Wilson Top American in Tazawako Moguls

SENBOKU CITY, Japan (Feb. 18, 2017) – Brad Wilson (Butte, MT) led the charge for the U.S. moguls team on the first day of competition at Tazawako Ski Resort, landing just off the podium in fourth place.

After a rainy day of training on Friday, the Tazawako event crew worked hard to keep the course in tip-top shape, leading to a great event to kick off the weekend. Wilson, who won the men’s competition in Tazawako last season, skied strong and qualified high throughout the day to advance to the super final.

“I felt like I consistently skied some good runs today,” said Wilson. “I left it all out there in my super final run, it just wasn’t quite enough to get on the podium. I’m happy with what I did today, not I’ve just got to let the speed go tomorrow.”

Wilson skied some of the fastest times of the day, including the fastest super final time, 22.21 seconds, in his fourth place run.

“Speed is always one of Brad’s strengths,” stated head moguls coach Matt Gnoza. “He skied three really solid runs today, and it came down to some of the other guys having a higher degree of difficulty on their jumps. We know Brad can perform on this course and speed will definitely be an advantage in duals tomorrow.”

Other U.S. athletes making it into the finals included Troy Murphy (Bethel, ME) and Patrick Deneen (Cle Ulm, CA), who finished seventh and 12th respectively. Canada’s Mikael Kingsbury was victorious once again, winning with a score of 89.99. His teammate Philippe Marquis was second and France’s Benjamin Cavet third.

After strong results in the qualifying rounds and advancing four skiers to the final, none of the U.S. women were able to break through to the super finals. Keaton McCargo (Telluride, CO) was the top finisher in seventh. Olivia Giaccio (Redding, CT), Mikaela Matthews (Frisco, CO) and Tess Johnson (Vail, CO) joined her in the finals, finishing 10th, 11th and 15th respectively.

“The women skied really well in qualifications,” continued Gnoza. “Olivia qualified third going into the finals which, as a World Cup rookie, was a big step for her. We just didn’t see the performance we needed in finals, so we’re hitting the reset button and getting ready for a better performance tomorrow.”

Aussie Britt Cox took home yet another win, with France’s Perinne Laffont landing her second podium finish of the season in second and Canada’s Andi Naude in third.

After Saturday’s competition, Murphy and Wilson remain the top U.S. athletes in the men’s World Cup standings, sitting sixth and eighth. McCargo, Morgan Schild (Rochester, NY) and Matthews are the top U.S. women, sitting sixth, eighth and tenth. Kingsbury and Cox both retain their number one spots in the standings.

Competition concludes Sunday Feb. 19 with men’s and women’s dual moguls. Qualifying rounds begin at 12:05 p.m. local time with finals at 1:30 p.m.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Brad Wilson was the top U.S. athlete at the FIS Freestyle moguls World Cup in Tazawako, finishing fourth.
• The U.S. team advanced a total of seven athletes into the final rounds.
• Troy Murphy and Patrick Deneen rounded out the top U.S. men’s finishes in seventh and 12th.
• Keaton McCargo was the top U.S. woman finisher in seventh. Olivia Giaccio was 10th, Mikaela Matthews 11th and Tess Johnson 15th.
• Mikael Kinsbury (CAN) took the win for the men, followed by Philippe Marquis (CAN) in second and Benjamin Cavet (FRA) in third.
• Britt Cox (AUS) took the win for the women, followed by Perrine Laffont (FRA) in second and Andi Naude (CAN) in third.
• Competition concludes Sunday, Feb. 19 with dual moguls.

QUOTES

Brad Wilson
I felt like I consistently skied some good runs today. I left it all out there in my super final run, it just wasn’t quite enough to get on the podium. I’m happy with what I did today, not I’ve just got to let the speed go tomorrow.

Matt Gnoza, Head Moguls Coach
Speed is always one of Brad’s strengths. He skied three really solid runs today, and it came down to some of the other guys having a higher degree of difficulty on their jumps. We know Brad can perform on this course and speed will definitely be an advantage in duals tomorrow.

The women skied really well in qualifications. Olivia qualified third going into the finals which, as a World Cup rookie, was a big step for her. We just didn’t see the performance we needed in finals, so we’re hitting the reset button and getting ready for a better performance tomorrow.

RESULTS
Men’s Results
Women’s Results
Men’s World Cup Standings
Women’s World Cup Standings