SUN PEAKS, B.C. – Elli Terwiel of Sun Peaks capitalized on home hill advantage and won the gold medal on Thursday in the women’s giant slalom while Benjamin Thomsen of Invermere, B.C., took the men’s race at a Pontiac GMC Cup alpine skiing competition.
Terwiel clocked a two-run time of 2:10.26 with Nicole Poleschuk second in 2:12.39 and Anya Holinski of third in 2:12.41.
‘’It was a good day for me,’’ said Terwiel. ‘’I saw that the snow was really good and I could see the tracks ahead were a little bit conservative. I knew I could push it harder than that and I did that really well.’’
Poleschuk feels she is starting to gain her stride back after missing all of last season with a knee injury.
‘’I’m very pleased with the result,’’ said Poleschuk, 17. ‘’It’s been a tough season but I’m finally starting to race again and lay it out on the line. I was attacking and creating speed the whole way down. I kept fighting and it ended up all right.’’
Holinski needed an improved second run to hang on to third spot.
‘’I was more aggressive on the second run,’’ said Holinski. ‘’I was hitting the line a bit more and skied straighter. This hasn’t been the best season for me so it’s nice to get on the podium here.’’
In the men’s GS, Thomsen collected his third victory on the circuit this season clocking 2:10.79. Sean Alexander of Calgary was second in 2:11.57 and Jake Baker of the U.S., third in 2:11.65.
‘’Being consistent is something I’m really striving for this season,’’ said Thomsen, who swept the two GS races in Bromont, Que., earlier this season. “The work has paid off. When I have had an opportunity to train, I’ve focused on what can help me put down two solid runs together.’’
Alexander underwent knee surgery on October 30 and returned to the slopes a month later.
‘’I just made sure I kept attacking on both runs,’’ said Alexander. ‘’I’ve been pretty happy with my results since I started racing again but today’s performance was a big step.’’
The Pontiac GMC Cup is Canada’s national development race series geared towards the development of Canada’s future champions. The series has produced past Canadian skiing greats such as Ken Read and Kathy Kreiner and current national team stars Kelly VanderBeek, Michael Janyk and François Bourque. The series features races in four provinces culminating with the 2008 Pontiac GMC Cup Canadian Championships at Whistler, B.C., February 6-12 (speed events) and Mont-Ste-Anne, Le Relais and Stoneham March 18-23 (technical races).
Competition continues through to Sunday. Another GS for men and women goes on Friday.