Casey Larson and Annika Belshaw win US nationals
Aug 01, 2021·Ski Jumping
The US Ski Jumping national championships on the normal and large hill were held this weekend on the Olympic hills in Park City.
Casey Larson took a clear win in the men's competition on the HS 100 normal hill in the Utah Olympic Park. The 22-year-old had the longest jumps in both rounds with 101.5 m and 96.5 m and won with his total of 259.5 points.
“My teammates always give me a good run – Decker, Andy, Kevin. I definitely wasn’t confident, I had some nervous butterflies up there. It definitely doesn’t hurt in ski jumping", Casey Larson is quoted on usanordic.org.
The second place went to Andrew Urlaub with 99 m and 90.5 m and 243.5 points, he was followed by Decker Dean in third with 97.5 m and 90.5 m and 239.5 points.
Kevin Bickner, who took a break from competing last winter, came in fourth, ahead of Erik Belshaw and nordic combined skier Jasper Good.
A day later, Casey Larson also stood on top of the podium in the large hill event. On the HS 134, he posted jumps of 127.5 m and 133 m and scored a total of 258.9 points.
With 131.5 m, Decker Dean was in the lead after the first round, with a 121.5 m jump in the final and 249.9 points he finished second overall. Andrew Urlaub also made the Top 3 for a second time this weekend was third with 125.5 m and 123.5 m and 241.7 points.
The places four to six went to Jasper Good, Kevin Bickner, and Ben Loomis.
In the women's normal hill competition, Annika Belshaw claimed the title with 90 m and 86.5 m and 214.0 points. Nina Lussi came in second with 84.5 m and 87.5 m and 206.0 points, Anna Hoffmann (86.5 m and 80.5 m) and Logan Sankey (81.5 m and 86.5 m) tied for third with 193.0 points.
“It feels good. I knew there were people who had the potential to have some good jumps. It was a good competition. It’s nice to win here but I have a lot of work to do moving into the Olympic season", said Annika Belshaw.
Just like Casey Larson, Annika Belshaw was also able to repeat her success on the large hill. She took her second win with 121.5 m and 120 m and 219.2 points, followed by Anna Hoffmann (117 m and 113 m; 200.5 points) and Nina Lussi (111.5 m and 112 m; 189.3 points).
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