(Montreal) Back in the cross-country skiing World Cup after his 16e place obtained at the Tour de Ski, Katherine Stewart-Jones picked up where she left off, Friday, in Les Rousses, France, where she ranked 14e (+59.2 seconds) of the 10 kilometer freestyle, individual start. The 29-year-old athlete was followed by her compatriot Liliane Gagnon (+1 minute 6.7 seconds), 15ewho at the same time signs his best individual result this season.
Published yesterday at 4:30 p.m.
The other Quebecer registered, Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt, ranked 38e (+2 minutes 18.8 seconds).
“Two Canadian skiers in the top 15I don’t know when the last time that happened, so it’s refreshing! » recognized Gagnon, who was the fastest cross-country skier under 23 on Friday.
Returning from the Tour de Ski which she completed for the first time, the athlete from Quebec was advancing into unfamiliar territory at the start of the second half of the season.
“It was new for me to recover from all these races. I didn’t really know what to expect and I wasn’t feeling great either. But yesterday (Thursday), when I did my pre-race training, I still felt good,” continued the one who will be at the Under-23 World Championships which will begin on February 3 in Schilpario, Italy.
She will also aim for a place on the Canadian team at the Senior World Championships.
-The American and distance freestyle specialist Jessie Diggins (22 min 37.7 sec) was the fastest on the course. The German Victoria Carl (+19.6 seconds) and the Norwegian Astrid Oeyre Slind (+20.1 seconds) accompanied her on the podium.
Other 24e Place d’Olivier Léveillé
In the men’s event, which was the scene of a Norwegian double thanks to Iver Tildheim Andersen (19 min 50.6 s) and Paal Goldberg (+5.2 seconds), Olivier Léveillé was ranked 24e (+58.2 seconds). The American Ben Ogden (+9.1 seconds) took third place.
“I was trying not to put too much pressure on myself since I’m coming back from the Tour de Ski and I never know how my body will react. It’s a good race, especially since the gaps are super tight and I’m less than 10 seconds from my first top 20 of the season. I’m still happy,” declared Léveillé, who signs a third 24e place since the start of this campaign.
The Sherbrooke athlete mentioned having mismanaged his effort as he approached a climb in his second lap of the course.
“I misanalyzed it in my warm-up, except that I was then able to adjust my shot to finish well in the third round. […] Without this little mistake, maybe I could have gone for a few seconds to gain a few positions. »
Léveillé will be at the start of the races on Saturday and Sunday. A classic sprint will be contested on Saturday, while a 20 km in classic style, mass start, will take place on Sunday.
