Cross-country skiing | A first in the sprint for Antoine Cyr

After Cendrine Browne had her first quarterfinals at a World Cup sprint event last weekend in Lahti, Finland, it was now Antoine Cyr’s turn to achieve that feat on Thursday in Drammen, Finland. Norway.

Cyr took the 19^and rank in qualifying on the 1.2 kilometer circuit in the heart of the city of Drammen. Stopping the clock at 2 minutes 32.77 seconds, he was the second best Canadian in this phase behind his Ontario teammate Graham Ritchie, 13^and.

The 23-year-old cross-country skier’s day’s work ended in the quarter-finals as he finished fourth 0.63 seconds from a ticket to the next round. This is the best result of his career in the sprint in the World Cup, he who finished 32^and in Ruka, Finland, in this specialty and 31^and at the World Championships in Oberstdorf, Germany in February 2021.

In the final, Frenchman Richard Jouve took top honors in a time of 2 minutes 32.84 seconds. He beat Chinese Qiang Wang (+1.59 seconds) and his compatriot Lucas Chanavat (+2.32 seconds) who took silver and bronze respectively.

With his performances in the quarter-finals, Cyr retains his 19^and rank in the final standings. Eliminated in qualifying, Olivier Léveillé ended the day at 46^and step (+4.10 seconds).

On the women’s side, no Quebecer managed to qualify for the playoffs by finishing in the top-30. Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt is the one who came closest by finishing 40^and (+6.78 seconds). She beat Katherine Stewart-Jones (48^and+10.43 seconds), Laura Leclair (51^and+13.77 seconds) and Cendrine Browne (53^and+15.42 seconds).

Browne, who had a difficult day, however, said she was happy to have been able to take part in this special race.

“It didn’t go too well today (Thursday). I’ve been tired for a few days, and the classic sprint is not my cup of tea. But I really wanted to experience this unique race. It was cool! »

Maiken Caspersen Falla of Norway won the event in front of her supporters. Sweden’s Jonna Sundling (+0.53 seconds) finished second while Slovenia’s Anamarija Lampic (+1.97 seconds) took the bronze medal.

Athletes will now head to Oslo for the mass start events starting on Saturday.