(Montreal) Bronze medalist in singles at the World Cup in Bakouriani, Georgia, Mikaël Kingsbury would have liked to be able to go back in time a few seconds after his descent in the super final. He would thus have repeated his second jump to land it better and climb one or two steps on the podium.
Back on the track that saw him crowned double world champion last winter, the Quebecer won his seventh medal of the 2023-2024 campaign on Friday, his fifth in an individual event.
He first achieved “[his] best qualification of the season”, then concluded the first final in the lead ahead of the Japanese Ikuma Horishima and the Swede Filip Gravenfors.
The snow started before the start of the grand final and the temperature increased. The skier from Deux-Montagnes successfully completed his first jump and maneuvered well in the central section of the course while maintaining good speed. It was when he launched onto the second ramp that he experienced some difficulties.
“When I entered the bottom jump, I felt like I was sticking,” said Mikaël Kingsbury. When you get into snow that’s a little wetter, you feel it slow down and send your chest forward, then it speeds up again. That’s a bit what I felt and I didn’t manage to have a good takeoff. This meant that my jump was a little missed and my landing was much less good (than usual). »
The judges awarded a score of 75.21 to the Quebecer, who finished 1.90 points behind the winner. Only Horishima (77.11) and Gravenfors (75.85) managed to do better during this round.
Thanks to this bronze medal, Mikaël Kingsbury remains at the top of the World Cup rankings. He now holds a lead of 20 points over Ikuma Horishima in the singles event and 80 points in the overall standings.
“It still allowed me to take third place and I’m really happy with that, but it’s certain that I was skiing on a day where I could have gone for a victory. This is why I am disappointed and angry with myself. I know I could have jumped better and adjusted a little better,” he shared.
“It’s the kind of jump where you want to go back and do it again and you know you’re going to get it. Especially when it’s the only jump you missed at this location during the weekend, it’s a shame when it happens in the super final! »
No less than four Quebecers finished in the top 10. A feat that comes at just the right time, as the next stop of the World Cup is scheduled for Val Saint-Côme on January 19 and 20.
Friday, the bronze medalist was accompanied by his compatriot Julien Viel in the grand final. The latter obtained the best result of his career in singles by placing fifth with a harvest of 73.16 points.
“I decided to ski for myself and I wanted to make good turns. My focus was really on that today (Friday),” Viel explained in an interview with Sportcom.
Elliot Vaillancourt and Louis-David Chalifoux reached the first final where they placed eighth and ninth. Gabriel Dufresne finished 20th in qualifying.
“The Canadians are doing great this year! The caliber is so high that to make a final, it takes an excellent descent. The slightest mistake can make you miss the final, continued Julien Viel. We challenge each other and we all climb together. I’m really happy to see the three skiers from Mont-Sainte-Anne in the top 10 of the general classification, to see Mik still at the top. We are in a good position for the future. »
Note that Laurianne Desmarais-Gilbert ultimately did not take part in the competition on the women’s side.
The Bakouriani World Cup will conclude on Saturday in parallel moguls.
With four stages in as many weeks for a total of seven events, fatigue represents an additional challenge for competitors.
“That’s what was the hardest today. I have gained experience since last year with travel and jet lag, and you can see it in my results. There is still work to be done, but overall my body feels good. I’m ready for the duels, but I’m also looking forward to going home to see the family! » mentioned Viel.
“Everyone is a little tired. It’s been a long journey, we’ve been on the road for a month. In these moments, it happens between the two ears. The expression says “how bad do you want it?” », concluded Mikaël Kingsbury, well motivated to end this journey in style.
