Leman Grabs Ski Cross Silver
2014 Sochi hopeful Brady Leman has grabbed a silver medal in his second consecutive race after reaching the podium of the men’s final at the Audi FIS Ski Cross World Cup race in Val Thorens, France, on Wednesday.
The Calgary native has been consisting this year reaching at least the semifinal of all three events of the 2012-13 season. His breakthrough came last week in Telluride, USA when he crossed the finish line for his first medal of the season.
Leman is currently ranked second in the 2012-13 individual World Cup standings behind Swiss skier Armin Niederer (the winner of Wednesday’s race) and says he knows he must remain as consistent as possible to have a shot at the Crystal Globe title after his runner-up finish last year.
“I’m proud of what I did today but with that said, I want to win,” said Leman. “The Crystal Globe, for me, it’s my main goal this season. It’s what I’ve set out to get; it’s what I want.
“(I’ve had) two silvers in a row and it’s going to take that kind of consistency this year to have a shot at it.”
Right behind Leman in fourth place was teammate and London, ON., native Dave Duncan who advanced through three heats to reach the men’s final. Duncan’s top-four finish was a great improvement after finishing 15th in qualifying.
“I had two amazing starts and two not so amazing starts,” Duncan said. “In the final I just missed my pole out of the gate and those three guys took off on me.
“Every time I go into a race I feel I have a chance of making it to the finals . . . That mistake out of the start in the final – definitely, I wish it hadn’t gone that way. That first (World Cup) win still eludes (me).”
