Olympian Marion Thénault wowed the crowd gathered at the relay as she won the World Cup gold medal in air jumping this afternoon.
Thénault, who started before her parents, family, friends and former gymnastics coaches, achieved the second victory of her career in the World Cup with an excellent jump and at the same time took the lead in the overall ranking. For the first time in the World Cup, she doubled her back in the Superfinal.
“It’s an incredible feeling,” Thénault said. The audience gave me a lot of energy. This is one of my best jumps in a long time. I’m really proud and it’s so special to share this moment with everyone. I will wear the yellow jersey for the first time in my career on Sunday.
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With the exclusion of the Australian Olympic champion Danielle Scott and her compatriot Laura Peel from the super final, the Sherbrooke jumper wanted to take her chance. “When I saw that two legends and two girls that I admire a lot hadn’t made it to the superfinals, I had a little inner voice that said Marion is yours,” she said. Last in the Superfinal, I was in my bubble and I wanted to make the best possible jump.
Careful mental preparation
Happy to perform at home, Thénault had to cope with that extra pressure. “The mental preparation had a big impact,” she explained. Although amateurs were not allowed last year due to hygiene regulations, I was stressed about competing at home. This year I knew emotional management was going to be more difficult. So I followed a very strict mental routine and did a lot of visualization. That went better than in the visualization.”
Will Thénault aim for the double tomorrow? “I will enjoy my victory before I think about tomorrow.”
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Jeff Bean praised his protégé. “It’s really, really extraordinary what Marion has done,” said the Canada team’s head coach. Her best career move came at home, with all the pressure that comes with it. She handled the pressure very well. Now we have to do it again tomorrow.”
“Despite the absence of two of the best in the SuperFinals, Marion made the same jumps,” continued Bean. She would have hit her anyway.”
With 96.23 points, Thénault achieved her best World Cup result of her career and prevailed against the American Ashley Caldwell (92) and the Ukrainian Anastasiya Novosad (86.71).
First final
In her first World Cup career, Rosalie Gagnon reached the final and placed 11th. “I didn’t expect to reach the finals of my first World Cup,” admitted the 16-year-old Quebec team skier. I had no pressure and was only here to gain experience. I was very touched as the Quebec girls surrounded me to celebrate when my qualification for the finals was confirmed.
In his first World Cup career, Charlie Fontaine failed to secure his ticket to the finals. She finished 14th. Olympian Flavie Aumond also missed the final. She crashed and finished 16th.
Lewis Irving is brave and falls in the Superfinal
Lewis Irving’s audacity didn’t pay off in the Superfinal.
Irving went into the final loop first and went for a triple somersault with five twists. It was the first time the Beijing Olympics bronze medalist in mixed competition had attempted this jump in a competition and he was unable to land it. He finished 5th.
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“It’s unfortunate that I couldn’t land it but I’m glad I made my big jump under pressure,” he said. It was daring because it’s one of the toughest jumps on the circuit, but I’ll need that jump at the World Championships. I was aiming for gold and I would have been untouchable if I had succeeded.
Jeff Bean will be using the same strategy in the second relay World Cup today. “We want to increase the level of difficulty in anticipation of the World Cup,” explained the head coach of the Canadian team. We would have wished he had finished on the podium but I’m glad we tried the jump to take the stress off for the future. He is already successful in training. Lewis jumped well, but he was two km/h too fast. It’s my fault, not his.”
A bronze medalist in Ruka in the first event of the season, Irvinq savored every moment of his experience in front of a conquered crowd. “It’s unbelievable the energy we felt because of the crowd. I can’t wait to do it again tomorrow.”
The American Quinn Dehlinger won gold against the Swiss Noe Roth and the Ukrainian Dmytro Kotovski.
Four Canadians in the final
In addition to Irving, three other Canadians reached the final reserved for the best 12 jumpers. It was an unexpected result for Victor Primeau, who had qualified for a World Cup for the second year in a row. The day started badly for Primeau, who cut his tongue after a missed jump in practice.
“Two finals in two events, that’s above my goals, the author recognized a 9th place. My goal was to get through one final this year and I’ve already shrunk to two. Trust makes the difference.”
For their part, Alexandre Duchaine and Émile Nadeau finished 10th and 11th. “I’m happy with my jump in qualifying, but less so with the one in the final where I couldn’t land it,” said Duchaine, the reigning Canadian champion. I will come back stronger tomorrow.”
Miha Fontaine excluded from the final
Miha Fontaine could not qualify for the final. He fell forward on landing and was 15th. “Since our first descents this morning the wind has picked up and I started three meters higher, but that wasn’t enough,” he explained. Under these circumstances, it is sometimes difficult to make the right choice. I still lacked some speed. I gave it my all, but I have no control over the wind.
Bean was emotional when commenting on Fontaine’s performance. “I’m touched that he missed the final. he was so close He found himself two millimeters. His start and jump were good. He’s in the right place and needs to keep his faith.