Eric Archer said, “Today was a bit bittersweet, we didn’t have any athletes on the podium today, but it was good for the whole team to get the opportunity to take the stage when we were awarded the top nation in the world.”

The weather forecast moved the event up a day to Friday. It was a long day of waiting as the weather took a turn for the worse early in the day with blowing snow and poor visibility. The qualification run didn’t begin until 2:15 p.m. and the heats began at 3:30 p.m., ending at 5 p.m.

“At this point in the season these changes to the schedule and delays really take a toll on the athletes. With this being an Olympic year it’s been a long season with all the World Cup events being squeezed into three months rather than the usual four. The team is tired, but everyone feels good about what we’ve accomplished this season.” said Archer.

The men’s team had a solid day with four athletes in the top 10. Chris Del Bosco led the way, narrowly missing the podium as he finished fourth on the day after getting off to a poor start in the final. Del Bosco was in fourth and was making a move but was blocked by Switzerland’s Andreas Steffan. Del Bosco finished the season second overall with a total of five World Cup podiums, an X-Games victory and a fourth-place finish in the Olympic Winter Games.

Stanley Hayer finished the season with a solid result, placing fifth on the day. Battling knee pain all season, Hayer had been feeling better after the Olympics and has posted top-10 finishes in the past eight races, finishing the season with one World Cup podium, placing second at Les Contamines, France.

Davey Barr posted his best World Cup finish of the season, placing sixth. After a trying season, Barr was a late entry into the Olympics and rose the occasion. With very little training time on the course, Barr skied to a sixth-place finish in the inaugural Olympic ski cross event.

Brian Bennett also had one of his best finishes of the season, finishing 10th. Teammate Nik Zoricic, in his first season racing full time World Cup, capped off a solid season when he finished the day in 23rd.

It was a tough day for the Canadian women, with Kelsey Serwa finishing in ninth and Ashleigh McIvor finishing in 10th spot, after both crashed in the quarterfinals. Danielle Poleschuk, in avoiding the McIvor crash, was unable to gain back any ground and had to settle for 12th spot.

Aleisha Cline didn’t start after injuries sustained in a crash at the World Cup in Grindelwald, Switzerland, kept her from the challenging conditions.

McIvor finished the season in second place overall and was the Olympic gold medallist in Vancouver. McIvor stepped to the podium five times this World Cup season and was a constant threat to the overall title.

Last year’s Rookie of the Year, Kelsey Serwa, finished just outside the top three, securing fourth spot for this season. Serwa won an impressive three World Cup events and placed fifth in the Olympic Games.

Poleschuk finished her best season after qualifying for the Olympics and with a personal-best third-place finish at Grindelwald.

Cline made a trip to the podium as well this season when she placed second at Branaes, Sweden.

Tune in Saturday as CBC broadcasts Friday’s Sierra Nevada race. SRC

CBC Main Network Broadcast Schedule:
 
Sat. March 20 @ 15:30-16:30 ET
2010 FIS SKI-CROSS WORLD CUP FINALS ON CBC
 
Sun March 21 @ 02:30-03:30 Local
CBC SPORTS LATE NIGHT:2010 FIS SKI-CROSS WORLD CUP FINALS ON CBC
 
cbcsports.ca Broadcast Schedule:
 
Sat. March 20 @ 06:50-08:30 ET Live
2010 FIS SKI-CROSS WORLD CUP FINALS ON CBC
 
Sat. Mar. March 20 @ 15:30-16:30 ET
2010 FIS SKI-CROSS WORLD CUP FINALS ON CBC
 
Bold Broadcast Schedule:
 
Sat. March 20 @ 06:50-08:30 ET Live
2010 FIS SKI-CROSS WORLD CUP FINALS ON CBC