Paralympian Braydon Luscombe takes memorable final World Cup career run sporting Canadian tuxedo

La Molina, ESP (March 14, 2019) – Frédérique (Fred) Turgeon (Candiac, Que./Club de ski Bromont) raced to her second World Cup silver medal in three races Thursday, finishing second in the ladies’ standing giant slalom in La Molina, Spain.

The NextGen racer laid down a total time of one minute, 44.49 over two runs to make her fifth trip to the World Cup podium this season.

With her two World Cup slalom gold medals from January, Turgeon heads into the season’s final four slalom races as the overall leader in the discipline. La Molina will host two slalom races on Friday and Saturday, with the final two set to take place in Morzine, France, March 20-21.

“I’m pretty happy with today, just to finish my second run,” said Turgeon, who noted the snow conditions in balmy La Molina made Thursday’s runs more difficult. “For the slalom, I’m aiming for the podium – I want to keep my points up to keep the Crystal Globe (awarded to the overall discipline leader) in reach.”

Canada’s next-best performance came from Alexis Guimond (Gatineau, Que./Club de ski Mont-Tremblant) who was able to post his second-consecutive fourth-place finish with a two-run time of 1:45.15.

Also racing into the top-10 were Alana Ramsay (Calgary/CADS Alberta) who finished sixth, Mel Pemble (Victoria, B.C./B.C. Adaptive Snowsports) in eighth, and Kurt Oatway (Calgary/Regina Alpine Race Team-Saskatchewan Alpine) who was ninth. Alex Cairns (Squamish, B.C./B.C. Adaptive Snowsports) was unable to complete his first run, posting a DNF.

Canada’s Braydon Luscombe retires from competitive ski racing

Braydon Luscombe (Duncan, B.C./B.C. Para-Alpine) technically finished 16th on Thursday in the men’s standing category, but results were not his focus.

The eight-year veteran of Canada’s national para-alpine program used the second run of Thursday’s GS as a memorable tribute run to his career; the Paralympian and World Cup medallist went all-denim for his final run, stopping to acknowledge coaches along the way.

“It’s definitely a little bittersweet (to race) my last World Cup run, but it’s been an awesome day and it was great to have the whole team here (contributing) to the really good vibes for my last run,” said Luscombe who made the decision to don a Canadian tuxedo when he was awarded the team’s denim vest during Wednesday’s team meeting. The vest is passed along at each meeting to recognize on- or off-snow actions, achievements, and milestones. “I thought I’d pair some jeans with it and just go full-Canadian.”

Luscombe, who joined the national team program in 2011, competed at two Paralympic Winter Games (2014, 2018), and was a forerunner when his home province of British Columbia hosted the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games

Race action shifts to the slalom races in La Molina on Friday, with he first run is set to start at 3:45 a.m. ET, and the second run slated to begin at 6:30 a.m. ET. All races can be live streamed at the Canadian Paralympic Team’s Facebook page.

Celebrate today’s podium results by joining the Medallists’ Circle

For the 2018-19 ski racing season, Alpine Canada is inviting ski fans to join the Medallists’ Circle. Donors are invited to commit a pledge for each podium performance by an Alpine Canada athlete this season at World Cup and World Championship events. All funds raised through the Medallists’ Circle will provide Canada’s alpine, para-alpine, and ski cross athletes with the resources needed to reach for the podium. For further information, please visit AlpineCanada.org.