As the Milan-Cortina Olympic Games quickly approach, Canadian athletes continue their preparation on the various World Cup circuits. - Sports has prepared this little summary of the last weekend for you, so you don’t miss anything and stay informed.
Already a team one step away from Olympic qualification
We are 13 months away from the Milan-Cortina Games, but at least two athletes are just one step away from their ticket. Brett Gallant and Jocelyn Peterman won the Canadian mixed doubles curling trials on Saturday in Nova Scotia.
In the final, they defeated Brendan Bottcher and Rachel Homan 8-7.
Gallant and Peterman will officially have a place at the Games if Canada qualifies for the World Mixed Doubles Curling Championships next spring, which should be a formality.
Katherine Stewart-Jones to new heights
The holiday season marks a tradition in the world of winter sports: the Tour de Ski, a stage race inspired by multi-day cycling races.
Two Canadians from the Outaouais region stood out. On the men’s side, Antoine Cyr achieved a top 10 during the second stage, the 15 km mass start. Cyr, originally from Gatineau, took 23rd place in the cumulative ranking, six places ahead of his compatriot Olivier Léveillé (29th).
But it was especially Katherine Stewart-Jones who caught the attention. The Chelsea cross-country skier scored the first two top 10s of her career. She took 4th place in the 20 km individual free start, then the next day, in the 15 km classic pursuit, she took 7th position.
Stewart-Jones took 14th place in the final stage, a 10 km mass start. She finished 16th in the general classification. The other Canadian in the running, Liliane Gagnon, finished 28th in the general classification and 26th in today’s event.
Hard weekend on the Slovenian slopes
The Women’s Alpine Skiing World Cup circuit stopped in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia, this weekend.
The resort in the Dolomites has smiled on Valérie Grenier in the past. It was there that she scored the first victory of her career, in giant slalom, two years ago, and she defended her title in January 2024.
Grenier was unable to score the hat-trick. She finished 38th and stopped after the first descent, as did Justine Lamontagne, 41st.
Cassidy Gray did not qualify for the second round and Britt Richardson was unable to complete the first.
On Sunday, a slalom was presented on the same mountain. No Canadian performance to report, but on the podium, the young Croatian Zrinka Ljutic, 20, recorded the first victory of her career.
Youth was in the spotlight, because on Saturday, the Albanian Laura Colturi, only 18 years old, took 2nd place, ahead of the Swede Sara Hector.
Hallie Clarke 8th in Winterberg
Hallie Clarke is the only athlete other than Summer McIntosh to receive a vote as The Canadian Press Female Athlete of the Year.
Did the journalist who voted for Clarke deliberately want to deprive McIntosh of a unanimous vote or did he hit the wrong button when making his choice? Since the vote is anonymous, it is impossible to know.
Still, last year, Clarke became world skeleton champion at just 19 years old, a feat that flew under many radars.
It’s a third top 10 this season in the Skeleton World Cup for Clarke, after a 6th place in Pyeongchang and a 7th position in Yanqing. Friday in Winterberg, Germany, she took 8th place.
Clarke achieved the best Canadian result in Winterberg, skeleton and bobsleigh combined.
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Hallie Clarke
Photo : Associated Press / Jeff Winger
