Valerie Grenier couldn’t replicate her success from Saturday in the Mont-Tremblant alpine skiing World Cup’s second leg. Austria’s Julia Scheib clinched the giant slalom victory on Sunday, while Grenier, hailing from St-Isidore, Ont., veered off track with three gates remaining in her first run after securing bronze in the giant slalom on Saturday.
Reflecting on her run, Grenier shared, “I came down the course and noticed the continuous turns. Unfortunately, I made a familiar mistake of hitting a gate slightly, causing me to almost spin 180 degrees. That’s what occurred today, and it’s an aspect I need to focus on improving.”
The slight error disrupted what seemed to be a promising run for the 29-year-old, who honed her skiing skills at Mont-Tremblant. She was trailing closely behind Alice Robinson of New Zealand and Scheib, the leaders.
Scheib finished with a time of 2:13.00 over two runs to claim her third giant slalom medal of the season. The 27-year-old had previously won gold in Soelden and silver in Copper Mountain but had not completed the first run at Mont-Tremblant on Saturday.
In the final moments of the World Cup event, Scheib put forward an impressive second run, challenging Robinson. Despite Robinson’s efforts, a late mistake pushed her to third place.
Britt Richardson from Canmore, Alta., the lone Canadian in the second run, secured 12th place after recording the eighth fastest initial run. Richardson expressed, “I’m disappointed with my second run but content with the overall weekend and thrilled to compete in Canada.”
Scheib’s win brought her within 12 points of Robinson in the giant slalom standings, with Robinson leading 292 to 280 after four races. Scheib mentioned, “I feel more confident and enjoy skiing. I trust my skills and feel more stable. It’s a great sensation.”
The standings show Shiffrin leading overall with 458 points, followed by Colturi and Robinson.
