Rovaniemi, FIN-Canada’s Perianne Jones bounced back after a difficult opening day earlier this week at the Nordic Junior World Ski Championships in Rovaniemi, Finland to finish 15th in the women’s sprint competition on Wednesday.
“This was a much better result for me, although my goal was to finish a little higher in the standings,” said Jones of Almonte, Ont., who is making her third trip to the elite junior event on the cross-country ski calendar. “I know I’m up there with the best in the world at this level, it’s too bad I came up a little short.”
The 19-year-old Jones qualified in 14th spot for the round of top-30 heats, which have six athletes racing head-to-head. The top-two athletes move on to the next round. Jones skied a strong leg, but finished third of the six racers in her heat and was quickly eliminated.
Amanda Ammar of Onoway, Alta. was the only other Canadian woman to suit up on Wednesday. Ammar finished in 37th spot.
The Canadian men also faired well in the sprints. Calgary’s Brent McMurtry led the Canadian charge finishing in 20th spot. McMurtry qualified 27th but made up some ground in the heats to crack the top-20.
“It was a good day and a tough challenge skiing against the world’s best, but I’m pleased with my result,” said McMurtry who also represented Canada at the world juniors last year. “I felt really good on the technical parts of the course, and I know I’m able to compete with these guys. I just need to work a little more on my development.”