JANUARY 29TH, 2020 — Submitted by Jaime Hugessen from Devil’s Glen
Alpine Ontario athletes were well represented earlier this month at the 2020 World Winter Masters’ Games in Innsbruck, Austria. The Winter Games, which are held every four years, like the Olympics, hosted 700+ alpine athletes, from over 32 countries. The field was split into three categories: A (men 30-59 years old), B (men 60-89 years old) and C (women 30-79 years old) with two race runs handling an enormous field of up to 350 athletes per day.
Ontario contributed 38 athletes to a Canadian contingent of over 60 racers. A class racers included Jeff Seaman, David Star, Dirk Vanhauwaert, Mitch Mcdermid, Jeff Magwood, David Walker, Andrew Spencer and Jay Knox. B class racers included Pavel Cater, Marek Dziedzic, Terry Hanna, Morgan Hull, Paul Montgomery, Mike Robbins, Jeff Chomyn, Michael Church, Jeff Craig, Rich Deacon, Michael Gagnon, Michel Giroux, Jaime Hugessen, Robert Joberty, Ronald Perryman, Christian Piersanti, Karol Slabon and Jacek Urbanowicz. C class racers included Denyse Houde, Patricia Rundle, Terry Piersanti, Patti East, Mary Ferguson, Wendy Fursey, Lee Anne Underwood, Hannele Sundberg, Shayna Gaunt, Renée Lefrançois, Melanie Smith and Amy Stein.
Day 1 featured a non-FIS, sprint GS format that saw the Canadians take home 5 medals in total. Ontario athletes Denyse Houde (C-10)
and Patti East (C-8) both captured gold, while two other athletes, Jaime Hugessen and Jay Knox just missed the podium with 4th place in their respective age categories.
Day 2 featured a challenging FIS 2-run slalom on the A side and 1-run GS on the B/C side. Ontario athlete Denyse Houde won gold again with Patti East winning a bronze medal. Other notable results included Mike Robbins with a 7th place showing in the men’s C-9 category.
Day 3 saw the A side racing a 1-run GS with 345 athletes down one course while the B side men raced a 2-run slalom on a separate pitch. The Ontario team was held off the podium this day under very challenging and icy conditions.
Day 4 was the final day for the A side men and was originally scheduled as a SG, however, lack of snow on the lower part of the mountain resulted in insufficient vertical for FIS requirements. Instead, another 1-run GS was held with a large field of over 340 athletes. Jay Knox delivered the goods for Ontario with a 3rd placing on a challenging and bumpy course.
Day 5 was the final day for B/C athletes with a GS course that replaced the originally scheduled SG race. Under very tough and icy conditions, Ontario athletes were unable to deliver a podium result but Patti East (C-8) was just off the podium with a 4th place result. Other notable results were Mike Robbins (B-9) with a 6th place finish and Jaime Hugessen (B-8) with a 14th position.
For more photos from this exciting event please visit