The British Schoolgirls’ Races kicked off in style with perfect race conditions in the French resort of Flaine for the GS and Parallel Team Slalom.
Monday morning saw 153 girls start the GS on the Celestine piste, ranging from girls in the British team through to girls who were racing for the very first time.
Coming from 32 schools from around the UK, the girls seemed to be loving every minute of the busy day, with a fantastic atmosphere at the base of the race piste.
The provisional results showed that Under 18 Delancey British Ski Team racer Genevieve Baird from Loretto School had the fastest time, followed by Under 16 racer Cerys Gorringe from NLCS A and her sister, Under 14 racer Giselle Gorringe, also from NLCS A. The full official results for all age groups will be published after the conclusion of racing tomorrow.
In the Parallel Slalom, there was some tightly contested racing as the schools went head to head in the exciting team event. Aiglon B, Surbiton High A, St Marys Ascot A and Reeds A made it through to the final four after 32 teams started. In the first semi-final, Surbiton beat Aiglon and in the second semi, St Marys Ascot took the win from Reeds. Then in an exciting final, which unfortunately saw a fall from one of the girls in Reeds A, Surbiton High A took the overall win.
Tomorrow is the British Schoolgirls Races Slalom, which involves two runs for all the girls. Then in the evening it is the prize giving at the Flaine Auditorium.
The British Schoolgirls’ Races have not only produced some of Britain’s best alpine skiing talent, they also play a vital role in giving aspiring racers the chance to be part of well-organised on snow races, which is important for growing confidence and giving the young racers valuable competitive experience.
For 2016, the British Schoolgirls’ Races will be supported by Gold Partner, Skiplex (www.skiplex.co.uk) and Silver Partners, Ski Club of Great Britain (www.skiclub.co.uk), UVEX www.uvex-safety.co.uk, (www.mindthegapyear.com), Basecamp (www.basecampgroup.com), JDX and MPI (www.mpibrokers.com).