She would have preferred to be in the starting line-up, but world champion Laurence St-Germain still thoroughly enjoyed her experience at the Tremblant World Cup.
St-Germain enjoyed the electric atmosphere of this great return of the World Cup to Tremblant after 40 years, and she welcomed the many young skiers in attendance by signing autographs.
“I had a lot of fun and it was really fun with everyone there,” said the slalom gold medalist from the last World Championships in Courchevel-Méribel. The crowd was absolutely crazy and the kids from the clubs were so excited to see us. It was a really, really great event. I was expecting a good crowd, but it was even bigger than I thought.”
“I experienced the event in a different way, but I really enjoyed chasing St-Germain, who leaves for Europe on Wednesday to prepare for the next World Cup, which will take place on December 21st.” I reconnected with my friends who I trained with when I was younger.”
St-Germain isn’t the only athlete who appreciated the atmosphere at Tremblant. “It was really special to hear the skiers say that they could hear the fans as they lined up at the starting gate and that those screams spurred them on.”
“There are places on the track where there are more people, but Tremblant can be compared to Killington even though there are fewer people,” said St-Germain, who was in action in the slalom last weekend in Vermont. Racing in North America is special. Ski communities get excited about just one event and people cheer everyone on. It’s impressive that so much attention is paid to our sport. People are fanatical and the ski community is really crazy.”
St-Germain would now like to experience a world championship in Tremblant as a participant. “I would like there to be a slalom here and I know the people at Alpine Canada are working on it,” she said. I would like to end my career with a race here in front of our fans. It would be a really, really good way to end my career.”
“Unless I work a little on my giant slalom,” St-Germain added loudly. My teammates are too fast. At the moment I am investing all my time in slalom to be among the best in the world.”
One of his fellow citizens of Saint-Féréol-les-Neiges, Alex Harvey, had this privilege on March 24, 2019, when the Cross-Country Skiing World Cup in Quebec presented its sprint final. Harvey then placed 2nd in the freestyle pursuit, ending his career in style on the Plains of Abraham.
In an interview earlier this week, double world champion and Alpine Canada board member Erik Guay made no secret of his desire for Tremblant to host a women’s slalom leg in the coming years.
Return confirmed for 2024
The return of the World Cup for 2024 was confirmed yesterday with the conclusion of the finals. The top division of the women’s giant slalom will once again stop in Tremblant on December 7th and 8th. The FIS and Alpine Canada had reached a three-year agreement that included two option years. By confirming the return for the next year, the FIS exercised its option right for the first year.
Looking for stability
St-Germain has ambivalent feelings about its start to the season. “I’m happy with a few laps, but I want to show more consistency to get closer to the top five. I’m doing very well in training, but I have to translate that into racing.” As the reigning world champion, I feel a little more pressure, but I know that I can be fast if I give my best. I focus on what I can control.”