Are, SWE (Feb. 5, 2019) – Valérie Grenier (Mont-Tremblant, Que./Mont-Tremblant Ski Club), 22, posted Canada’s top finish to kick off the 2019 FIS Alpine World Championships, racing to 19th in the ladies’ super-G on Tuesday.

High winds forced organizers to lower the start for the ladies’ super-G, and conditions seemed to favour the earlier starters.

“I thought that my run was not horrible; I was ok on the line for the most part, except at the top (where) I got a bit lower,” said Grenier, who posted a time of one minute, 6.67 seconds – 1.78 seconds behind winner Mikaela Shiffrin of the U.S. “The light got a little darker after the first 20 skiers so that was tough for me because I couldn’t see all the take-offs. I was really bad in the air.”

Teammate Marie-Michèle Gagnon (Lac-Etchemin, Que./Mont Orignal), 29, finished 21st, with a time of 1:06.91 – 2.02 seconds off the pace.

Grenier is participating in her third World Championships, and Tuesday’s result matches her best-ever super-G finish at Worlds – she was 19th in the event in 2015 when Vail/Beaver Creek were hosts.

Canada’s Roni Remme, (Collingwood, Ont./Alpine Ski Club), 22, experienced travel delays on her way to Are, and the decision was made for her to sit out the super-G.

World Championships racing resumes on Wednesday with the men’s super-G. All races are streamed live at CBCsports.ca.