Alpine nationals: Richardson nabs women's DH title

By Published On: March 31st, 2007Comments Off on Alpine nationals: Richardson nabs women's DH title

U.S. Ski Teamer Kaylin Richardson bested favorites Julia Mancuso and Stacey Cook to win the women’s downhill title Friday at the 2007 Nature Valley U.S. Alpine Championships.
    Richardson completed her run in 1 minute, 48.34 seconds, more than a second better than second-place finisher Julia Littman (1:50.04) and third-place racer Chelsea Marshall (1:50.14). Cook, winner of Thursday’s FIS downhill, was fourth, while Mancuso, third in the World Cup overall standings, was sixth.


ALYESKA RESORT, Alaska — U.S. Ski Teamer Kaylin Richardson bested favorites Julia Mancuso and Stacey Cook to win the women’s downhill title Friday at the 2007 Nature Valley U.S. Alpine Championships.
    Richardson completed her run in 1 minute, 48.34 seconds, more than a second better than second-place finisher Julia Littman (1:50.04) and third-place racer Chelsea Marshall (1:50.14). Cook, winner of Thursday’s FIS downhill, was fourth, while Mancuso, third in the World Cup overall standings, was sixth.
    Conway, New Hampshire’s Leanne Smith, 19, was the top junior with a stellar result, placing fifth. Smith, the NorAm overall champ from this season, also was fifth in Thursday’s FIS downhill.
    Rounding out the top 10 unofficially was Caitlin Ciccone in seventh followed by Kirsten Cooper, Resi Stiegler and Keely Kelleher. Smith, Cooper and Ann West, in 11th, were the top juniors.
      Smith, who started 12th, said, "It could have been better, could have been worse. The course is getting bumpy but it's holding up pretty well."
    Nationals have been kind to Edina, Minnesota’s Richardson. Last season, she won the slalom title and finished third in super G. But she was a stronger tech racer growing up.
    “I’ve got a couple of thirds, but I’ve never won any downhill, so I’m really, really psyched,” she said.
    “Each year I’m just getting more and more experience. I feel like in the speed events if you have good technique and a solid position, it’s just a matter of time to when you get comfortable sending it down the hill and being aggressive. And I think that’s starting to come a lot. And knowing the timing in downhill. When you’re carrying so much speed, to know where to start the turn and have the confidence in your tuck …
    Richardson finished the World Cup season ranked 26th in slalom and super G but outside the top 50 in downhill.
    “This year was the first year I did pretty much every downhill on the World Cup circuit,” she said. “And I’d have really fast splits, then I’d make a huge mistake. You could totally see a learning curve if you did a graph of, ‘Ohh, she’s fast.’ 'Ohh, she made a huge mistake.’ ‘Ohh, she’s gliding really well.’ ‘Ohh, she totally pooched that turn.’ And the cool thing about World Cup is a lot of the venues, year to year, you go back. So I’m really looking forward to next year, and this title will give me a lot of confidence going into next year.”
    Richardson said the low-key atmosphere of nationals get scranked up a notch when racers reach the start house.
    “Getting titles is so much fun,” she said. “People ask me if I’m more relaxed. Definitely after the races. It’s the time of the year when you see people you’ve wanted to see all season, but 10 minutes before the race, I think everyone has their game face on. At this level, you’re competitive enough you don’t want to get beat.”

— Don Cameron, Sam Flickinger and Hank McKee contributed to this report


THE SCOOP
By Hank McKee

Equipment
U.S. National Downhill Championship, Alyeska, Alaska, March 30, 2007
Skier, skis/boots/bindings
Men

1. SULLIVAN, Nordica/Nordica/Marker
2. FISHER, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic
3. TRANSUE, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol
4. NYMAN, Fischer/Fischer/Fischer
5. LANNING, Nordica/Nordica/Marker
Women
1. RICHARDSON, Volkl/Tecnica/Marker
2. LITTMAN, Fischer/Fischer/Fischer
3. MARSHALL, Dynastar/Lange/Look
4. COOK, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol
5. SMITH, Dynastar//Look

The downhills are the first races of the 2007 Nature Valley U.S. Alpine Championships. Downhills held March 29 were FIS-sanctioned races but not part of the championship.
    It is the first DH championship for Marco Sullivan, his second national title after the SG title won at Squaw Valley March 15, 2002.
    It is the first national championship podium for Erik Fisher. … He had previously earned a World Junior Championships medal (Feb 23, 2005, Bardonecchi, Italy) and won two Junior Olympic titles in 2002. It is the second national championship podium for Jeremy Transue, having placed second in DH on the same Alyeska track March 19, 2004.
    It is the second national championship for Kaylin Richardson and her third podium, having also won the slalom and placing third in the SG at Sugarloaf, Maine, March 26 and 27 (SL), 2006.
    It is the first national championship podium for both Julia Littman and Chelsea Marshall.

2007 Nature Valley U.S. Alpine Championships women's DH results 

PL    ST     CODE    COMPETITOR------------------ NAT       FINAL      RACE
Nr SURNAME+NAME TIME POINTS

1 7 537626 RICHARDSON, Kaylin L USA 1'48.34 0.00
2 8 537672 LITTMAN, Julia USA 1'50.04 21.18
3 5 538038 MARSHALL, Chelsea USA 1'50.14 22.43
4 9 537582 COOK, Stacey J USA 1'50.29 24.30
5 12 538305 SMITH, Leanne USA 1'50.90 31.90
6 10 537545 MANCUSO, Julia USA 1'51.20 35.64
7 16 537848 CICCONE, Caitlin USA 1'51.34 37.38
8 27 538471 COOPER, Kirsten A USA 1'51.35 37.51
9 11 537772 STIEGLER, Resi USA 1'51.57 40.25
10 13 537565 KELLEHER, Keely Blair USA 1'51.81 43.24
11 15 538318 WEST, Ann USA 1'51.89 44.24
12 28 535614 VANWAGNER, Jennifer USA 1'52.45 51.21
13 1 535585 STAPLES, Kiley USA 1'52.47 51.46
14 6 538284 MCJAMES, Megan USA 1'52.57 52.71
15 39 705349 GANTNEROVA, Jana SVK 1'52.90 56.82
16 14 538496 GHENT, Erika USA 1'52.94 57.32
17 23 539009 LEGGETT, Kristin USA 1'53.10 59.31
18 19 537987 CARTER, Laurel USA 1'53.27 61.43
19 17 538685 MCKENNIS, Alice USA 1'53.46 63.80
20 38 539096 BYERS, Felicia USA 1'53.66 66.29
21 4 538325 VICTORY, Hannah USA 1'53.88 69.03
22 20 538855 FORD, Julia USA 1'54.11 71.90
23 30 538514 HARTMAN, Katie USA 1'54.17 72.65
24 24 535510 NOVA, Chelsea USA 1'54.18 72.77
25 22 538711 GILL, Melissa USA 1'54.39 75.39
26 25 535019 ALLEN, Jennifer E USA 1'54.86 81.24
27 3 537651 LYNCH, Chelsea USA 1'54.92 81.99
28 21 538270 JANOWIAK, Lyndee USA 1'54.93 82.12
29 18 538258 HAMMOND, Courtney USA 1'54.97 82.61
30 26 105261 DURHAM, Ashley-Kate CAN 1'55.34 87.23
31 35 538681 DUNLEAVY, Katherine USA 1'55.49 89.09
32 42 538491 FLETCHER, Erin USA 1'55.64 90.96
34 538881 HOSTETTER, Mary Rachel USA 1'55.64 90.96
34 40 538737 HAWMAN, April USA 1'55.72 91.96
35 46 535405 EVERS, Kirsten USA 1'55.78 92.71
36 36 535473 LONZA, Geordie USA 1'56.10 96.70
37 2 539080 ACKERMAN, Delainey USA 1'56.12 96.94
38 44 538856 FRY, Kayla USA 1'56.36 99.94
39 31 535629 WILLIAMS, Kate USA 1'56.37 100.06
40 43 537783 BRIEN, Lauren USA 1'56.38 100.18
41 45 225428 FAIRWEATHER, Sega GBR 1'56.59 102.80
42 33 538644 DVORAK, Nicole USA 1'56.93 107.04
43 32 538513 HARRIS, Amy USA 1'57.04 108.41
44 41 538611 WETTLAUFER, Georgia USA 1'57.10 109.16

DID NOT FINISH
37 535424 GOVAN, Danielle USA
29 538463 CAMETTI, Hannah USA

 

 

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