Canada Wins the FIS Moguls Nations Cup
Mikaël Kingsbury pockets eighth Crystal Globe
Shymbulak, Kazakhstan, March 3, 2019– The last World Cup moguls event of the season was cancelled at Shymbulak Mountain Resort on Sunday due to thick fog at the venue. The dual moguls competition was replaced instead by the year-end celebrations.
“Conditions were hazardous today. I think the FIS made the right decision to cancel the event,” said Mikaël Kingsbury. “We couldn’t see a thing from the top of the course.”
The Canadian moguls team has logged such strong performances that they top the FIS standings as the season closes, thus earning the Nations Cup.
To no-one’s surprise, this year’s Crystal Globe goes to the mogul king as the skier with the most points, marking the eighth career win of the trophy for Kingsbury. He ends this season with 825 points in the FIS overall standings. His closest rival, Ikuma Horishima of Japan, has 517 points and is followed by French skier Ben Cavet with 470.
“I already knew I was going to win the Crystal Globe,” said Kingsbury. “It’s always an incredible feeling; each time feels like I’m winning it for the first time. For me, it’s like hoisting the Stanley Cup. It’s the top award in our sport and also the most difficult to win.”
“I’m looking forward to getting home and spending time with family and friends and celebrating with them,” he continued. “I’ll take some time off to relax, then get back into training. I’m as motivated as ever!”
On the women’s side, with 780 points, Perrine Laffont of France takes home the Crystal Globe. Justine Dufour-Lapointe finished sixth in the standings with 303 points, gained mainly from her podium finishes in Tremblant and Shymbulak. She is followed by her sister, Chloé, who ends her season with 290 points.
The skiers get home tomorrow and have a couple of weeks off to rest and relax before heading to Val St-Côme for the Canadian Senior Championships later this month.
Canadian athletes’ FIS World Cup standings:
Men: Mikaël Kingsbury (1), Philippe Marquis (13), Laurent Dumais (16), Brenden Kelly (22), Kerrian Chunlaud (26), Gabriel Dufresne (30)
Women: Justine Dufour-Lapointe (6), Chloé Dufour-Lapointe (7), Sofiane Gagnon (17), Maia Schwinghammer (23)
