Simon Billy, Bastien Montes and Simone Origone are at stake for the championship and Valentina Greggio is virtually assured of victory
MADRID, 28 Mar. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Andorran ski resort of Grandvalira will host the finals of the Speed Ski World Cup, from March 30 to April 2, and will decide the winner of the Crystal Globe for the specialty, after two years of absence due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Initially two races had been scheduled, but Grandvalira will also host the last pending race of the two that could not be held at the beginning of the season at the Vars station (France) due to the weather.
Since February 2012 hosted the first speed ski World Cups in the Pyrenees, there has been continuity, except for the forced cancellations of 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic, and Grandvalira has become a reference within the International Ski Federation (FIS ).
At the presentation ceremony, held this Monday at the Princiesport, the General Manager of Grandvalira Resorts, Juan Ramón Moreno, highlighted that they have just celebrated the European Cup Finals and next year they will host the World Cup Finals, and recalled that the station is a candidate to host the 2027 World Cups.
“The Launched Kilometer World Cup Finals are also part of Grandvalira’s strategy to position itself as the benchmark venue for international competition in different disciplines,” he added.
The Riberal slope in the Grau Roig sector is once again the place chosen for speed skiers to descend. It stands out for being one of the fastest tracks where the FIS circuit is held thanks to its length of 1,000 meters, with a 200-meter drop and a maximum gradient of 74 percent.
The track speed record is held by the Swiss Philippe May, who in 2017 was close to 200 kilometers per hour with a mark of 199.56 km / h.
“This year we hope to be able to exceed 200 km/h”, said the competition coordinator, Nadal Antor, who pointed out that the weather conditions will play a key role in achieving this goal. In addition, Antor explained that this edition will have the participation of about 80 skiers from 10 countries.
MAXIMUM COMPETITIVENESS
In the absence of the three Grandvalira tests, the 2022 men’s speed ski World Cup will be decided between the French Simon Billy, Bastien Montes and the Italian Simone Origone.
Billy (2021) and Montes (2017) aim to win their second Crystal Globe of speed, while Origone seeks the thirteenth.
The Italian is the most successful skier of all time with twelve World Cups (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2016, 2018, 2019 and 2020).
With 300 points at stake, 100 per race, everything remains to be decided. Bastien Montes leads the provisional standings with 400 points ahead of Simon Billy (380 points) and Simone Origone (372).
However, in the female category everything seems decided. The Italian Valentina Greggio arrives at Grandvalira undefeated this season with five consecutive victories. If she doesn’t have any mishaps, she will lift her fifth World Cup (2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018). The Swedish Britta Backlud, winner of the last three editions (2019, 2020 and 2021), is in second place with 370 points, while Greggio has 500.
ADARRAGA: “RIBERAL HAS A POTENTIAL OF 200 KILOMETERS PER HOUR”
The two fastest runners in Spain, Ricardo Adarraga and Marta Visa, attended the presentation. Adarraga is the Spanish speed ski record holder, with 240.6 km/h. “I am always very excited to return to Grandvalira, since it is a very well prepared track and one in which I feel very comfortable. The Riberal track has the potential of 200 kilometers, it is located in the Pyrenees and it has practically become playing at home , speaking in football terms. He always catches me at the end of the season and I generally go for more. I work to get into the top 10 overall,” he said.
Along with Ricardo Adarraga, Juanki Sánchez from Madrid and Eduard Manrique from Catalonia participate. Marta Visa, who was injured at the World Championships in Vars (France) in January, will not be able to do it, and she is still not fully recovered. The skier from Cerdanya holds the Spanish speed record with 184.53 km/h.
“Grandvalira is almost like my home because as a child I had trained a lot. Too bad about the accident in Vars because I am left with the desire to go down Riberal this year and exceed the speed I did”, commented Visa, who added that next year he expects “to be able to test this track”.