Calgary, Alta. (October 9, 2016) – This weekend the Canadian Alpine Ski Team tech stars are in the Arctic Circle racing in Levi, Finland, at one of the largest ski resorts in Lapland. This is the 10th anniversary of the Levi opening slalom race, with all athletes vying for the coveted first-place prize - a Reindeer! After last year’s cancellation, the FIS has confirmed a positive snow control, which means the races this weekend are a go!
Seven Canadians will start in the Levi race this weekend, including four women and three men.
On the ladies’ side, Quebec’s Marie-Michèle Gagnon has landed two career podiums in slalom, including one last season in the Crans Montana, Switzerland race. Ontario’s slalom-ace, Erin Mielzynski matches her teammate with two career podiums in slalom, including a first-place from the 2012 Ofterschwang, Germany race. Joining the veterans at this race are Valérie Grenier and Laurence St-Germain, both from Quebec.
On the men’s side, the young tech team pushing out of the start gate includes Trevor Philp, Phil Brown and Erik Read. Philp’s personal-best 14th-place finish in last year’s Kitzbühel slalom will have him pushing for another top 15 finish. Brown, recovering after a high impact spill in the first race of the season, took the Canadian Championship title in slalom last season and will look to find points in this race. Read finished the 2015-16 season ranked number one in slalom on the NorAm circuit and currently has two top 30 World Cup slalom finishes to his name.
LADIES’ ALPINE
Laurence St-Germain
Valérie Grenier
Marie-Michèle Gagnon
Erin Mielzynski
MEN’S ALPINE
Phil Brown
Erik Read
Trevor Philp
DATES AND START TIMES
Saturday, November 12, 2016
Ladies’ Slalom 1st Run – 10:00 CET / 2:00AM MST
Ladies’ Slalom 2nd Run – 13:00 CET / 5:00AM MST
Sunday, November 13, 2016
Men’s Slalom 1st Run – 10:00 CET / 2:00AM MST
Men’s Slalom 2nd Run – 13:00 CET / 5:00AM MST
SOCIAL MEDIA RECAP
For further inforamtion or press inquiries, please contact Ashley Shantz at ashantz@alpinecanada.org or call 587.226.3007.