Olympic champ Maëlle Ricker is now the women’s world champion in snowboard cross as well, topping the podium Saturday (Jan. 26) at the FIS World Snowboard Championships at Stoneham, Que.
The Sea to Sky rider qualified in first place on Thursday (Jan. 24) and won all three of her heats on Saturday to take her first world championship gold, beating out teammate Dominique Maltais in the final. Norway’s Helene Olafsen earned bronze.
“The last run was so intense,” said Ricker. “I tried to have a really good start and I knew my board was really fast. We worked so much on our technique and on off-snow training to get quick, fast legs.”
It was Ricker’s first medal at a world championships since she won bronze in Whistler in 2005. With the victory, the 34-year-old also secured a berth for the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, where she’ll be defending her win from 2010.
Read more in Thursday’s (Jan. 31) edition of The Question.
