Grondin is unstoppable in Gudauri
Feb 03, 2024·Snowboard Cross
The favorites dominated the day as the FIS Snowboard Cross World Cup tour took the course in Gudauri, Georgia for the first time ever. The men’s and women’s races were highlighted by the best of the sport with dramatic finishes to cap off the thrilling day.
Eliot Grondin (CAN) continued his hot streak with another win after qualifying with the fastest time. Grondin held off a strong field in the big final and never relinquished the lead after the start to cross the line just ahead of the pack.
It is the third win in four races this season for the Canadian as he extends his overall standings lead. Grondin has been an unstoppable force this season. He has yet to miss a podium this season and continues to add to his career trophy case.
The win gives Grondin his sixth win and 13th career World Cup podium. He will make his 50th career start on Sunday in the second race at Gudauri.
“It feels really good, four big finals in a row with two wins in a row. I think for tomorrow I just have to fix a few things that I was not doing so good today and we will see from there. I will do my best,” Grondin said.
Grondin was chased by plenty of talent in the big final. Cameron Bolton (AUS) pulled out second place by the narrowest of margins. Bolton returns to the podium for the first time since 2022. It is the 33-year-old’s fifth career World Cup podium.
Another familiar name rounded out the top three. Snowboard cross legend Alessandro Haemmerle (AUT) rebounded from a disappointing 21st-place finish last race to complete the podium.
The third-place finish for the Austrian gives him three podiums in four races this season. He will need to turn those into victories if he wants to overtake Grondin in the race for the overall crystal globe. The Olympic champion now has 30 World Cup podiums to his name.
Fellow veteran Omar Visintin (ITA) finished in fourth after stumbling in the start section of the big final.
NEXT UP:
The men from the big final will be the ones to beat on Sunday as the riders return to the same track for another chance at glory in Georgia.
The men will once again face off in Gudauri. The men’s knockout rounds will begin at 12pm local time (9am CET).
Chloe Trespeuch is the crème de la crème
On the women’s side Chloe Trespeuch (FRA) avoided a crash-filled day of races to emerge victorious. The French rider extends her overall lead after overcoming tough conditions, both external and internal.
“Very hard day. This morning, I woke up very sick. So, it was a difficult day for me today physically. But awesome race, the course was good. It was an awesome final. It was difficult for me because I was very bad in the start section, so I had to push everywhere to come back and win and pass Eva, so I’m very happy,” Trespeuch said.
Trespeuch overcame a loaded field in the big final as all four racers pushed to the end. She found clean air as the other racers bumped behind her. The win gives Trespeuch 300 overall points and keeps her on top of the overall standings. She holds a 75-point lead over Michela Moioli (ITA) after four races.
The win is her second of the season and third podium of the year. She now has six career World Cup wins and 38 podiums. She will look to add to that tally in the second race of the weekend on Sunday.
“I really can improve the start section and get the same result tomorrow,” Trespeuch said.
Trespeuch held off a thunderous charge from Eva Adamczykova (CZE). The Czech star settled for second after winning the previous race in St. Moritz. She was also the fastest qualifier. It gives her two podiums in two races this season as Adamczykova returned to the Snowboard Cross tour following a break to compete in a reality TV dance competition.
Adamczykova edged out Sophie Hediger (SUI) who finished in third after colliding with Moioli. Hediger stayed up right to finish right behind the leaders. It is her second straight podium.
Moioli settled for fourth and missed out on second podium of the season. Charlotte Bankes’ (GBR) tough season continued as she crashed out in the quarterfinals.
NEXT UP:
They will look for redemption on Sunday as they take the same track for another race on Sunday in Gudauri. The women’s knockout rounds will begin at 12pm local time (9am CET) right after the first round of the men’s competition.
Qualifying will run differently for Sunday’s race. The men will begin the knockout rounds with 64 riders in groups of four. They will race until they eliminate the field to 16 and then begin the normal knockout rounds. The women will do the same but start with 32 riders. The tournament-style qualifying begins at 10:3am local time.
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