Olympic champ Thompson’s title race goes down to wire, Simmerling 3rd
Olympic champion Marielle Thompson’s pursuit of a second ski cross World Cup title will go down to the wire after she was fourth and her rival for the Crystal Globe won Sunday’s race in Are, Sweden, with Thompson’s teammate Georgia Simmerling finishing 3rd to claim her second career podium.
Thompson, of Whistler, B.C., has finished in the top-5 in every Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup race this season, giving her a level of consistency that has brought her to the brink of claiming her second World Cup title in three years. But with Switzerland’s Fanny Smith winning two straight races Thompson’s lead has been cut to just five points with only next weekend’s World Cup finals in France left to go.
The 21-year-old Thompson’s fourth-place finish Sunday was accompanied by standout results from Simmerling, of West Vancouver, B.C., who earned her second podium this season, and Mathieu Leduc, of Comox, B.C., who was fourth in the small final to record a career-best eighth-place finish. There was bad luck for Dave Duncan, of London, Ont., who has led the men’s standings for much of the year but was hurt in Saturday’s qualification round and did not race Sunday. This weekend’s race results mean he’s no longer in contention for the men’s Crystal Globe.
“The overall is pretty exciting – for both the women and the men,” said Thompson, who has 655 points compared to 650 for Smith. “In the final, I was leading into the first turn and then Ophelie (David, of France) passed me and I got pushed into the powder and lost all my speed. That’s how she goes sometimes.”
Simmerling, who celebrated a first career podium in ski cross last December when she was second in Innichen/San Candido, Italy, won her first heat Sunday and was second in her quarter- and semifinals to advance to the big final. She ends the ‘regular season’ ranked seventh in the world and will compete at next weekend’s World Cup finals.
“It was good today. I had to fight hard and it all came together,” Simmerling said. “I messed up my timing on one of the features at the end of the start and I was fourth. Then Marielle (fell back) and the three of us just ended up 1-2-3.
“I’ve had a pretty consistent year, I would say. There’s one more race to go and I’m hoping for a strong result again.”
Danie Sundquist, of Calgary, Alta., was third in her first heat and finished 20th overall. She is ranked 21st on the season, while Olympic silver medallist Kelsey Serwa, of Kelowna, B.C. – who took the post-Olympic season off – ends the regular season ranked 15th in the world.
