Calgary, Alta. (January 3, 2016) – Under the lights in Zagreb (CRO), the Snow Queen Trophy was up for grabs today on the long night slalom track. Quebec’s Marie-Michèle Gagnon put together two solid runs for her first top-ten in slalom this season, finishing in sixth-place. Gagnon charged the first run wearing bib number 14 and qualified for the second run sitting in sixth-place.  

The course held up while Gagnon waited for 24 other racers to push out of the gate for the second run. Pushing aggressively, Gagnon moved into first-place after her second run. Ultimately, five other racers bested Gagnon’s time and she finished today’s race in sixth-place, 1.91 seconds back from the lead-time. 

Today’s race hill included challenging rolls and a decent pitch on the bottom section of the course. With snow conditions holding up, the top six racers after the first run maintained their positions after the second run. 

Slovakia went one-two on the podium today with Veronika Velez Zuzulova finishing in first-place by 0.24 seconds and teammate, Petra Vlhova finishing in second place. Czech Replubic’s Sarka Strachova finished today’s race in third-place, 0.52 back from the lead-time. 

It was a tough day for Toronto’s Erin Mielzynski who made too many errors in the first run to qualify for the second run. 

“I had too many mistakes and one that was too costly to come back from,” said Mielzynski. “I will continue fighting, believing and working.”

The men takeover the Zagreb (CRO) track tomorrow for their chance to run the slalom. 

Canadian women’s results

6 – Marie-Michèle Gagnon

DNQ – Erin Mielzynski

Full results here. 

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