George Grey Qualifies For 2006 Olympics

Canada's World Cup Rookie Grey Qualifies for 2006 Olympics Renner Picks Up Pace on World Cup

Kuusamo, FIN—Canada’s George Grey earned a ticket to his first Olympic Winter Games on Sunday after posting one of his strongest results ever on the Cross-Country Ski World Cup in Kuusamo, Finland.
 
The Rossland, B.C. native, finished 41st in the men’s 15 kilometre classic event, crossing the line with a time of 39 minutes 09.3 seconds. The result qualifies Grey to the Olympic Games by finishing in the top-30 based on counting four athletes per nation.

“It definitely feels good to get it done early in the season, but it doesn’t change my goals,” said the 25-year-old World Cup rookie, who is one of four Canadian men looking to qualify. “I still have a job to do out here and hopefully this will give me an extra push to ski faster and get into the top-25. The summer training is starting to pay off and I’m mentally feeling much stronger to push harder.”

In addition to Grey qualifying for the Games, two-time Olympian Sara Renner is also continuing to pick up her early season pace on the World Cup. The 28-year-old of Canmore, Alta. posted her best result of the season in Finland on Sunday, finishing 23rd in the women’s 10 kilometre classic event with a time of 29:18.2.

“I was extremely fast off the start today and lost some steam in the final two kilometers,” said Renner, who is married to alpine skier, Thomas Grandi. “I have to figure out my limits, but I really need to start hard to get on pace — now it is a matter of learning to finish at the same speed. I am skiing really well and I know it is so tight that if I consistently place in the top-20, I’ll quickly starting climbing into the top-10.”

Germany’s Axel Teichmann won his second medal in as many days in the men’s event, capturing the gold (37:33.2). Russia’s Vassili Rotchev solidified the silver medal with a time of 37:58.0, while Teichmann’s teammate, Rene Sommerfeldt rounded out the top-three at 38:00.3.

Estonia’s Kristina Smigun won the women’s event with a time of 27:47.4, while Katerina Neumannova of the Czech Republic was second at 28:00.4, and Norway’s Marit Bjoergen was third at 28:01.8

Source: Cross Country Canada