Canadian Olympic gold medalist Marielle Thompson of Vancouver, British Columbia has won the gold medal in women’s ski cross at the 2019 World Snowboarding and Freestyle Skiing Championships in Solitude, Utah on Saturday. Thompson, who won the gold medal in women’s ski cross at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, won her first world championship title in her career.
Thompson went undefeated in her four races. She had the fastest time in the elimination heat, quarterfinals, semifinals and big final. Fanny Smith of Switzerland won the silver medal and Alizee Baron of France won the bronze medal.
This was Thompson’s second career medal at the World Snowboarding and Freestyle Skiing Championships. She previously won a silver medal at the 2013 World Snowboarding and Freestyle Skiing Championships in Voss, Norway.
Thompson’s medal was one of three medals won by Canada in ski cross on Saturday. In men’s ski cross, Canadian Olympic gold medalist Brady Leman of Calgary, Alberta won the silver medal and Kevin Drury of Toronto, Ontario won the bronze medal. Drury got by Alex Fiva of Switzerland to land on the podium. Fiva finished in fourth place in the men’s big final. Francois Place of France won the gold medal.
Leman and Drury each won their elimination heats, and each placed second in the quarterfinal heat. In the semifinals, they each won their heat to qualify for the finals. It is the first world championship medal for Leman and Drury. Leman won the gold medal in men’s ski cross at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. Leman, Drury and Thompson will each be medal contenders for Canada at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing.
