Whistler BC, Wednesday, March 23, 2016 - In tough weather conditions, the 2016 Canadian Alpine Ski Championships kicked off Wednesday with the men’s and ladies’ downhill competition. Fog, rain and snow all played big factors, causing delays, a slew of DNFs and extra slipping time.
The men pushed out of the start gate first and it was a great homecoming for Whistler native, Morgan Pridy (CAST/WMSC) who captured top spot.
“It’s really great to be back here and it’s so nice to race at home! I feel like I have a small advantage being back here but it’s a great group to race with,” said Pridy of his winning run and being back at his home hill. “The visibility was pretty good but the course was a bit soft; that’s springtime skiing for you!”
COMPLETE FIS RESULTS WILL BE POSTED WHEN AVAILABLE
Morgan Pridy (CAST/WMSC)
Teammate and fellow Whistler local, Broderick Thompson (CAST/WMSC), joined Pridy on the podium in second-place, trailing by just 0.65 seconds. Riley Seger, U19 WMSC athlete from BC Ski Team, took third place, finishing just 1.05 seconds back from the first-place time. Seger is the Canadian Men's Jr downhill champion and third overall! BC Team's Max Peiffer rounds out the Jr men's podium in 3rd.
Riley Seger (BCST/WMSC)
The weather caused big delays for the ladies’ race as bad weather rolled in and out. It was a tough start for the ladies as the first three racers put up DNF results, but Mont Tremblant’s Valérie Grenier came down with a blazing run to capture first-place, winning the Canadian Championships downhill title. This win comes after Grenier secured first-place at the World Junior Championships downhill in Russia earlier this month.
“I’m really happy to finish first here today. It’s what I was going for and I’m glad I could finish off the season with a first-place result,” said Grenier of today’s finish. “It was a pretty decent run despite the track being pretty slow from all the snow.”
U19 athlete, Stefanie Fleckenstein of BC Ski Team, who also represented Canada at the World Junior Championships in Russia, took second-place today finishing 0.97 seconds back from Grenier.
“Having been able to ski the downhill at World Juniors was really great preparation for me and it’s been great learning so much from Val (Grenier)," said Fleckenstein. "I am so happy with my result in today's downhill and getting to share the podium with not only Val, the world junior DH champion, but also my little sister! It's really cool to see the younger girls pushing themselves against some of the best skiers in the country. I can't wait for the races to come and am excited to see how I stack up against the Canadian girls."
Katie Fleckenstein (left) with sister Stefanie Fleckenstein (right)
Rounding out the podium in third was Katie Fleckenstein, another U19 athlete from the Whistler Mountain Ski Club (and sister of Stefanie), who sat 3.20 seconds off the lead-time.
"It was super fun getting to race against my older sister and some of the National Team girls like Candice Crawford and Valerie Grenier," said the younger Fleckenstein. "This being my home mountain made it extra special to preform in front of so many of my friends. The heros today were the vollies that made the race happen in spite of fog and snow and a soft race track. I m looking forward to the rest of the week."
The next 2016 Canadian Championship race will be a super G. Stay tuned for results and updates.
Ladies’ Downhill Podium
1 – Valérie Grenier (CAN)
2 – Stefanie Fleckenstein (BC Ski Team/WMSC)
3 – Katie Fleckenstein (WMSC)
Men’s Downhill Podium
1 – Morgan Pridy (CAST/WMSC)
2 – Broderick Thompson (CAST/WMSC)
3 – Riley Seger (BC Ski Team/WMSC)
For further information or press inquiries, please contact Ashley Shantz at ashantz@alpinecanada.org or call 587.226.3007
.