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Top 10 for Graham

30/1/2015

OWIA/NSWIS mogul skiers Matt Graham and Britt Cox qualified for the finals and finished in eighth and 11th respectively in the fifth World Cup in Lake Placid, USA.

Canada’s Mikael Kingsbury won the men’s event, with Russian Alexandr Smyshlyaev second and Canadian Marc-Antoine Gagnon in third place.

The women’s final saw Canadian Justine Dufour Lapointe end the day in front of second placed American Hannah Kearney, while Andi Naude from Canada took the other podium place.

Coach Steve Desovich said that both Australians skied well in the qualification session, with Cox, the bronze medallist at the recent World Championships, advancing to the first final in 6th place and Graham in 8th position.

However, each made an error in the final that blocked their advancement through to the medal round second final.

“It was just one of those rough days you get in mogul skiing sometimes,” Desovich said.

“They have both had good seasons and today was not an indication of how they have been skiing.”

Graham currently sits in fifth spot on the World Cup standings, equal on points with World Champion Anthony Benna from France. Cox is ranked 10th in the World.

The Lake Placid event marks the final event of the season for Britt Cox, with Matt Graham to compete in one more World Cup event next week in Val St Come in Canada on February 7.

IMAGE: Matt Graham flying down the bumps in Lake Placid © FIS/Julien Heon

Cox & Graham top-10 in Dual Moguls

20/1/2015

Australian moguls skier Britt Cox backed up her podium finish 24 hours earlier with a fighting fifth place in the duals event at the Ski and Snowboard World Championships in Kreischberg, Austria., overnight (Australian time).

The other half of Australia’s moguls pair, Matt Graham, delivered a solid top 10 finish.

The results over the last two days, which included a bronze medal for Cox in the singles event, enabled the Aussie moguls contingent to leave Kreischberg knowing that their World Championships campaign was a definite success.

Although Cox was not able to make it to the podium again today, she once more displayed how she is benefiting from her renowned off-season work ethic by qualifying for the finals in seventh place and winning her first round convincingly against Canadian Andi Naude before coming up against Canada’s eventual silver medallist Justine Dufour-Lapointe in a quarter final.

In the final, Dufour-Lapointe was unable to match the strength of American Hannah Kearney, who captured the duals gold medal and turned the tables on her Canadian rival’s win in the singles event.

Today’s bronze went to Kazakhstan’s Yulia Galysheva who defeated fourth placed Canadian Chloe Dufour-Lapointe in the consolation final.

Graham also qualified for the finals in eighth place but was unable to out point former World Champion Patrick Deneen from the United States in the round of 16.

Graham skied strongly against Deneen, known as the fastest moguls skier on the tour, and was unlucky to be narrowly out pointed by the American in one of the many close battles of the day.

One of the most pleasing aspects of Graham’s finals run was his undeniable speed, and in fact the Australian crossed the line fractionally faster than the American “speed machine”.

The battle for the men’s medals was an all-Canadian affair with the title going to Mikael Kingsbury, Philippe Marquis picked up the silver and the bronze went to Marc-Antoine Gagnon.

Olympic Winter Institute of Australia CEO Geoff Lipshut praised both Cox and Graham for their significant steps forward during the Championships.

“Both Britt and Matt have shown that the work we have been doing with these two young athletes is right on track,” Lipshut said.

“They are both emerging as world class talents and the future of Australian mogul skiing is looking very positive.”

Image: Matt Graham & Britt Cox in Kreischberg © Dean Gosper

Slopestyle Update

Australia’s representative in the snowboard slopestyle event, Michaela Davis-Meehan, finished in 24th place in the qualification session missing one of the 10-spots going through to the finals.

Australia’s World Championship campaign now switches to the slopestyle sking qualification session with hopes pinned on Russ Henshaw, the 2011 World Championships bronze medallist, and Samuel Ruttiman.

Cox wins Australia's third medal at World Championships

19/1/2015

Mogul skier Britt Cox added to Australia’s run of medals at the Ski and Snowboard World Championships in Kreischberg, Austria, when she secured the bronze medal with the best performance of her career.

By finishing third, the 20-year-old Olympic Winter Institute of Australia/NSWIS athlete becomes just the second Australian female World Championship moguls medallist, following on from Maria Despas' silver medal in 2001.

The outstanding result means that Australia has picked up two golds and a bronze in the first four days so far in these Championships.

Australia’s Scotty James pocketed the gold medal in the snowboard halfpipe a day earlier and aerial skier Laura Peel also took gold on Friday (Australian time).

Cox shared the podium with Canada’s gold medallist Justine Dufour-Lapointe and two-time Olympic medallist Hannah Kearney from the United States, who added a silver to her previous six World Championships medals.

Cox’s teammate Matt Graham finished in 16th place, which could have been a lot higher if not for a landing mishap on his second jump.

Nicole Parks finished in 29th place, after an off balanced landing after the first jump and a suspected knee injury during the qualifying run.

At the end of the six woman super-final on a day that Cox will never forget, she said that she was “stoked” by the way everything came together today.

Despite having a World Championships medal within reach at the start of the super-final, after qualifying in third, Cox strong state of mind shielded out all forms of pressure.

“I think what helped me today was that I was having so much fun. I was relaxed and I was confident,” she said.

“I trusted my training and I trusted the feedback I was getting from my coaches and that gave me confidence. So when I was in the start gate I just went for it.

“I had so much fun skiing my runs today,” Cox said.

“I had three runs which I was really, really happy with. It’s an excellent feeling when you cross the line when you are so happy with your runs.”

She added that she was particularly proud to stand on the podium with the Canadian and the American.

“To end up on the podium with Hannah and Justine, two Olympic gold medallist is very special. I have a lot of respect for these girls.

"I’m pretty excited to be on the podium with them.”

While Graham was hoping for a finish higher than 16th, especially with the knowledge that he was fresh from claiming a World Cup silver medal in Deer Valley a little more than a week ago, the OWIA/NSWIS athlete can be pleased with the way he skied.

Graham qualified in sixth place for the first final for the top 18 athletes and looked poised to attract a strong score when he was slightly deep when landing his second jump.

However Graham will have an opportunity to show how far he has progressed in the last 12 months when he competes again in 24 hours in the duals event.

The men's final was won by Frenchman Anthony Benna, who took home his first World Championship title, ahead of Canadian and favourite for the event Mikael Kingsbury. Russia’s Alexandr Smyshlyaev took the bronze.

IMAGE: Britt Cox celebrated on the podium at the World Championships © Peter Hogg

Two World Cup medals at Deer Valley

11/1/2015

Twenty-year-old mogul skier Britt Cox this afternoon (Australian time) secured Australia’s second World Cup medal in 24 hours to cap off a highly successful weekend at Deer Valley in the United States.

The Olympic Winter Institute of Australia/NSW Institute of Sport athlete snared the bronze medal, which is the third time she has finished third in a World Cup, in the duals moguls event.

Cox’s impressive performance under lights in front of a huge crowd comes on the heels of a second place by teammate Matt Graham who won his first World Cup medal in the singles event on day one at Deer Valley.

The event, regarded as the best on the World Cup tour, was won by Canada’s reigning Olympic champion Justine Dufour-Lapointe with American two-time Olympic medallist Hannah Kearney in second.

Although Cox, who improved on her sixth place in yesterday’s singles event, provided the biggest highlight for the Aussie team this afternoon, there were several other impressive results by OWIA/NSWIS teammates.

Once again Graham showed that he has improved significantly this season when he went down in a tough quarter final tussle with the eventual winner, Olympic silver medallist and current World Cup points leader Mikael Kingsbury from Canada.

American Dylan Walczyk was second and third went to Switzerland’s Marco Tade.

Graham ended the day in sixth overall and his successes this weekend have lifted his current World Cup ranking to number four.

Adding to the fortunes of the day, NSWIS athlete Madi Himbury finished in eighth place after winning through to the quarters, to record a career best in World Cup competition.

In other results for Australians, Nicole Parks was 23rd, Jakara Anthony 38th, Roanna Humphries 39th and James Matheson and Rohan Chapman-Davies were 38th and 40th respectively.

Cox, who has fought back from an interrupted start to the season, clearly showed that she is also still improving each week due to her strong work ethic and is looking for further improvements.

Cox admitted that her podium performance came as a little surprising, particularly as she survived an ultra-close battle in the quarters against Canada’s Maxime Dufour-Lapointe before winning her small final dual against Switzerland’s Deborah Scanzio.

“It did come as a bit of a surprise but it feels awesome, really good,” Cox said.

“I trained so hard all year and I really wanted it.

“I’m really proud and really proud to be part of the Australian team. We have a fantastic relationship and we all push each other.

“And I have two incredible coaches, Steve Desovich and Jerry Grossi, and we’re a fantastic team. With that team around me, it is all very special.”

With World Championships in Kreischberg, Austria, next Sunday, the medal winning performance gives Cox a great deal of confidence.

“I have a lot of confidence because of the way I have trained this year and this is more evidence that shows me that I am capable of skiing well,” she said.

“I will now move forward and focus on the job.

“I’m really happy with the way I’m skiing right now but I know I can do more and it’s just a matter of focusing and making sure everything comes together at the right time and the right place.

“Every competition I go out there and focus on skiing my best and if I focus on that I have confidence I can be the best out there on the day.”

The Aussie team now travel to Austria for a training camp in preparation for Kreischberg.

Results

Women’s dual moguls World Cup, Deer Valley, USA

1.   Justine Dufour-Lapointe (CAN), 2. Hannah Kearney (USA), 3. Britt Cox (AUS), 4. Deborah Scanzio (SUI), 5. Maxime Dufour-Lapointe (CAN), 6. Jee Won Seo (KOR), 8. Madi Himbury (AUS), 23. Nicole Parks (AUS), 38. Jakara Anthony (AUS), 39 Roanna Humphries (AUS).

Women’s moguls World Cup standings after round 4

1.   Justine Dufour-Lapointe (CAN) 285, 2. Hannah Kearney (USA) 246, 3. Chloe Dufour-Lapointe (CAN) 220, 4. KC Oakley (USA) 163, 5. Maxime Dufour-Lapointe (CAN) 151, Britt Cox (AUS) 140, 22. Nicole Parks (AUS) 52, 26. Madi Himbury (AUS) 43.

Men’s dual moguls World Cup, Deer Valley, USA

1.   Mikael Kingsbury (CAN), 2. Dylan Walczyk (USA), 3. Marco Tade (SUI), 4Philippe Marquis (CAN), 6. Matt Graham (AUS), 38 James Matheson (AUS), 40. Rohan Chapman-Davies (AUS).

Men’s moguls World Cup standings after round 4

1.   Mikael Kingsbury (CAN) 329, 2. Philippe Marquis (CAN) 185, 3. Endo Sho (JPN) 156, 4. Matt Graham (AUS) 149, 5. Alexandr Smyshlyaev (RUS) 141, 6. Simon Pouliot-Cavanagh (CAN) 140.

Aussie wins first World Cup medal in the bumps

10/1/2015

Australian mogul skier Matt Graham produced arguably the best run of his career when he captured his first World Cup medal in front of a huge crowd under lights at the Deer Valley resort in the United States this afternoon, Australian time.

In finishing the day with the silver medal, the 20-year-old Olympic Winter Institute of Australia/NSW Institute of Sport athlete joined an exclusive club of just three other Australian men - Adrian Costa, Dale Begg-Smith and Michael Robertson -who have pocketed a World Cup medal in moguls.

Graham’s superb performance is the first World Cup male mogul skiing medal since Begg-Smith was second in Sierra Nevada in March 2010.

Canadian Mikael Kingsbury won today’s event while Patrick Deneen from the United States was third.

With just a little more than a week before the World Championships in Austria, Graham’s breakthrough result could not have come at a better time.

And while the day belonged to Graham, Britt Cox and Nicole Parks also added to a brilliant day for the Australian mogul team.

Cox, who had a delayed start to the season, finished the day in 6th place after qualifying through to the super-final and Parks again showed that this season is shaping as her best ever by placing 14th after also making the finals.

The women’s was won by American KC Oakley, with Canadians Justine Dufour-Lapointe and Cloe Dufour-Lapointe taking second and third.

Understandably, Graham was thrilled by today’s result and he said that he has been working towards today for some time.

“I have been waiting a while for it and I felt that this year was going to be the year that I would get on the podium,” Graham said.

“To do it in front of a massive crowd, I could not be happier. Right now I’m just super happy.”

It was not just winning a World Cup medal that provided Graham with satisfaction. It was the way he fought back from the first two World Cups this season which did not go to plan.

Graham finished in 22nd in the season opener in Ruka and 13th in Calgary at the start of the month.

He had to again call on his determination today to turn a dream into a reality.

He recorded a 14th place in the qualification session, which was just enough to put him into the first final.

During his run in the first final Graham had to dig deep and recover from a small mistake in the bottom section of the course.

However, it was at that stage that he hit his straps, finishing F1 in 4th place and earning his way into the medal round.

With a “go for it” attitude and a refusal to be overawed by his more experienced and fancied opponents, Graham decided to use a cork 1080 on his bottom jump in the super final – the first time he has used this difficult jump in World Cup competition. And it paid off in spades.

“After qualifying I knew I had to fight my way back if I wanted to get in the top six. Once I was in the top six, I also knew that I could not make any mistakes if I wanted to get on the podium. That’s what I was aiming for and I think I executed it quite well,” he said.

“Making no mistakes has been the objective for a while.”

However, Graham is far from resting on his laurels and believes there is immediate improvement that can be gained by tidying up a few aspects and getting a little faster.

Graham has been “knocking on the door” of the podium for the last two seasons and today was his opportunity to burst through.

Graham has worked hard with coaches Steve Desovich and Jerry Grossi to improve speed, turns and jumps.

“Today was a bit of a confidence booster for World Championships next week. Hopefully I can execute the same again next week and come out on the podium once more,” he said.

In other results with Australians, James Matheson was 48th and in the women’s Madi Himbury was 20th, Jakara Anthony was 33rd and Roanna Humphries was 39th.

Graham, Cox and Parks will join the other NSWIS athletes in Utah tomorrow for duals moguls before the trio head to Austria for the World Championships.

Results:
Women’s World Cup moguls skiing, Deer Valley, USA
1. KC Oakley (USA), 2. Justine Dufour-Lapointe (CAN), 3. Chloe Dufour-Lapointe (CAN), 4. Nikola Sudova (CZE), 5. Maxime Dufour-Lapointe (CAN), 6. Britt Cox (AUS), 14. Nicole Parks (AUS), 20. Madi Himbury (AUS, 33., Jakara Anthony (AUS), 39. Roanna Humphries (AUS).

Women’s standings, World Cup moguls skiing
Chloe Dufour-Lapointe (CAN) 220, 2. Justine Dufour-Lappointe (CAN) 185, 3. Hannah Kearney (USA) 166, 4. KC Oakley (USA) 134, 5. Audrey Robichaud (CAN) 122, 6. Andi Naude (CAN) 114, 11. Britt Cox (AUS) 80, 18. Nicole Parks (AUS) 44, Madi Himbury (AUS) 11.

Men’s World Cup moguls skiing, Deer Valley, USA
Mikael Kingsbury (CAN), 2. Matt Graham (AUS), 3. Patrick Deneen (USA), 4. Jae-Woo Choi (KOR), 5. Sho Kashima (USA), 6. Philippe Marquis (CAN). , 48. James Matheson (AUS).

Men’s standings, World Cup moguls skiing
1. Mikael Kingsbury (CAN) 229, 2. Sho Endo (JPN) 156, 3. Philippe Marquis (CAN) 140, 4. Simon Pouliot-Cavanagh (CAN) 128, 5. Anthony Benna (FRA) 127, 6. Alexandr Smyshlyaev (RUS) 127, 7. Matt Graham (AUS) 109,

Finals appearances for all team members

4/1/2015

All three members of Australia’s moguls ski team made the World Cup finals in Calgary, Canada, this morning (AEDT) with Britt Cox picking up the squad’s best overall finish by advancing through to the super final and Matt Graham posting the fifth best qualification result.

Cox’s and Graham’s fellow Olympic Winter Institute of Australia/NSW Institute of Sport athlete Nicole Parks placed 10th, a World Cup personal best for the 22-year-old.

The World Cup was won by Canadian Mikael Kingsbury ahead of compatriot Simon Pouliot-Cavanagh and Japan’s. Sho Endo in third while American Hannah Kearney won the women’s with Canadian sisters Cloe Dupont-Lapointe and Justine Dupont-Lapointe taking second and third.

With World Championships fast approaching this month, the Australian team leaves Canada encouraged by the knowledge that Cox is making up for a delayed start to the season and Graham and Parks are also continuing to grow as athletes.

However, unfortunately for Graham, a small mistake in the turns before the bottom jump in the first final in Calgary dashed his chances of progressing to the super final.

Coach Steve Desovich labelled the day as “solid” and was encouraged by a number of positive aspects with each of his three athletes.

Desovich said that he was pleased with Cox’s result given that today was the first time she had competed at World Cup level this season.

Her pre-season preparation was interrupted by a recent trampoline mishap to her left elbow but apart from being a “little rusty”, Desovich said that Cox showed signs that strong results this season are within her grasp.

“Britt did as well as she could have today,” Desovich said.

“She had some good runs in the first and the second final.

”She seems to be skiing fast. The speed was competitive.

“Matt’s fifth in the qualification was particularly encouraging. He made a small mistake in F1 which took him out. Moguls is all about avoiding mistakes so we will learn from that.

“To have three guys here and all three making it to the finals is good and generally positive. We now have to keep working to get better and better.”

“Overall it was a solid day for them and from here we will move forward.”

The team leaves Canada tomorrow for their next World Cup, a double-header, in Deer Valley, Utah, in the USA.

Results

Women’s World Cup moguls skiing, Calgary, Canada

1.       Hannah Kearney (USA), 2. Cloe Dupont-Lapointe (CAN), 3. Justine Dupont-Lapointe (CAN), 4. Andi Naude (CAN), 5. Nicola Sukova (CZE), 6. Britt Cox (AUS), 10. Nicole Parks (AUS).

Women’s standings after round 2

1.       Hannah Kearney (USA) 160, 2. Cloe Dupont-Lapointe (CAN) 160, 3. Justine Dupont-Lapointe (CAN) 105, 4. Yulia Galysheva (KAZ) 100, 5. Andi Naude (CAN) 90, 6. Audrey Robichaud (CAN) 86, 12. Britt Cox (AUS) 40, 19. Nicole Parks (AUS) 26

Men’s World Cup moguls skiing, Calgary, Canada

1.       Mikael Kingsbury (CAN), 2. Simon Pouliot-Cavanagh (CAN), 3. Sho Endo (JPN), 4. Alexandr Smyshlyaev (RUS), 5. Anthony Benna (FRA), 6. Jimi Solonen (FIN), 13. Matt Graham (AUS)

Men’s standings after round 2

1.       Sho Endo (JPN) 140, 2. Mikael Kingsbury (CAN) 129, 3. Anthony Benna (FRA) 105, 4. Simon Pouliot-Cavanagh (CAN) 104, 5. Philippe Marquis (CAN) 100, 6. Alexandr Smyshlyaev (RUS) 95, 16. Matt Graham (AUS) 29.

Top 10 for Graham

Cox & Graham top-10 in Dual Moguls

Cox wins Australia's third medal at World Championships

Two World Cup medals at Deer Valley

Aussie wins first World Cup medal in the bumps

Finals appearances for all team members

ARCHIVES

NEWS
CATEGORIES

Top 10 for Graham

Cox & Graham top-10 in Dual Moguls

Cox wins Australia's third medal at World Championships

Two World Cup medals at Deer Valley

Aussie wins first World Cup medal in the bumps

Finals appearances for all team members

ARCHIVES

NEWS​CATEGORIES

NEWS
CATEGORIES