GB Skiers take Germans by storm
With the big freeze in UK and northern Europe grabbing recent headlines it may be hard to believe that the British Nordic Ski Team had difficulty finding sufficient snow to fulfill their racing schedule last weekend. The planned Continental Cup meeting in Zweisel, Eastern Germany, was cancelled when the organizers found they had too little snow and an alternative venue was arranged at Oberwiesnthal on the Northern German/Czech border. The 5 strong British Nordic Ski Team, traveling from Switzerland, were joined at the race site by Nordic ski teams from 22 other nations. Their arrival coincided with Germany’s biggest storm of the season.
Despite the blizzards and freezing temperatures the GB team was not deterred. Their results proved the trip very worthwhile with Andrew Young (17, Huntly) and Callum Smith (17, Inverurie) claiming 6th and 16th place respectively in the Junior (U20) Men’s 10km classic race on Sunday. These places gave them 1st and 3rd in their U18 age group. Andrew Young also had a pleasant surprise when he was called to the podium to receive a prize for his 6th place. A British Nordic Skier on a European Cup podium is a rare sight, and he attracted much attention from other nation’s ski teams!
The highlight of the sprints on Saturday was Posy Musgrave's whirlwind start in the quarter final. Having drawn an unsuitable lane, Posy caused a real stir by muscling her way into the lead for the first corner and holding this lead for half of the race. Unfortunately she was unable to maintain her speed in the final third of the 1.2km race and she dropped back to 5th place in the heat and 25th overall.
Sunday saw more snow and cold temperatures as the storm swirled around the distance race competitors, giving them slow downhill conditions that make for tough racing. It was the British team's U18 duo's turn to show their class. Both Andrew Young and Callum Smith gave great performances in the 10 k Under 20 classic race. Callum's first 2 laps were superb and although he slowed towards the end of the course he finished 16th from 45 starters, and gained himself 110.48 FIS points*. Andrew, similarly, set off so powerfully that he was lying in 4th place after 5 km. He too slipped back a little near the end, finishing 6th, despite an awesome sprint through the stadium. This performance earned him 93.36 FIS points, a score within the 100 points required for inclusion in the British Olympic selection procedure, and another podium appearance.
Andrew felt he held to his race plan pretty well but needs to maintain his speed over the tops of the hills. Callum was pleased with his result but is already planning how he will break into the top 10. Posy continues to improve, particularly in sprint where she shook people up in the quarter finals. They had to work really hard to get past her.
Head Coach, Roy Young, was really pleased with the performances " It’s been a difficult week with a lot of traveling and some bad and freezing weather. The guys and girls worked really hard here this weekend. The team is receiving plaudits from most of the countries they have raced in recently – Norway, Sweden, Austria and now from Germany. All of them are well deserved.”
The team, including Britain’s number one, Andrew Musgrave (19, Oyne), are now gathering in Switzerland for the Swiss Championships at Marbach this week, and preparing themselves for the World Junior and Under 23’s Championships in Hinterzarten, Germany, at the end of the month.
