Read improves results in World Cup ski races
Erik Read knows the relative comfort of 10th place, but the Canadian alpine skier also knows there is room for improvement.
Read posted back-to-back 10th-place finishes in World Cup giant slalom races held Saturday and Monday in Santa Caterina Valfurva, Italy. The second race was postponed from Sunday due to heavy snowfall.
The consistent showing moved the 29-year-old from Canmore, Alta., into 12th place in the overall World Cup standings. Teammate Trevor Philp, who finished 16th on Monday and 18th on Saturday, is now 24th overall.
“I improved my skiing from Saturday and the podium felt within reach today,” Read told Alpine Canada on Monday. “The speed was there, but I had a few mistakes in one section on the second run. Overall, I'm super pleased to achieve back-to-back top 10s. It's a competitive circuit and I'm excited to keep pushing.”
Read hasn't finished outside the top-20 this year. Earlier in the season he posted a 19th-place finish in a giant slalom, and was 12th in a parallel slalom event.
Biathlete Emma Lunder cracked the World Cup top-10 in a 10-kilometre pursuit race in Kontiolahti, Finland on the weekend.
The 29-year-old from Vernon shot 19-for-20 and finished ninth. She started the race in 19th position, a ranking that transferred over from her finish in the previous sprint race.
Lunder is now ranked 14th overall in the World Cup standings. Teammate Christian Gow is ranked 30th overall in the men's World Cup standings.
Canada's luge team, which is not competing on the World Cup tour in Europe because of COVID-19 concerns, instead conducted its national championships in Whistler on Saturday.
Makena Hodgson won her first women's title, Reid Watts of Whistler defended his men's crown and the duo of Tristan Walker and Justin Snith took their 10th doubles championship.
“I'm definitely happy with the way I've progressed in my sliding this year,” said Hodgson, a 20-year-old Calgarian who was third in last year's championships, and was second to Calgary's Carolyn Maxwell after the first run on Saturday. Hodgson clocked the fastest final run time of 39.197 seconds to take the victory.
“My confidence in my abilities definitely helped to propel my sliding, and ultimately, help me win the race,” she said in a Luge Canada release. “Even though this season isn't normal by any means, I proved myself today, and will keep moving forward from this and continue to progress in my sliding.”
Maxwell finished in second spot for the third straight season, while Trinity Ellis of Whistler was third.
In the men's race, Watts was fastest in both heats for a combined time of 1:42.270, ahead of a pair of Calgarians, Cole Zakanski (1:42.502) in second, and Devin Wardrope (1:43.896) in third place.
Mirela Rahneva, who has won nine World Cup medals on the skeleton circuit since 2016, announced Sunday that she is going to miss the entire 2020-21 season.
“A disk herniation at the C5-C6 vertebrae has pinched a nerve root,” the 32-year-old posted on Instagram.
“I'll be taking time to get healthy this year before hitting the ice again in 2021.”