ZHANGJIAKOU, China — Results were poor for the Canadian cross-country ski team in the Beijing Olympics sprints on Tuesday.
Yukon cross-country skier Dahria Beatty is the only one to reach the quarter-finals after a 28th-place finish in qualifying. But by her own admission, she came up short of her goal by being eliminated in the quarterfinals and finishing in 25th place.
“It’s always good to be in the top-25. But I really thought I would qualify for the next round, ”she said in exemplary French.
She instead finished fifth in her quarter-final heat. A very strong wave, with three of the four best qualifying times, achieved by the Swedish Jonna Sundling, reigning world champion, the Russian Yulia Stupak, as well as the American Rosie Brennan.
She still believed in it for a moment: positions 3 to 5 of her quarter-final were decided at the photo-finish. Beatty therefore missed his target by only a few centimeters.
“That’s why I’m proud of my race. My goal was to be with the group at the end and I knew there was a good chance that the skiers picked came from the first wave. (…) I think I fought well. My skis were really fast. »
Sundling eventually won the event, ahead of her compatriot Maja Dahlqvist. American Jessie Diggins completed the podium.
Cendrine Browne, of Saint-Jérôme, finished 35th; Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt of Morin-Heights was 40th, while Laura Leclair of Chelsea was 58th. Only the top 30 advanced to the quarter-finals.
“There was a goal today, and that was to reach a top-30,” said a rather disappointed Bouffard-Nesbitt in the mixed zone. It’s definitely been a long time since I sprinted at this level, but you have to have high expectations. Reaching 31 or 71 doesn’t change much for me. At the same time, I’m proud to be here. I only had two seconds left. »
“There are things I can’t control. I was missing half a second every 500m on the course. Maybe a little strength too. I’m proud of my race, but it’s the Olympics and I wanted to make waves. »
“It’s a first race for me, so I’m happy to have given everything,” said Leclair. (…) But as an athlete, you want to hit the waves. »
In fact, the only one who seemed to derive some satisfaction from this sprint was Browne.
“It is certain that being one second away from qualifying is a bit of a pain. But it’s my best ever sprint result, I’m more of a distance runner, so it’s a nice surprise. (…) There are a lot of positives (to be taken away) from today’s race. »
“These results (Editor’s note: she finished 20th in the skiathlon) allow me to build my confidence. I’m here at the top of my game, so it bodes well for the future. »
Cyr in fury
The scenario was much the same for the men, where Ontarian Graham Ritchie, Olivier Léveillé, from Sherbrooke and Antoine Cyr, from Gatineau, finished 34th, 54th and 56th respectively.
The latter was particularly bitter about this poor performance. such a point that he preferred not to meet the journalists.
Without being satisfied with it, Léveillé was still able to analyze his performance with some perspective.
“I’m a little disappointed with my race. It was definitely a bit of a dice roll with the big skiathlon I did on Sunday. I did not know how to bounce back as I would have hoped. It is certainly a super-fast course. For the super-powered guys who haven’t done the 30k, that’s an advantage. »
Léveillé also noted that the course had changed dramatically since Sunday’s race, where he finished 31st.
“The snow is a lot faster; it surprised me, especially in the turns. It probably cost me a few seconds. The turns were coming quicker and the course was faster than I expected. (…) It’s experience that comes in. »
Unsurprisingly, the Norwegian Johannes Hosflot Klaebo, Olympic and world champion in title, won the event. Italian Federico Pellegrino, Pyeongchang silver medalist and 2017 world champion, and Russian Alexander Terentev took silver and bronze.
dreams come true
Despite the disappointments, Leclair and Bouffard-Nesbitt took the time to enjoy their first Olympic appearance.
“It’s a life goal. It’s definitely the pinnacle of my career right now. I am so grateful to all the people who have helped me achieve this goal. I just can’t wait to enjoy every moment of the next two weeks,” said Leclair candidly, who is lucky enough to live this experience with Cyr, her partner.
“We thought we were going to be separated, like in the World Cup, but we are in the same bubble here. So we can continue to see each other, to talk to each other. Both are our first games, so we come here for the experience. »
No question, however, for the two lovebirds to put their teammates at risk
“We keep our masks! I’m a roommate with Cendrine, so I don’t want to put her at risk. »
Bouffard-Nesbitt, who got her ticket to China following a quota reallocation by the FIS, remembers dreaming about it when she was young.
“It’s been a dream since I was 8 or 10, it was surreal (when I learned of my selection). (?) These are two worlds in my head. There are the Games that I have always imagined and those that I am currently experiencing. The ones I imagined when I was 10, it’s good to live it. It was worth believing in me. It’s a very pleasant feeling. »
