Ted Ligety and tina Maze may have been the stars of this years World Cup in Giant Slalom but one of the most popular decisions in recent times has been bringing the Combi race into the Under 12 and Under 10 calendar: Jumps, bumps, big turns and short turns were all encapsulated with one thing: a huge smile at the finish. The course was designed with the help of the man doing so much to help Ski Cross in the UK, Snowsport England's Ian Findlay and by using the terrain on the Alpina slope, Findlay and his course crew added some rollers and a jump over the finish line to create a course that had the future stars of English and British racing, beaming with delight at the finish. With the format of two runs with the best time to count being used, this was one of the highlight events over the course of the Championships.
Shona Rankin won the Under 10 girls event ahead of Charlotte Brown and Iona Ross with Sarah Woodward winning the older age group ahead of Lois Jackson and Olivia Foster. Oliver Politt won the younger boys age group ahead of Jamie Sandland and Elliott Bennett. Owen Vinter won the older age group ahead of Ewan Robertson (who lead a group of four BSA racers in the top five finishers) and Thomas Hudson.
It is great to see that the British Championships will keep the Combi race in for the races in Meribel.
Pictures from the Combi race are available on www.racer-ready.ifp3.com