Thompson back on top and Mobaerg with another Arosa win

A night event has always a special flair to it. The flood lights shining up the ski cross track and setting focus only on the course and the athletes, while the surrounding is all dark – that is magical! Add a little fire action while the stars shoot out of the gate to heat up the action and we couldn’t ask for a better show!

As in Arosa it is a sprint event, athletes need to be on top of their game from the very start on, because they don’t have a lot of time to make it across the finish line first or second respectively, in order to qualify into the next round. And oh boy were they focused and pushing hard through that night time sprint event under the floodlights…

Marielle Thompson back on top

The big final of women had three big names and a rookie in the start gate. Fanny Smith (SUI) as home hero, Marielle Thompson (CAN) back in shape as we saw in Val Thorens and of course Sandra Naeslund, current World Cup leader and World Champion plus Zoe Chore from team Canada made it into the big final of the night-time sprint event.

Already in the semi final it was a crazy fight between the two top rivals in ski cross on the women’s side Fanny Smith and Sandra Naeslund, which Smith did win and you could just see the determination in her eyes to absolutely fight until the win tonight.

Anyways, when the gates dropped, it was actually Naeslund, who shot out like a canon ball to be in the lead and Fanny Smith, as many times before this season, only saw the Swede’s back sitting in second position. Thompson got in third and the rookie Chore in fourth.

Entering the negative turn, Naeslund got pretty low on the line, while Smith chose the upper one, causing the gap between the two of them to get smaller and by the time the two got to the kicker, Smith and Naeslund where shoulder to shoulder. In the air, they made contact, causing Naeslund to do a solid 180 (and almost stand it), meanwhile Smith got out of the course onto the edge of it, really and had to maneuver herself back in to pass the next gate.

Speaking of passing the gate, while Naeslund was trying to survive her stunt, Thompson did an excellent job of not running into the Swede, also having very little space to still pass the next gate properly. But then, as Smith lost some speed during her saving move, Thompson gained somewhat of it and then also had the inside line free to get to the finish line in the fastest way possible, passing Smith on the very finish by 0.07 seconds.

Of course, with Naeslund down, Chore made the pass as well and got to her maiden career podium with third place.