(Lac-Beauport) Sherbrooke’s Marion Thénault won the aerials event of the Freestyle Skiing World Cup in Lac-Beauport on Saturday, signing her second career victory.
In the super final, Thénault collected 96.23 points from the judges to edge American Ashley Caldwell (92.00) and Ukrainian Anastasiya Novosad (86.71).
This victory will allow Thénault to put on the yellow jersey of leader in the World Cup standings for Sunday’s stage, which will also be contested at the Le Relais ski center. This is his second podium in as many World Cups this season, after his silver medal acquired in Ruka, Finland, on December 4.
Thénault has five career World Cup podiums, including a gold medal in Almaty, Kazakhstan in March 2021. Last year in the Relay, she took second place.
The 22-year-old skier was the only Canadian in the super final. Rosalie Gagnon, who had qualified for the final, saw her career come to an end at this stage, with the 11e square.
Only the first six competitors in the final, counting 12 jumpers, obtained their ticket for the super final.
Irving loses his bet
On the men’s side, Quebec’s Lewis Irving attempted a new maneuver — a backward triple somersault punctuated with five spins — to sneak up to the podium, but he failed to land, his head banging against the track.
More fear than harm for the 27-year-old athlete, who finished fifth with 80.00 points.
The podium went to American Quinn Dehlinger (122.62), Swiss Noé Roth (121.24) and Ukrainian Dmytro Kotovskyi (120.81).
Irving was also the sole representative of the maple leaf in the super final, despite the presence of three compatriots in the final. Victor Primeau, Alexandre Duchaine and Émile Nadeau were all eliminated at this stage, taking ninth, 10 respectivelyeand 11e ranks.
The day ended prematurely for Miha Fontaine, one of the local favorites. Fontaine experienced misfires on the landing of his maneuver and finished 15the rank in qualifying, missing out on a presence in the final by three places.
Gabriel Dion, Nicolas Martineau, Anthony Noël, Pierre-Olivier Côté, Charlie Fontaine, Olympian Flavie Aumond and Alexandra Montminy also bit the dust in qualifying.