ski cross | World Cup in Val Thorens: stage for ski crosser Wilmsmann in Val Thorens

Florian Wilmsmann and Niklas Baxletner achieved top results at the Ski Cross World Cup in Val Thorens despite tough conditions. The quarterfinal was over for Daniela Meier.

Florian Wilmsmann finished third at the Ski Cross World Cup in Val Thorens, France on Saturday (December 11, 2021) and gave the German team its first podium this winter. In the final, the 25-year-old from TSV Hartpfennig only lost to the victorious Frenchman Terence Tchiknavarian and his compatriot Bastien Midol. Niklas Baxletner rounded out the strong German team result with 8th place and met the Olympic standard.

Difficult conditions in Val Thorens

After the round of 16, the German men’s field was already badly thinned – Tobias Müller and Tim Hroneck had to give up sail. Bachsleitner and Wilmsmann performed better and confidently qualified for the top eight round. There they both tied together in difficult visibility conditions – the competitions were already planned for Friday and were to be held heavy snow but will be postponed Uninterruptedly continued his good performance and made it to the semi-finals.

Tchiknavarian and Midol are too strong for Wilmsmann and Baxletner

Wilmsmann made a great start in the semi-finals as well, making a technically flawed performance on the track and making it to the final. Things didn’t go so well for Bachsleitner. The 25-year-old from SC Partenkirchen struggled again after an unsuccessful start, but had to let go of Tchiknavarian and Midol first. In the “small final”, Baxletner eventually finished fourth.

Wilmsmann also cut his teeth against France in the final. After a mixed start, he again reached his competitors, but lost momentum shortly before the end and finished in third place ahead of Swiss Berry Jos.

Final stop for Meier in the quarter-finals

Daniela Meier, who suffered a serious knee injury in late November he had come back, were the only Germans to say goodbye after a mistake in the quarter-finals and finished in 13th place. Swiss Fanny Smith, the overall World Cup winner last season, was surprisingly eliminated in the quarter-finals. The women’s favorite went to two-time world champion Sandra Naslund of Sweden, ahead of Brittany Phelan (Canada) and Marielle Berger Sabatel (France).

That: sportschau.de