LA PLAGNE, Fra.—Canada’s top-two women’s bobsleigh pilots kicked off the new World Cup season with top-10 finishes in the monobob race on Saturday in La Plagne, France.
Toronto’s Cynthia Appiah scrapped her way to a ninth-place finish while Calgary’s Bianca Ribi settled for 10th in her first trip to the testy technical track in the French Alps.
The 33-year-old Appiah was looking for more after posting top-six start times on the long and flat start. Appiah was not able to threaten the podium, finishing ninth with a two-run time of 2:08.83.
“I’m a little disappointed with my performance. I had some solid runs in training this week and was really excited to see how I would do,” said Appiah, who is one of the most explosive starters in the world. “I messed up the most crucial part of the track on run one which is the push. My biggest asset was squandered because I ran it too short. I’m hoping to come back tomorrow with a better result.”
Canada’s sophomore pilot on the World Cup, Bianca Ribi, had two consistent runs while sliding to 10th.
The 27-year-old Calgarian, who was victorious in her World Cup debut last November at the Whistler Sliding Centre, completed her two trips down the 19-corner track in a time of 2:08.83.
“Coming to a new track, I felt like every day was a massive improvement and I was really growing my knowledge,” said Ribi. “I had my best runs of the week, by far, today and that’s all I can ask for on race day. I’m glad to get some of the first race day jitters out of the way and I look forward to building on this result for the coming races.”
Kaysha Love, of the United States, won in her World Cup debut as a pilot, taking the monobob competition in a time of 2:07.92. Switzerland’s Melanie Hasler clocked-in at 2:08.13 for the silver medal. Belgium’s Adreea Grecu slid to the final step of the women’s podium at 2:08.21.
The World Cup continues on Sunday in La Plagne for Team Canada with the two-women bobsleigh race.
Bobsleigh CANADA Skeleton is a non-profit organization and the national governing body for the sports of bobsleigh and skeleton in Canada. With the support of its valued corporate partners – Karbon and Joe Rocket Canada – along with the Government of Canada, Own the Podium and the Canadian Olympic Committee, Bobsleigh CANADA Skeleton develops Olympic and world champions. Please visit us at www.bobsleighcanadaskeleton.ca.
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