World Cup in Kühtai: Rivalries ignited and podium firsts in Austria

In the second stop of the FIS Para Snowboard World Cup, athletes embarked on Banked Slalom races in Kühtai, Austria. While the first day of competition, on 16 January, ran as normal, adverse weather conditions disrupted the second day of racing.

Icy conditions meant the jury decided together, in discussion with coaches, not to run the finals. This meant the second day podiums were decided using the boarders’ best time from the two qualification runs.

FAHRNI AT THE DOUBLE, BARNES-MILLER SEALS RARE SILVER

Banked Slalom in Kühtai seems to bring the very best out of Aron Fahrni (SUI), who enjoyed back-to-back gold medals across two competition days in the men’s UL. Up against Lijia Ji (CHN) in the final, the Swiss international laid down a very impressive time of 54.33 to ensure his place atop of the podium. Jacopo Luchini (ITA) earned the third spot, fending off competition from Maxime Montaggioni (FRA) in the small final.

While Fahrni completed the double, and Montaggioni maintained third on day two, the big winner from the second run was James Barnes-Miller (GBR), who achieved a rare podium finish. His impressive qualification run meant that, for the first time since December 2022, the Briton secured a medal in the Banked Slalom.

ELLIOT DOMINATES AGAIN

You would have to go back to the start of 2022 to find the last time Noah Elliott (USA) finished outside the top three in a men’s LL1 Banked Slalom event at the World Cup. The American is utterly dominant, and he proved that once again in Austria with back-to-back gold medals. A time of 57.72 earned the first of those, with an improved qualification run of 56.30 ensuring the second. His biggest threat to the former came against long-time rival Tyler Turner (CAN), who Elliott faced off against in the final, though it was an undeniable victory for the 28-year-old.

With Turner collecting silver, it left Daichi Oguri (JPN) and Yiyang Liu (CHN) to battle it out in the small final, the former joining the North Americans on the podium.

Elliott and Turner were on the podium on the second day of competition, in first and third respectively, while Zhongwei Wu (CHN) earned his first medal of the current seasons thanks to a strong qualification time.

PERATHONER GETS THE BETTER OF TUDHOPE

In the men’s LL2, a long-standing rivalry came to fruition as Emanuel Perathoner (ITA) and Ben Tudhope (AUS) battled it out once more on the snow. Such is the nature of these competitors, the difference between gold and silver on both days came down to the finest of margins. In the first race, Perathoner’s electric time of 53.88 was enough to earn top spot, Tudhope narrowly missing out by +0.65 in the final. It proved even closer when it came to the second set of results – taken from their qualification efforts, the Italian edged the Aussie once more, this time just +0.30 the difference in the latest instalment of this enthralling rivalry.

Zach Miller (CAN) continued his strong start to the season with a third-place finish in the first day of action, while Qi Sun (CHN) returned to the podium after his rare omission.

RIVALRY IGNITED, FIRSTS ACHIEVED

Para Snowboard is the place of rivalries, with yet two more fierce competitors going up against one another, this time in the women’s LL1/LL2. Cécile Hernandez (FRA) and Brenna Huckaby Clegg (USA) are the prominent names in this category, once more proving why across two days of competitions. For the Frenchwoman, the Banked Slalom is an event she excels in, demonstrating her dominance in both races.

Hernandez’s (LL1) impressive time of 1:00.80 was enough to clinch gold on the back of race one, though it was a different American who challenged her in the final. Kate Delson (USA), the young 20-year-old and LL2 boarder, held her own on the snow to pick up her third podium of the season, one away from a career best in terms of top three finishes achieved in the World Cup.

Clegg earned the bronze, beating Yanhong Geng (CHN) in the small final.

With no final run on day two, the top three was decided by qualification runs. Hernandez completed the golden double, with Clegg (LL1) agonizingly missing out with a margin of +1.62 separating the two. One of the biggest winners across all categories, however, was Xinyu Wang (CHN). The young LL2 snowboarder laid down the third-best time in qualification, resulting in her first-ever World Cup podium finish with a bronze to commemorate the significant milestone.

IRATI IDIAKEZ LOPEZ SECURES GOLDEN DOUBLE

After a rare second place finish in Landgraaf at the end of last year, Irati Idiakez Lopez (ESP) has returned to the top of the Banked Slalom standings with two golden outings in Austria. The Spaniard ran uncontested on day one of competitions in the women’s UL, laying down a time of 1:06.40. On the second day came a second gold, her qualification time enough to beat the one other competing rider in Emke Vaessen (NED), the pair making up the podium.

NEXT STOP

It is a short turnaround for these snowboarders, who will soon travel to Lenk, Switzerland. Competition dates are between 21-23 January, with individual and team Snowboard Cross events on the cards.