When you have a bad day, sometimes all you can do is dance.
On a day where one Canadian athlete fainted on course, another dropped out with cramps three-quarters through the best race of his life and Canada’s best shooters were well off their mark in the range, the world cup team turned to Macx Davies for some levity on Saturday (Dec. 19) in Pokljuka, Slovenia
Davies had an awful race in his own right, missing eight shots and finishing 57th in Saturday’s pursuit. But when he crossed the finish line, he did so in style, shaking and grooving along the final 50 metres of the course. It wasn’t quite ski ballet-calibre dramatics, but the Slovenian crowd ate it up, cheering wildly as he shimmied across the line.
“It was just me making the best of a poor performance, and taking the opportunity to interact with a large crowd. It turns out it is very fun when they like you,” Davies said.
He didn’t stop after the finish line, as Eurovision captured him strutting his stuff. Russian television crews were so impressed they tracked him down after the race and filmed a dance lesson with the Canmorite.
Davies has always had a musical streak, having played piano growing up, but this is the first time he shared his talents in front of a television audience of 20 million Europeans.
Brendan Green was the top Canadian on the day, as he had his best result of the season, shooting 18/20 and finishing 30th. It’s been a slow start to the season for Green, but he believes he’s now turning things around.
“I often have a slower start to the season. I was hoping this winter would be different and I’d enter the first world cup with all cylinders firing, but so far it seems to be taking some time. Each week and each new stop on the world cup circuit has been feeling better, with today being the best race for me so far this tour,” Green said.
The team had high hopes after a solid sprint race on Friday (Dec. 19), but the entire team struggled to reach its potential. Nathan Smith was slightly off his game, finishing 35th on the day. Christian Gow was holding his own in the top 30, but had to drop out of the race with cramps during the fourth lap. Gow has yet to crack the world cup top 30 in his young career, so the race was extra bitter sweet.
Scott Gow was 45th.
Julia Ransom was the top Canadian in the women’s pursuit, despite a tough day in the range. She shot 15/20 and ended up 44th, while Rosanna Crawford missed six targets and finished 45th.
Megan Tandy had a scary day in Slovenia. She blacked out on course, tumbling to the ground in a heap.
“While passing out on television during the pursuit was a far cry from my idea of a ‘good day,’ I can assure you that the footage looked much worse than I felt,” Tandy wrote after the race. “I am already feeling much better and am being well taken care of.”
Smith was the only Canadian to qualify for the mass start, which includes the top 30 biathletes, finishing 12th.
In Friday’s sprint, Crawford led the way in 23rd spot, shooting 9/10. Ransom had one of her best world cup races, finishing 31st. Tandy was 51st and Emma Lunder was 89th.
Smith topped the Canadian men’s team with a 24th-place finish, while Davies, Scott Gow and Christian Gow finished 34th, 35th and 37th, respectively. Green was 46th. The team now heads home for Christmas, and will prepare for the 2016 world cup race in Canmore, Feb 1-7.
