Canada's Dean Moriarity won his second Riders Cup race of the season on Saturday and got his fourth podium of the 2015/16 Ice Cross Downhill World Championship on a frosty night of racing in Sherbrooke, Canada. It was a great night of racing for Canada in the world's fastest sport on skates with Elaine Topolnisky getting the first win of her career in the women's race. Despite bitterly cold temperatures of up to 38 degrees Celsius below zero, there were 77 men and 16 women from nine countries, as far away as Australia and Japan, on the track.
Defending world champion Scott Croxall held onto the overall men's championship lead with 2,950 points by taking third place down the 407-meter long track with its 45-meter vertical drop. It was Croxall's sixth podium of the season while American Cameron Naasz crashed out once again well before the final and ended up a disappointing ninth. Naasz is only 80 points behind Croxall with 2,870 points and still within striking range going into the final two races of the 10-stop championship. The season concludes with two stops in the United States: A Riders Cup race in Mont du Lac, Wisconsin and a Red Bull Crashed Ice race, with 1,000 points up for grabs for the winner, in Naasz's home town of Saint Paul on February 26-27.
Moriarity crosses the line in Sherbrooke ahead of Dugerdil and Croxall. Photo: Mark Roe.
"The atmosphere was great and a lot of people came out even though it was so cold," said Moriarity, who is third overall having also won last month's Riders Cup race in Avoriaz, France. "It was a great final and a great event." Croxall, who has moved ahead of Naasz with an incredible hot streak that includes two wins in Finland last month and back-to-back third place finishes in Canada, was also pleased. "I got all the way to the final and then Dean passed me in the first corner so I'm happy with third place and to be on the podium," said Croxall.
Naasz, who had appeared invincible early in the season with back-to-back Red Bull Crashed Ice wins in Quebec City and Munich, fell while exiting a tight turn in the round of 16. He has been plagued with untimely stumbles lately. He fell in the round of 32 last week in Bathurst and also went down while in the lead of the final at the Red Bull Crashed Ice race in Jyväskylä-Laajis, Finland last month.
"I'm fine, not happy about the race, but you know, it's part of the racing," said Naasz, who is looking forward to the next Riders Cup race in home territory in Mont du Lac, Wisconsin after eight races abroad in the last three months. "I'm going to move on to the next race. I had a rough round in the Round of 16, I got taken out from behind after a little stumble and it was hard to catch up. It's racing and that happens. I'm just looking forward to Mont du Lac."
Topolnisky beat American Alexis Jackson into second and Jeanne Chouinard of Canada into third to get her first win. Topolnisky had taken third in two Red Bull Crashed Ice races (Quebec City and Jyväskylä-Laajis) and third at the Riders Cup race in Avoriaz. "I'm feeling great," she said. "I've been chasing a win all season. The one thing that's great about this cold weather is that the ice is perfect."
Elaine Topolnisky (center) celebrates with Alexis Jackson (right) and Jeanne Chouinard (left). Photo: Mark Roe.
The Riders Cup is a feeder event to open the sport to even more competitors in more locations. The six Riders Cup races this season, where winners earn 250 championship points, are part of the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship alongside the four Red Bull Crashed Ice races, where winners earn 1,000 championship points. Whoever wins the most points from the three of the four Red Bull Crashed Ice events and from three of the six Riders Cup races will be crowned Ice Cross Downhill World Champion.
Results men: 1. Dean Moriarity (CAN), 2. Tristan Dugerdil (FRA), 3. Scott Croxall (CAN), 4. Shayne Renaud (CAN), 5. Luca Dallago (AUT), 6. Pacôme Schmitt (FRA), 7. Derek Wedge (SUI), 8. Max Dunne (USA), 9. Cameron Naasz (USA), 10. Olivier Larouche (CAN)
Results women: 1. Elaine Topolnisky (CAN), 2. Alexis Jackson (USA), 3. Jeanne Chouinard (CAN), 4. Sabrina Vallée-Perron (CAN)