Challenging conditions at the Livigno Snow Park in Italy made for a tough day on the course for Olympic ski cross competitors, including Chilliwack’s Reece Howden.
Team Canada did not medal in the event — Italians Simone Deromedis and Frederico Tomasoni won gold and silver respectively, and Alex Fiva from Switzerland won bronze.
Howden exited the competition after finishing fourth in his quarter-final, from which just the top two players advance. No Canadians advanced past the quarter-finals. Howden finished in 13th place. Canadian Kevin Drury finished in 14th, Gavin Rowell in 28th and Jared Schmidt in 31st.
In interviews immediately after his exit, Howden levelled criticism at the course conditions and organizers.
“Honestly, like the weather is ridiculous, it is a joke,” he told CBC. “It’s snowing so hard, and it’s just, the track is dead slow. Ya. This is an absolute joke.”
He said he would “wait four more years” to compete again, and that the Olympics is supposed to be the best of the best.
Howden, 27, has had a record season so far, becoming the winningest male ski cross athlete in history, with 22 World Cup wins, making him a favourite to medal at this year’s Olympics. This was his second Olympics, placing 9th in Beijing in 2022.
See Howden’s stats via Alpine Canada here.
On Friday night, Paul McManus from Chilliwack Ford posted an encouraging video for Howden on his Facebook, with the staff cheering and holding a giant banner. Chilliwack Ford sponsors Howden.
Early morning beers
A handful of Chilliwack bars have announced they’ll be opening at 5 a.m. on Sunday to showcase the Canada vs. USA men’s hockey game. The game starts at 5:10 a.m.
Premier David Eby made an announcement earlier this week allowing bars to open early and serve.
“Our province is so proud of our Canada men’s hockey team,” he said.