World Cup – Changchun, China
The World Cup aerials season got off to a flying start with the first event of 2013 held in Changchun, China on the January 5th. It was the first time the venue had held an event since 2009. None of our British skiers took part but many of the world’s top aerialists made the long trip to get their competitive season under way.
Conditions for training and the competition were extremely cold, with temperatures down to -30ºC, but that didn’t deter the competitors from putting on a great show. Many of the competitors were still building up their difficulty and using this event to enhance their pre-season training. It was good to see many competitors concentrating on the quality of their jumps rather than aiming for more difficult jumps that were not quite ready.
It was a strong start to the season for the Chinese athletes, with Jia Zonghang winning the men’s event and Qi Guangpoin second place, ahead of Canada’s Olivier Rochon in third.
The women’s event saw a welcome and successful return to competition by the Olympic Champion Lydia Lassila, (AUS) who finished in second. The remaining spots on the podium went to the Chinese, with Xu Mengtao performing a Lay-Tuck-Full to take the win and Li Nina finishing in third. It’s been a while since we’ve seen the women performing triple somersaults, so it looks as if the action will be hotting up throughout the season.
Result Sheet Links
Changchun (CHN) Men’s Results 2013-01-05
Changchun (CHN) Ladies Results 2013-01-05