TMI Lilyhammer – day 3

The day started early, like both days before, with the shuttle going up the hill at 8.15 for the start of the first runs. We started with a warm-up run for the 64-man B bracket with 53 riders.

These 53 riders were gunning for the final 4 places in the A bracket. Luckily we didn't have any crashes or delays, so we 'shot' through them pretty quickly and in the end, these final 4 were Justin Rouleaux, Ludwig Falstrom, Daina Banks and Garrett Creamer.

Big respect goes out to Justin Rouleaux who was actually a bit disappointed he was in the B bracket. He managed to survive the entire B bracket and the first round of the A bracket before being eliminated in round 2. And all this, with a broken kneecap. Now that's dedication. If it was wise is another thing, but lots of respect for him.

We finished early so we had a longer lunch break. At 2 we re-grouped on the hill for the A bracket. Before the warmup run we started with 1 2 man heat for classic luge, where Peter Eliot (UK) won over Kolby Parks (CAN).

After that it was warm-up for 64 riders who had to appear on the starting line, 3 of them which were juniors; Johannes Aalholm (NO), Jarund Bratset (NO) and Leo Sartor (CAN). Leo got eliminated in round 1 and Johannes and Jarund in round 2. Nice going guys.

The only woman in the A bracket, Emily Pross (USA), got eliminated in round 1 but she still had to do the women's race, which started at a later round during open.

There were 10 women, so 2 women were eliminated in round 1, which were Marie 'Spoky Woky' and Jenni(fer) Schauerte. In round 2 Alex(andra) Bailey had an unlucky push and ended up in the ditch next to the 'push area' and hurt her wrist, so unfortunately for her she was out.

Final result women

1. Emily Pross
2. Cassandra Duchesne
3. Linn Andersson
4. Marieke Ulrich

Final result juniors

1. Edward Kiefer
2. Gustav Funck Norhall
3. Leo Sartor
4. Isac Printz

Street luge had 6 riders, so 1 round, 2 heats to decide who was riding the final. Top qualifier here was Abdil Mahdzan who had a 3 second lead in the qualifying runs. The final results here were:

1. Abdil Mahdzan (MAL)
2. Peter Eliot (UK)
3. Will Stephenson (UK)
4. Michael Claessens (BEL)
5. George Cheeseman (UK)
6. Kolby Parks (CAN)

When the quarter finals came, racing got more and more intense. 16 rider were all gunning for the semi finals, because that means (2) 'bonus runs'. In this run some of the eliminated riders were Quirin Ilmer and Decio Lourenco, who both were on fire last weekend, but the riders field was a lot stronger here overall.

8 riders were left to ride the consi final and open final. At the bottom of the hill it was #2 qualifier Thiago Gomes Lessa who crossed the line first, followed by Dillon Stephens, Aleix Gallimo and Adam Persson.

The consi final was won by Kevin Reimer, followed by Erik Lundberg, Jimmy Riha and Garino Georgio. Like Justin, Garino deserves a compliment as well. This young guy (17, in his first year in open) from Italy stayed in the race all the way till the end, against some very strong riders. Big up for him.

After the final, the awards ceremony followed next to the bottom of the ski ramp and after this TMI Lilyhammer came to a close. It was a very nice event and we were lucky to have good weather all weekend long. Thanks go out to Sam Priestley and his team of volunteers for making this a successful event.