Ben Thomsen Top Canadian in Men’s Super-G with 17th
Alpine Canada – Are, SWE (Feb. 6, 2019) – Ben Thomsen (Invermere, BC/Windermere Ski Club), 31, recorded his career-best super-G result at a World Championship, finishing 17th to lead the Canadians on Wednesday at the 2019 FIS Alpine World Championships in Are, Sweden.
Thomsen, who is competing in his fourth Worlds, crossed the finish in one minute, 25.13 seconds – less than 1 second off the pace of winner Dominik Paris, of Italy.
“I was shooting for a top-15 and again, (fell) just shy,” said Thomsen who also boasts a 17th-place finish in downhill at the 2013 Worlds, and two 19th-place super-G finishes (2011, 2013). “It’s definitely good to be on this track; the snow is a lot different than what we have seen all season. It’s very aggressive, it’s really cold and dry here, and that’s a condition that I really struggle on. It’s good to see that I have some speed in some sections today, but I’m going to have to fix a few things for the downhill.”
Teammate Brodie Seger (North Vancouver, B.C./Whistler Mountain Ski Club) 23, climbed to 27th in his first World Championships race, finishing 1.85 seconds off the leader.
“I’m a tiny bit disappointed with my performance, just because I felt like I held back. When you are chasing the fastest guys in the world, you can’t afford to hold back at all,” said Seger, raced his way into Worlds with a 16th-place finish in the downhill at Kitzbuehel last month. “I think I could’ve gone a little faster than I did today, but having said that, I feel a lot better now that I had my first run down this hill. I feel a little more comfortable with this terrain.”
Jack Crawford (Toronto, Ont./Whistler Mountain Ski Club & Georgian Peaks Ski Club), 21, also racing in his first World Championships, finished 36th.
Dustin Cook (Ottawa, Ont./Mont Ste-Marie Ski Club), 29, missed a gate in the top section of the course and posted a DNF.
Valérie Grenier crashes in training
In ladies’ downhill training prior to the men’s super-G, Canada’s Valérie Grenier suffered a lower right leg injury and was taken to hospital for a full assessment. Alpine Canada will provide further details on Grenier when available.
World Championships racing resumes on Friday with the ladies’ combined. All races are streamed live at CBCsports.ca.
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