Vernon’s own Patrick Dew cracked top 10 in FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup circuit action in Italy Sunday.
Dew, 20, came in eighth after Ontario’s Max Moffat took gold and Megan Oldham, also of Ontatio, claimed silver for the women.
“With this showing, Dew has achieved his best career ranking on the World Cup circuit,” said Dominique Ladouceur, manager of athlete relations for Freestyle Canada.
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Moffat and Oldham both won the first medals of their careers on the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup circuit on Sunday, stepping up on the podium after the slopestyle events for men and women, respectively.
Moffat, the 20-year-old native of Caledon, Ont., took the gold in the men’s event, while Meghan Oldham, 17, of Parry Sound, Ont., captured the silver for the women.
Moffat earned his victory with a score of 83.10 in his best-of-three final runs, ahead of Swedish competitor Oliwer Magnusson, age 20 (82.35 points) and the 17-year-old American skier Kiernan Fagan (81.00), both of whom are enjoying their first World Cup career podiums.
“It feels a little unreal,” said Moffat. “I just happened to do exactly as planned in the first run, so it was a bit stressful waiting to see what the others would do. In the end, though, it was such a great experience. Words can barely describe it.”
Moffat’s first victory comes after 14 World Cup starts in his disciplines, slopestyle and Big Air. His best slopestyle result until now was 16th place, which he earned back on Jan. 12 in Font Romeu, France.
“I’ve competed three times here in Italy and have always loved it,” he added. “Today, everything fell into place and gave me this victory. I’m really happy. My dream has always been to do well on the World Cup and in important competitions, and today the dream came true.”
Mark Hendrickson of Calgary finished 10th. Hendrickson repeats the 10th-place standing recorded on Jan. 28, 2017, at the first of his career World Cup slopestyle competitions, also in Seiser Alm.
For the women, Oldham snagged her first podium in her third World Cup career event, after a previous ninth-place showing on Jan. 12 in Font Romeu – her best result to date. On Sunday, she scored 83.00, earning her spot just behind the 15-year-old American skier Eileen Gu (84.40), who had finished second in the slopestyle event at Font Romeu in January and the American Julia Krass (77.30).
“It’s been a crazy year, just finding myself on the World Cup circuit is unbelievable. The level of competition is so high, it’s fantastic to be here with the other skiers and do a run that brought me to the podium. I couldn’t ask for more,” said Oldham, who was in provisional first place until Gu skied her last run. “Eileen has an incredible routine, and I congratulate her on a well-deserved win. As for me, I can’t wait until the next event.”
The next World Cup slopestyle event is in Mammoth Mountain, California, from March 6 to 9. It’s the last leg before Quebec City on March 14 to 17. The next competition for the Canadian slopestyle team is the freestyle ski World Championships from Feb. 1 to 9 in Park City, Utah.
parker.crook@vernonmorningstar.com
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