Definitive World Cup races await Simon Fournier

A busy and important month of January awaits an Outaouais alpine skier on the World Cup circuit.

Simon Fournier will compete in five slaloms in 22 days in Italy, Switzerland and Austria. It will start on January 8 with a first race at Madonna di Campiglio. Departures are also planned in Adelboden, Wengen, Kitzbühel and Schladming.

It's a bit like a dream month for slalom riders […] These are incredible stops that have been part of the circuit foreverunderlines the athlete from Hull.

Schladming is probably one of the biggest races for men in terms of spectators […] It's extremely stimulating. These are beautiful races, beautiful tracks. It excites me. It inspires me [et me pousse] to be competitive.

Fournier is playing his first full season in the World Cup. A member of the Canadian team in 2019-2020, he skipped the second half of the circuit season in order to concentrate on North American races and his studies at the University of Denver.

Over the winters, the 27-year-old skier has participated in 26 World Cup events. His best career result, however, remains a 24th place in slalom at the 2019 world championships in Are, Sweden.

In four starts this season, Fournier has been unable to qualify for the second round. He was particularly unlucky in the curtain raiser in Levi, Finland.

This first start was quite short. I made a mistake super quicklyhe notes.

The latter admits that the first half of the season was relatively difficult, to be honest. According to him, the racing conditions represented a challenge for several skiers.

A future that was uncertain

In Fournier's case, the last few months have been devoted in particular to adjusting his equipment for the World Cup. Last year, he mainly competed on the Nor-Am circuit, finishing first in the overall standings.

This result secured his place in the World Cup in 2024-2025.

Simon Fournier was, however, unsure if he was going to use it. He says he thought about his future last spring.

Especially since Alpine Canada has decided not to field a national team for technical events this season. Slalom specialists like him must now finance their international careers themselves.

It's expensive. That's up to five times more than the cost of being part of the national teamunderlines Fournier.

It can be the equivalent of a down payment to get a house. It's crazyhe adds.

Help that surprised him

If he can continue his career, it is thanks, he says, to the support of certain corporate partners just as certain individuals from the world of alpine skiing in Mont-Tremblant, in Outaouais and elsewhere in Quebec.

They say they took my story to heartsays Fournier. Everyone comes together to give me the chance to get where I want to get. This is something I didn't expect.

This help also allowed him to join an independent team, the World Racing Academy (WRA), which brings together several skiers of various nationalities. Another Canadian, Erik Read, is part of the group.

These athletes share the services of three coaches as well as technicians and other specialists during the World Cup season. We imitate a national team programexplains Simon Fournier, who has high expectations for the new year.

The Outaouais skier wants to collect FIS points in the next month to allow him to return to the world championships scheduled for February in Saalbach, Austria. Good results should also help him in his quest to qualify for the Olympic Games which will take place in Italy in 2026.

The Games have always been a childhood dream for me. It's something that continues to motivate me to surpass myselfhe notes.