Sierra Nevada, Spain – Lindsey Jacobellis, of Stratton Mountain, Vt., prevailed at the FIS Freestyle Ski and Snowboard World Championships snowboardcross event on Sunday to claim an amazing fifth World Championship title.
Jacobellis is the most dominant snowboardcross rider in history, having won at every World Championships that she’s entered. Still, she is showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
“I just know that something else turns on inside of me and I get really, really aggressive,” Jacobellis said when asked for the key to her continued success. “I find energy when I didn’t think I had energy. Maybe it’s just the (World Championships) stage but I believe this course definitely played a really big part in my win today; it was very dynamic and very fast…there were a lot of variables and a lot of transitions that had to be matched perfectly otherwise you would lose a lot of speed for somebody else to capitalize on.”
Jacobellis, 31, edged out France’s Chloe Trespeuch, who finished second, and Michela Moioli of Italy, who was third.
The men’s snowboardcross world championship title was won by France’s Pierre Vaultier for his first World Championships medal ever. Lucas Eguibar of Spain was second and Alex Pullin of Australia was third.
“I can’t say much,” said an overwhelmed Vaultier. “I’m exhausted. I felt so much pressure, but I was capable to handle it. There is not a tiny bit of energy left in my body right now. It’s overwhelming. I want to cry but I won’t. I have been waiting for this so long, I’m gonna need a couple of days to realize what just happened.”
Nick Baumgartner, of Iron River, Mich., finished just off the podium in fourth. He chose to approach the course with a combination of aggression and wisdom.
“I had to use my experience to overcome some of these younger fast kids,” Baum said after the race. “It was a battle every time but I made smart decisions and I didn’t let myself get taken out, which allowed me to make a hard charge at the bottom of the run.”
OFFICIAL RESULTS
2017 FIS Freestyle Ski and Snowboard World Championships
Sierra Nevada, Spain – Mar. 12, 2017
Women’s Snowboardcross
| Rank | Name | Nation | FIS Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JACOBELLIS Lindsey | USA | 1000.00 | |
| 2 | TRESPEUCH Chloe | FRA | 800.00 | |
| 3 | MOIOLI Michela | ITA | 600.00 | |
| 4 | JEKOVA Alexandra | BUL | 500.00 | |
| 5 | PETIT Manon | FRA | 450.00 | |
| 6 | BRUTTO Raffaella | ITA | 400.00 | |
| 7 | MOENNE LOCCOZ Nelly | FRA | 360.00 | |
| 8 | BRENNEMAN Carle | CAN | 320.00 | |
| 9 | GILLINGS-BRIER Zoe | GBR | 290.00 | |
| 10 | LAPTEVA Yulia | RUS | 260.00 |
Men’s Snowboardcross
| Rank | Name | Nation | FIS Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | VAULTIER Pierre | FRA | 1000.00 | |
| 2 | EGUIBAR Lucas | ESP | 800.00 | |
| 3 | PULLIN Alex | AUS | 600.00 | |
| 4 | BAUMGARTNER Nick | USA | 500.00 | |
| 5 | CAMPBELL Duncan | NZL | 450.00 | |
| 6 | LAMBERT Adam | AUS | 400.00 | |
| 7 | KEARNEY Hagen | USA | 360.00 | |
| 8 | SCHAIRER Markus | AUT | 320.00 | |
| 9 | VISINTIN Omar | ITA | 290.00 | |
| 10 | MOMONO Shinya | JPN | 260.00 |