Canadians shine in St. Moritz amid thrilling debuts and tight battles
Jan 13, 2025·Para Alpine
Despite a crash for Kurt Oatway (CAN) and a fourth-place finish in the Giant Slalom events in St. Moritz, Team Canada delivered a strong performance this weekend.
Alexis Guimond continued his impressive comeback in the Men’s Standing category, claiming two second-place finishes behind the discipline leader, Arthur Bauchet (FRA). Guimond held off Switzerland’s finest on both days—Théo Gmür, returning to the circuit after over a year sidelined by injuries, on Saturday, and Robin Cuche on Sunday.
Michaela Gosselin also displayed remarkable consistency in the Women’s Standing category. Following her first World Cup wins in Santa Caterina last week, she secured second and third-place finishes in St. Moritz. Her podium tally for the season now stands at six, including four consecutive top-three results.
In the Men’s Vision Impaired (VI) category, Kalle Ericsson and his guide Sierra Smith continued to gain momentum. They landed their fifth consecutive podium on Saturday, finishing second after leading the first run. A stellar second run by Italians Giacomo Bertagnolli and guide Andrea Ravelli denied the Canadians their first win of the season. However, Kalle and Sierra came back with a vengeance on Sunday, delivering two flawless runs to post the fastest times in both legs and claim victory.
The weekend also saw first-time victories for several athletes:
Aurélie Richard (FRA) claimed her maiden World Cup win in the Women’s Standing category during Saturday’s Giant Slalom.
Nette Kiviranta (FIN) impressed in the Women’s Sitting category, securing her first-ever World Cup podium and win on Saturday in her season debut. She followed up with another victory on Sunday, dominating both runs. Kiviranta has firmly established herself as a new contender in the Women’s Sitting category.
Renè de Silvestro (ITA) triumphed in the Men’s Sitting category during Sunday’s Giant Slalom.
In the Women’s VI category, an intense Austria-Italy rivalry unfolded throughout the weekend. Chiara Mazzel and her guide Fabrizio Casal (ITA) pushed the Aigner sisters (AUT) to their limits, finishing just behind them twice and even clocking the fastest second run on Sunday. Rising star Elina Stary and guide Vanessa Josefa Arnold (AUT) completed the podium on both days, solidifying their place among the top contenders in technical disciplines.
All results are available here.
The FIS Para Alpine Skiing World Cup now heads to Feldberg (GER) for the very first time, where the athletes will compete in two Slalom races.
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