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Davies, McLeish earn World Cup debut

Ever since she was 12 years old, Tess Davies would travel to the World Cup race at Lake Louise. She would line the fence with the rest of the pint-sized racers, begging for racing bibs and autographs from the best skiers in the world.

Ever since she was 12 years old, Tess Davies would travel to the World Cup race at Lake Louise. She would line the fence with the rest of the pint-sized racers, begging for racing bibs and autographs from the best skiers in the world.

This year, she’ll be on the other side of the fence, wearing the racing bib.

“I’d definitely hold onto this one,” Davies said.

Davies was selected to race the 2011 Winterstart World Cup race on Dec. 3 and 4.

The race will be Davies first World Cup race, who will be racing as a provincial racer.

“I’m really excited. Starting the Lake Louise World Cup has been a goal of mine for as long as I can remember. Being able to race the Noram and forerun the World Cup in the past three years has given me a lot of experience on the track which will be really helpful when it comes to racing it. Forerunning also opened another doorway for me, since we are technically volunteers, we got to hang around with the rest of the crew, getting to know the regulars who are there every year. They’re always so friendly and supportive asking us when it’ll be our turn to actually race, and this year I can tell them it is.”

Davies has raced at Lake Louise countless times since she broke onto the scene as an 11-year-old with the Banff Alpine Racers so to have her first World Cup start so close to home

“It’s nice to have it so close to home. It’s exciting and a little scary,” Davies said. “It’s a track I know super well.”

She’s raced the course for years and Davies knows that gives her an advantage.

“It’s easy to ski well, but hard to ski fast. There are only two crucial turns. There is nowhere you can win the race but lots of places to lose the race,” Davies said. “I can already see what the important turns look like.”

The 20-year-old is trying to stay away from performance pressure.

“I’m hoping to stay away from expectations. I’ve made some good improvements in my skiing, so as long as I’m skiing well, chances are I can have a good race.”

Although she isn’t a member of Canada’s senior team, Davies trained with the older skiers over the summer. She said it was a definite advantage, and some of the changes she’s tried to make over the past nine years of skiing are starting to take effect.

“It takes time in skiing to make changes and it’s starting to happen,” Davies said.

She’ll race NorAm races for the rest of December, however there is a chance she could race in Europe in January.

Despite the exuberance around the race, Davies is trying to stay focused.

“There’s no time to celebrate. I’m excited but have to stay focused doing what I’m doing,” Davies said.

McLeish will ski as a member of the Canadian National Ski team. Since the club lacks a veteran presence since Britt Janyk retired at the end of last season, the door is open for young skiers like McLeish to grab the spotlight.

“It’s a very cool opportunity,” McLeish said. “It will be special to ski close to friends and family,” McLeish said.

McLeish said she’s not expecting results, but will treat World Cup racing as a learning experience.

“I’ll have to step up to their level and match the intensity of the World Cup girls.”

The summer saw McLeish train in New Zealand, Chile and Canmore, logging lots of time on the mountains as well as in the pilates studio. The result has raised expectations for McLeish, who is poised to become a force on the NorAm circuit.

“I’ve never gone into a season feeling this strong,” McLeish said. “I’ll see how it goes in the first month. The world juniors are my goal this year. I want to medal there and earn a world cup spot for next year.”

McLeish has called Canmore home for the past three years, splitting her time between the Bow Valley and the West Coast.


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