PGS World Cup season set to wrap up in Blue Mountain
Feb 29, 2020·Snowboard Alpine
The FIS Snowboard Alpine World Cup has moved on to Canada’s Blue Mountain Resort, where the final two races of the PGS season are slated to go down this Saturday and Sunday, February 29 - March 1, at the Alpine Snow TKO event.
This year is the inaugural debut of the Alpine Snow TKO event and the first FIS Snowboard Alpine World Cup on Canadian soil since 2013. And with a long and rich history of hosting World Cup competitions dating back to 1995, and the PGS World Cup crystal globes to be awarded this weekend, the event in Blue Mountain promises to be a really exciting one.
Both PGS races will start at 9:00 local time with a full World Cup field of riders racing against the clock to seed top 16 women and men through to the head-to-head battle in the finals set for 13:00.
In the women’s competition Germany’s Ramona Theresia Hofmeister will be looking to wrap up her impressive PGS campaign with her career’s first World Cup title. After five PGS races staged so far in the 2019/20 campaign Hofmeister has 4300 points, while her closest rivals - Switzerland’s Julie Zogg and Ladina Jenny - sit behind with 2470 and 2400 points, respectively.
Technically, Hofmeister needs just one more solid result in one of two races in Blue Mountain to secure the crystal globe. And with her worst PGS result being a fourth place finish last week in Korea, it’s very unlikely that Hofmeister would finish the season anywhere else but on top of the podium.
Besides afore-mentioned Hofmeister, as well as Zogg and Jenny, there will be a handful of other athletes looking to conclude the PGS season on a high, including Nadya Ochner (ITA), Selina Joerg (GER), Natalia Soboleva (RUS) or Claudia Riegler (AUT).
Over on the men’s side of things it will be Italy’s Rolland Fischnaller, who will raise the PGS crystal globe above his head on Sunday, regardless of this weekend’s results. Similarly to Hofmeister, also the Italian veteran has been a dominant force on tour this season, securing his PGS title with a huge victory in PyeongChang (KOR) last week.
Despite sealing the deal in Korea, Fischnaller will be hoping to add another top spot this weekend to go along his three victories he has so far in 2019/20. But obviously he won’t be the only one hoping for a good result in Blue Mountain, so when looking for contenders for a spot on the podium this weekend, keep an eye on the likes of Benjamin Karl (AUT), Edwin Coratti (ITA), Andrey Sobolev (RUS) or Dmitry Loginov (RUS).
Last, but not least let’s not forget about Jasey Jay Anderson, who won the gold medal for Canada at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, and this weekend he will be entering the Alpine Snow TKO World Cup event as the longest competing Canadian athlete in history. Anderson has been competing for over 30 years now, and besides his Olympic gold medal, he has also won every other major title in snowboard alpine and sbx over that time. Considering what Anderson has achieved over his incredible career, do not be surprised to see him as a contender, while dropping in on home soil with family and friends to support him.
All in all, the very best riders from the world over will get their first taste of World Cup competition at the venue in Blue Mountain for what shapes up as an exciting weekend of finest snowboard racing action.
QUICK LINKS
Blue Mountain World Cup data page (startlists, live timing, results)
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