ALPINE:

Brown, Hudec, Roth podium on final day of Nor-Am series

March 20, 2011 — Alpine Canada  

WHISTLER, B.C. — Philip Brown, Jan Hudec and Julia Roth put an end to the Northwest Funds Nor-Am Cup Finals in Whistler, B.C., with a bang as they all finished on the podium in Sunday's last races.

Brown, of Toronto, Ont., finished third in the men's super-combined with a time of 1 minute, 39.18 seconds. National team veteran Hudec finished third in the super-G with a time of 1:03.81, and Ontario skier Julia Roth, of Waterloo, Ont., finished second in the super-G with a time of 1:06.64.

It was Brown's second career Nor-Am podium following a third-place finish in a giant slalom race in Mont-Garceau, Que., earlier this season. Brown also finished third in the combined event at the 2011 World Junior Championships in Crans Montana, Switzerland, in January.

"I started first in the super-G this morning so I had a clean course and I just went as fast as I could," said the 18-year-old, who was seventh after the super-G race. "It was a pretty good run, better than yesterday and a big improvement.

"I was around a bunch of speed skiers going into the slalom so I knew that I could make a move up. I think I had a pretty solid slalom run and I'm definitely satisfied with a podium result."

Two Americans finished ahead of Brown in the super-G, with Tommy Ford clocking in the fastest two-run combined time of 1:38.69 and Tim Jitloff in second place (1:38.78).

Brown was the top Canadian in the super-combined overall rankings, finishing sixth with 100 points. Thomas Biesemeyer and Ryan Cochran-Siegle of the USA took the two top spots with 134 and 130 points respectively.

The men had two races Sunday as the super-G portion of the super-combined counted as a race in itself. Hudec was the third-fastest skier in the super-G, but finished 11th in the super-combined race with a time of 1:40.03.

"Today was blast, I even had time to go to the Peak chair for a couple of runs," said Hudec. "I started skiing for the love again. I just went with it and I had fun."

Hudec, who doesn't usually race slalom events, was welcomed with cheers and a round of applause by the rest of the skiers waiting in the finish area.

"There were no expectations today and everything is better when there are no expectations," added Hudec. "It's too bad I made a couple of mistakes in the bottom of the slalom, I was actually having a pretty decent run. I just need a little bit of training and I'll be good."

Dustin Cook of Lac Sainte-Marie, Que., finished in sixth place in Sunday's super-G race (1:04.25). The result means he finished third in the men's overall super-G with 296 points. Cochran-Siegle, of the USA finished first (525) and Biesemeyer finished second (417).

Cochran-Siegle won Sunday's super-G race (1:03.61). Biesemeyer finished second with a time of 1:03.78.

Roth, the final Canadian in the top three, recorded her second podium of the season in Sunday's race after finishing second in the Aspen, Colorado, downhill in February.

"I actually got to slip the course while the guys were racing and they all told me the course was really easy and told me to stay in my tuck as much as I could," said Roth, who was also the fastest girl in the junior category.

"I tried to stay smooth all the way down and push my hands forward. It was a really good run," added Roth.

Prospect Group athlete Madison McLeish of Canmore, Alta., finished second in the junior category, finishing fourth with a time of 1:06.73.

The podium in Sunday's super-G was rounded out with Julia Ford of the USA finishing first (1:06.17) and her teammate Brooke Wales finishing third with a time of 1:06.68.

Victoria Stevens of Mont-Tremblant, Que., finished sixth in the super-G (1:06.83), which placed her third overall in the ladies super-G rankings with 284 points. Two Americans took the top spots with Ford first (400) and Wales second (368).

Stevens was the top Canadian in the overall standings, finishing fourth with a total of 698 points. Kiley Staples of the USA was first with 1,242 points. Second place went to USA's Ford, with 1,115 points.

Cook was the top Canadian in the overall rankings with 702 points, putting him in seventh place. The USA's Biesemeyer was first with 1,009 points and his teammate Colby Granstrom finished second with 927 points.

It was a grueling six days of racing, not only for the racers but also for the volunteers who had to work with difficult weather conditions.

"As the Northwest Funds Nor-Am series come to a close, I would like to give a special thanks to all the volunteers, organizing committees and the Whistler-Blackcomb Ski Resort for their hard work and continued support in ski racing in North America," said National Programs and Events Director Philippe Bernier. "We have world-class volunteers that help us produce world-class athletes."

The next event on the Canadian athletes' calendar is the GMC Canadian Championships, starting March 24 at Nakiska, Alta.