Mount Hotham set to host ANC alpine openers

By Published On: August 17th, 2007Comments Off on Mount Hotham set to host ANC alpine openers

The FIS Australia New Zealand Cup for alpine skiing will begin Monday at Mount Hotham in Australia. The first week of racing will feature two slalom and giant slalom races each for the women and men.
THE FIS AUSTRALIA NEW ZEALAND CUP
for alpine skiing will begin Monday at Mount Hotham in Australia. The first week of racing will feature two slalom and giant slalom races each for the women and men.
    Elite skiers from not only Australia and New Zealand but also Asia and Europe are expected to compete. Last year, skiers from 13 different countries participated. The current conditions are excellent, and Hotham is set to get a fairly sizeable snow dump.
    After the Australian races, this year’s ANC will continue with events at Treble Cone and Mount Hutt in New Zealand. The finals at Mount Hutt also will include this season’s super combined races consisting of super G and slalom.
    Last year, the men’s overall ANC series was won by Australia’s Jono Brauer followed by countryman Demian Branzen, while Kiwi racer Tim Café finished third. On the women’s side, the French duo of Pauline-Flor Socquet-Clerc and Claire Dautherives finished 1-2 while Sarah Jarvis of New Zealand took third place.
    The Australian Alpine Ski Championships are under way in Thredbo, where 110 athletes from nine nations are racing. Many FIS World Cup teams are training in either Australia or New Zealand. The Austrian technical team, including 2007 slalom world champion Mario Matt and Benjamin Raich, have been at Treble Cone since early August.
    The US women’s team, featuring FIS World Championships medalist Lindsey Kildow, who missed the end of last season with a knee injury, and Olympic champion Julia Mancuso, started their training camp at the Round Hill Ski Area in New Zealand last week and plan to continue at Coronet Peak later this month.
    The Swiss women’s team, including Martina Schild, Tamara Wolf, Nadia Styger and Fraenzi Aufdenblatten, are also scheduled to stage a camp at Round Hill in late August.

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About the Author: Pete Rugh