Marielle Thompson is adding another silver medal to her collection.
The Whistler, B.C. native finished second on Dec. 8 in the inaugural women's ski cross race of the new FIS World Cup season in a time of 1:08.81. Only defending Olympic champion Sandra Naeslund of Sweden was faster (1:07.93), while Switzerland's Talina Gantenbein finished third (1:09.56) in Val Thorens, France.
“Stoked to start the season on such a good note,” said Thompson. “I made a little mistake in the final that cost me but looking forward to racing again tomorrow where I’m looking to carry my speed a bit better through the turns and to be a bit more aggressive at the top.”
The woman known among peers as "Big Air Mar" now has 53 World Cup podium results, including 25 wins, in her decorated career. She returned to the Olympic podium earlier this year with a silver medal in Beijing, where she was also bested by Naeslund. The 30-year-old is originally from North Vancouver, B.C. and was the Olympic ski cross queen from 2014 in Sochi.
Other Canadian women in action included Ottawa, Ont.'s Hannah Schmidt, who won the small final to finish fifth. Tiana Gairns of Prince George (11th) and Abby McEwen of Edmonton, Alta. (18th) also collected World Cup points.
On the men's side, Kevin Drury of Calgary, Alta. was the top Canadian, finishing 13th. Austrian Johannes Rohrweck won gold, German Tobias Mueller struck silver and Swiss athlete Jonas Lenherr took bronze.
The ski cross team races again on Friday, Dec. 9 in Val Thorens. Visit Alpine Canada's website for Canadian results and stories throughout the season.
