Alex Tilley produced the goods if not the performance in taking the race win and with that the British Women's Giant Slalom title in her only race at this years Delancey British Alpine Championships. Tilley was fastest on both runs to edge out Lea Chapuis and Nuria Pau for the overall win while Cara Brown and sarah Woodward battled on to the British podium.
It has, she admitted, been a tough year for Alex Tilley. Some soul searching coming into the races saw her want to race in Tignes to show support for the younger racers. Taking the title was more important to her than the quality of her skiing. In this way, it was very much job done as Tilley can ski faster and smoother that she did in winning the Giant Slalom title.
Behind Tilley the race was frantic and tight. After the first run Jess Anderson, Sarah Woodward and Cara Brown all sat tightly bunched with just a quarter of a second separating the three racers in fourth to sixth places.
Brown was first of the three to go and put a much improved second run down. "I had felt slightly nervous at he start of the first run," she admitted. Maybe the prospect of winning her fifth Victor Ludorum for the racer that scored the most points among the British Men and Women had played on her mind. Her second run though was much more fluid, cleaner and faster and she set the pace for her tow younger compatriots to go for.
Woodward was next down and the rising star and Under 18 racer could not live with Brown's pace and dropped a place on the overall standings. With just Anderson and then Tilley to go, Woodward was still on the podium for the British racers.
While all four of the challenging British racers for the British title are skiing well, the simple fact is four does not go into three and Anderson dropped into third of the three challenging racers looking to make it onto the podium with Tilley.
Tilley had posted the fastest first run time but by only four hundredths and she wanted to put a better run down on the second run she explained after the race. "This was very much about the title rather than the skiing," she admitted. In praising the course conditions that the Tignes course crew and racers had helped create, Tilley said, "while it is not a World Cup race or hill, the course held up well."
For Tilley this was her seventh British Giant Slalom title and she is now one shy of Chemmy Alcott's record of eight.
“Honestly a couple of years ago I didn’t know if I could last that many, feeling like I was broken,” said Tilley. “Of course it’s nice always to have a record – what Chemmy did for British skiing is incredible and you can never really eclipse that but if I could at least get level with her, that’s a cool achievement.
“It’s not been an easy month or two for me now. I’ve not had the highest confidence, so to come here and do what I needed to do was enough for me. It’s my only win this season which is the first time I’ve ever had that.”
While she and Alcott have now shared 15 of the past 18 giant slalom titles, Tilley feels the depth of ladies’ skiing building and knows she has a fight on her hands to keep holding onto the title in years to come.
“It’s really good to see and I think it’s really fun for them to turn up and race against the one that they watch all year on TV,” she said. “I certainly enjoyed doing it with Chemmy and seeing how close I could get.
“More and more are in the ballpark to start competing – I’m not turning up here, cruising down and winning. I have to come here and ski my best.”
In taking second place Cara Brown secured the Women's Overall title and with it the Victor Ludorum title for the fifth time, "but not all in a row," she smiled!
British Women's Giant Slalom Results