DRAMMEN, Nor.—Antoine Cyr led a trio of Canadian men into the heats at the World Cup in Drammen, Norway on Friday where he posted a career-best 19th-place finish in the classic-ski sprint race.

Cyr (Gatineau, Que.) and Graham Ritchie (Parry Sound, Ont.) – who combined to finish fifth in the team sprint at the Olympics – along with Pierre Grall-Johnson (Ottawa) who just competed in the Under-23 World Championships all cracked the top-30.

None of the three Canadians were able to advance past the quarter-final round, however, Cyr and Grall-Johnson both had personal best World Cup results. Cyr skied to 19th place, while Grall-Johnson was 27th. Ritchie put up a strong fight for 21st spot.

Antoine Cyr Quotes

“Drammen is such a historic venue. I watched Drammen on TV as a little kid with my dad, so it was a dream come true to race there. That was a really good day – not just for me but the whole team. It was great to have three guys in the heats.”

“It was my best World Cup sprint result, which is such a good feeling. I’m feeding off that fifth-place finish in the team sprint at the Olympics. I’m now feeling more confident on the World Cup, and I know what my capabilities are. I am stoked with this result.”

“My other dream to come true will be doing the 50k in (Oslo) Holmenkollen this weekend. That is the peak of Nordic skiing, and it will be crazy.  (Graham) Ritchie and I trained there this week. We were skiing around the World Championship course where Devon (Kershaw) and Alex (Harvey) won, and we thought maybe that will be us one day. 50K are always so tough but I’m really looking forward to it.”

Graham Ritchie Quote

“It’s been really nice to get back into the heats twice in a row now. I’m still trying to figure out the tactics and getting myself into the semis, but it is moving in the right direction, so I’m stoked on that. Our boards were also amazing. The techs did an unreal job today.”

Pierre Grall-Johnson

“It felt good to make the heats for the first time (on the World Cup). I had a really good prep yesterday so that helped me feel confident going into today. My heat started well. I was feeling fresh, strong and relaxed. I knew the back hill was my weakest part of the course, and I pushed it well but unfortunately got tangled with the Swedish athlete and went down to the ground with a broken pole. Overall, it was a good experience and I’m hungry for more.”

Richard Jouve, of France, sprinted to the gold medal in the men’s race. Norway’s Maiken Caspersen Falla won the women’s event.

Other Canadian results include:

Men

44. Xavier McKeever (Canmore, Alta.) – first World Cup race

46. Olivier Léveillé (Sherbrooke, Que.)

Women

40. Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt (Morin Heights, Que.)

41. Dahria Beatty (Whitehorse)

48. Katherine Stewart-Jones (Chelsea, Que.)

51. Laura Leclair (Chelsea, Que.)

53. Cendrine Browne (Prévost, Que.)

Complete results: https://bit.ly/3MgzK0G

Nordiq Canada is the governing body of para-nordic and cross-country skiing in Canada, which is the nation’s optimal sport and recreational activity with more than one million Canadians participating annually. Its 60,000 members include athletes, coaches, officials and skiers of all ages and abilities. With the support of its valued corporate partners – Haywood Securities Inc., AltaGas, Swix and Lanctôt Sports– along with the Government of Canada, Canadian Olympic Committee, Canadian Paralympic Committee, Own the Podium and B2Ten, Nordiq Canada develops Olympic, Paralympic and world champions. For more information on Nordiq Canada, please visit us at https://nordiqcanada.ca.

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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Chris Dornan                                        

Media and Public Relations

Nordiq Canada

T: 403-620-8731