Freestyle Canada – Beida Lake, China, December 15, 2016 – Canada’s national aerials team will open its season on December 17-18 in Beida Lake, China with a singles event on Saturday followed by a team event on Sunday.
 
For the third consecutive year, the team started the season on snow at a training camp in Ruka, Finland, after an entire summer spent training on the water ramps in Lac Beauport, QC. The team also competed on December 1 and 2 in the Europa Cup, an annual competition that gives them a chance to measure themselves against opponents before heading into the first World Cup event of the season. Olivier Rochon took third place after the first day of competitions, while Lewis Irving ranked fourth at day’s end on Sunday.
 
This first event also marks veteran Rochon’s return to the World Cup Circuit after a fractured eye socket cut his 2015-2016 season short. The Gatineau, QC native says he’s in top form as the new season commences. Travis Gerrits is also looking forward to the Beida Lake event in China, where he has good competition history although he admits to using this first event as a building block for the rest of the season.
 
Beida Lake is the first stop for Freestyle Canada’s aerials squad this year en route to the Olympic selections. After the holidays, the skiers get back to work at the World Cup in Lake Placid on January 14, 2017.
 

Pre-event inquiries about the athletes must be directed to Dominique Ladouceur at Dominique@freestylecanada.ski. The athletes will also be available for interviews after the competition.

The following Canadian athletes are on the competition roster for Beida Lake, China:   Men: Travis Gerrits (Milton, ON), Olivier Rochon (Gatineau, QC), Lewis Irving (Quebec, QC)   Women: Catrine Lavallée (Montreal, QC)   Note that Melissa Corbo (Blainville, QC) will not be competing in the season’s first World Cup event. See the World Cup schedule here.

Upcoming events (December)  FIS World Cup – December 15-17, Copper Mountain – Halfpipe  FIS World Cup – December 17-18, Beida Lake – Aerials

For more information and media inquiries please contact:  Dominique Ladouceur, Manager, Athlete Relations Cell: 514.576.2379 Email: dominique@freestylecanada.ski

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Freestyle Canada is the governing body in Canada for the sport of Freestyle Skiing. With the support of its valued corporate sponsors along with the Government of Canada, Canadian Olympic Committee and Own the Podium, FC develops Olympic and world champions in all disciplines of the sport. For more information about FC, please visit www.freestylecanada.ski