Kananaskis Valley (AB), Canada – As the first man down the hill in Sunday’s super G, Jeffrey Frisch threw caution to the wind and charged down the course at Nakiska ski area to claim his fourth national title at the GMC Canadian Championships.nFrisch, from Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, has endured a tough couple of years battling injuries but his time of one minute, 2.91 seconds was enough to take top honors ahead of Dustin Cook (1:03.22) and Jan Hudec (1:03.51).
“I had number one and I just went for it,” said Frisch, 26. “I inspected the course well and I knew exactly what I had to do out there.
“It was a really tough season for me, trying to fight my way back. I feel like the season has only just started for me,” he added.
Frisch won the downhill at the Canadian Championships in 2006 and 2009, as well as the super G in 2007. His career best result on the World Cup circuit is a 12th-place finish in the downhill in Kvitfjell, Norway, in 2007. He suffered a serious anterior cruciate ligament injury last year as well as partial tear of his medial collateral ligament around Christmas time.
“It’s good to see him trying to come back,” said Paul Kristofic, head coach of Canada’s men’s team. “I think it was a course where you had to take a lot of risk. The snow was really good and you had to really challenge yourself to take some risks and gambles.”
Cook, who has been skiing well all week and was fastest in both downhill training runs, was disappointed not to take the win but pleased to see Frisch get a great result.
“I thought my run was really good,” said Cook, who lives in Ottawa, Ontario, and was sixth in Saturday’s downhill. “Maybe I took it a little too easy in some spots. I’m happy for Jeff. He’s had a pretty tough go the last couple of years. I’m stoked for him.”
Hudec, of Calgary, Alberta, wanted the win but also had to settle for third place on the podium.
“I knew anything but first wasn’t going to be satisfying. Expectations are pretty high,” said Hudec. “There were a couple of places where I maybe gave it a little bit too much respect. Jeff had a wicked run today. I would have liked to be on the top of the podium but it’s perfect weather and good snow.”
The top junior on Sunday was Calgary’s Erik Read, who laid down a great time of 1:03.99 to finish sixth overall. Read, a member of the Raymond James Alberta Ski Team and part of the Prospect Group, made his World Cup debut in Schladming, Austria, in January.
“I’m pretty happy,” said Read. “Super G definitely hasn’t been my thing this year. I just laid it all on the line and went for it.”