Ski Cross top ten for Kennedy-Sim, top twenty for Grimus

Courtesy www.owia.org

Two back-to-back competitions opened 2018 for the Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup tour at Sweden’s Idre Fjall resort on the weekend with mixed results for the Australians amid another weather-affected event.

Saturday’s qualifying saw Sami Kennedy-Sim easily through as she has done every race, but going out in the quarter finals in World Cup 1, ending up with another 11th place. Sunday’s women’s finals were cancelled after the wind picked up, but by virtue of the qualifying time trials the previous day, Kennedy-Sim picked up her first top ten for the season.

Anton Grimus was not in the mix for World Cup 1, bowing out in the qualifying in 46th place, but bounced back in the second qualifying time trial with a much-improved 17th, booking himself into the eighth finals for the Sunday World Cup, where he came third.

“Idre was a tough one,” Grimus said. “The weather came in overnight with snow and wind.”

“The track was running a lot slower, so the girls were canned but the guys were able to manage without too many problems.”

Grimus had struggled for results until making the finals in the second World Cup in Idre, and is still wanting more after coming third in the opening final round and not moving through to the quarters.

“I got out of the gate in fourth which wasn’t a bad situation to be in and I backed myself to get down the course.

“One mistake up the top put me in a long landing and I kept pushing and made up some ground.

“I just over pressed the jumps in the slow conditions and knuckled two or three jumps leading into the flat section, which wasted my speed away and didn’t have enough down the bottom to make the pass and ended up in third place.”

“(It’s) a bit disappointing. I wanted a lot more from myself in this race. The track was a track that suited me but I didn’t have a clean enough run to make it happen… but onto Nakiska now,” he said.

Sami Kennedy-Sim, who wants to break this season’s 11th place hoo doo, did make it into the top ten for the second World Cup by virtue of the qualifying time trials.

“We’ve got a lot of wind, fresh snow and poor conditions,” Kennedy-Sim said on Sunday night after the second World Cup for the women was cancelled.

“At first it was postponed and I didn’t get a training run. It looked like we would proceed (to the finals) and then they cancelled the comp,” she said.

Staying healthy and injury-free was uppermost in her mind.

“If they had run the comp I would have withdrawn. The men’s race was in pretty bad conditions and if they were having trouble, it would have been worse for the women. They made the right decision for the safety of the athletes. Today wouldn’t have ended well.”

Kennedy-Sim was frustrated with Saturday’s World Cup result.

“I’m disappointed I didn’t make the top eight. This track is notorious for drafting. I tactically changed to be behind and draft.

“I executed well and my race plan for the first half of the event was all good. I was able to overtake and then I went long on a jump and I got rotated. It was a near crash.

“It was disappointing for me to have another 11th. The result on paper was another 11th but it was a photo finish. Things are starting to come together.

“Whilst I’m happy with the decision to cancel the second World Cup, I would have liked to be able to race. I wanted to do well for our ski technician Martin Palacios for his birthday!”

Grimus and Kennedy-Sim, along with all the Ski Cross World Cup tour athletes, coaches and technicians will travel to Nakiska, Canada for the last competition on January 20 before PyeongChang.

“Let’s hope the bags come too,” Kennedy-Sim quipped. “The entire tour is on that flight. It’s a busy and exciting time.”

Belinda Noonan
OWIA