Canadian para skiers Kurt Oatway and Mollie Jepsen achieved remarkable victories by securing gold medals at a World Cup event held in Saalbach, Austria. Oatway clinched the gold in the men’s sitting super-G race with a stellar performance, clocking in at one minute and 6.25 seconds. His triumph came a day after winning a bronze in the season’s inaugural race. The competition was intense, with the Netherlands’ Niels de Langen securing silver with a time of 1:06.29, and Italy’s Renè De Silvestro claiming the bronze with a time of 1:06.59.
Expressing his elation, Oatway stated, “It was a tight race today, first to fifth was separated by just 0.59 seconds, and being the first sitter down I was sitting on edge for a while but managed to pull off a win today.” He acknowledged the challenging course and his personal hurdles with injuries over the past year, emphasizing that these victories set a solid foundation for the upcoming season.
On the other hand, Jepsen, hailing from West Vancouver, B.C., dominated the women’s standing super-G race, finishing with a time of 1:08.35. This win marked her eighth podium finish in 11 races this season. She expressed her satisfaction, saying, “I skied the way I know I can and have been in training and am really happy to end the Saalbach series with a win.” Jepsen reflected on her journey back to the top spot after facing injuries, expressing newfound confidence for the season ahead.
In the same event, Michaela Gosselin from Collingwood, Ont., secured a respectable fifth place in 1:14.06. Additionally, in the men’s standing super-G race, Canadian Alexis Guimond claimed a bronze medal. Despite finishing behind France’s Arthur Bauchet and Russia’s Aleksei Bugaev, Guimond displayed a strong performance and voiced his contentment with his skiing level and podium finish in the race series.