ZAGREB, Croatia – Saturday night under the lights in Zagreb, Croatia, junior
Amelia Smart scored her first World Cup points of the season. After the first run, Smart sat in 21st, and was able to use an earlier start to her advantage on the second run. Smart had the 12th best second run of the day and finished in 17th place.
The Sjleme track in Zagreb was added to the World Cup circuit in 2005 and quickly became a well-known stop in the month of January, prior to kicking off a long European block of races for the women competing on the tech circuit. Held just an hour away from the capital of the country, thousands of fans make the trek to see the best ski racers in the world compete under the lights.
Skiing in front of a roaring crowd is no easy feat, but after getting a couple solid Nor-Am finishes under her belt in Nakiska, Canada, Smart made the trip across the pond with some confidence. Her training camp in Europe went well, and the 21-year-old said on Saturday the calm she felt in Zagreb was due to the good feeling she had been able to maintain throughout the end-of-December block. She knew the skiing was there, all she had to do was keep a level-head and lay it all out on the course.
"It felt really great," said Smart. "In the finish, I just stared up at the screen and it took me a second to register what had just happened."
Looking ahead, Smart still feels there is progress to be made. But she is satisfied with the solid start to the New Year, and her ability to accomplish a few of the goals she has set for herself.
"Going forward I just need to take the confidence from today and remember the feeling of how I felt skiing, take that into my other races, and go from there," Smart added. "I've definitely been working on going harder on race day. In the past I've struggled a little bit with being a too passive. My training runs are usually at a higher tempo. That's what I've been working on and I feel like I accomplished that today."
Smart is not yet sure what other World Cup races she will be competing in over the rest of the season. She would like to continue to focus on college races because she loves the atmosphere, competing with her teammates, and going to school. Smart would also like to continue her strong performance on the Nor-Am circuit, where she is currently ranked sixth in the slalom standings. Regardless of what race she attends, she is committed to finding a balance between being a top alpine slalom skier for her country, as well as being a student-athlete for DU.
"While I'm here on school break it's easy for me to focus on skiing, but it's also nice to know that I have something else to go back to."
Top 10
- Petra Vlhova (SVK): 1:57.98
- Mikaela Shiffrin (USA): +1.31
- Katharina Liensberger (AUT): +3.49
- Wendy Holdener (SUI): +3.60
- Anna Swenn Larsson (SWE): +3.62
- Nina Haver-Loeseth (NOR): +3.79
- Katharina Truppe (AUT): +4.42
- Aline Danioth (SUI): +4.54
- Kristin Lysdahl (NOR): +4.70
- Emelie Wikstroem (SWE): +4.89
17. Amelia Smart (CAN): +5.95
For full race results,
click here.
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