Collingwood, ON (August 20th, 2018) — Alpine Ontario Alpin (AOA) and Ski Quebec Alpin (SQA) are pleased to announce the return of the Nor-Am Cup (North American Cup) this coming season. The event will be the first of its kind, with the two largest ski racing provinces in Canada working together to host some of the world’s best young athletes from January 2nd through January 7th. In total over 150 athletes will participate in ten events – the ladies based in Ontario, and the men in Quebec. The series will also be the first Nor-Am ever to host a parallel slalom, which is a new addition to the World Cup FIS circuit, providing fans with a very exciting venue as racers go head-to-head down the course.
The NorAm Cup is the most competitive racing series in North America outside of the World Cup. Athletes who earn a top spot in the season series are provided with a birth on the World Cup for the following competitive season. The races will attract some of North America’s best alpine ski racers, including members of the Canadian and US Alpine Ski Teams. Members of the Ontario Ski Team and Quebec Ski Team will also be in the gates, for some of the younger athletes these events will be their first exposure to such a high calibre of racing.
Ontario last hosted a Nor-Am Cup ten years ago. AOA’s Competition Director, Robyn Skinner expands upon the significance of this event. “We are thrilled to see such a high calibre racing event return to the eastern provinces. The Dual Slalom races on January 4th and 5th will be the first ever Dual on the Nor-Am Cup tour under this format and we are excited to be hosting this spectator friendly event. It means we’ll have some of the best alpine skiers in the World on our doorstep to inspire our next generation of skiers.”
Ski Québec Alpin (SQA) hosted the Nor Am Cup Finals technical events in 2016. Eric Prefontaine, SQA’s Technical Director comments, “We are also very excited to see this very important circuit back in the East where 70% of the FIS competitors reside. We are especially thrilled to see the parallel event format included in the Nor Am Cup calendar as it was SQA that introduced the event to North America as part of the 2017-2018 Sports Experts Super Series presented by Audi. Participating athletes absolutely loved the one run morning qualifier run followed by a parallel race for the top 32 qualifier. It goes without saying that the spectators very much enjoyed the show!”
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:
LADIES – ONTARIO
January 2 – Georgian Peaks, GS
January 3 – Georgian Peaks, GS
January 4 – Alpine Ski Club, Parallel SL
January 5 – Osler Bluff, SL
January 6 – Osler Bluff, SL
MEN – QUEBEC
January 3 – Camp Fortune, SL
January 4 – Camp Fortune, SL
January 5 – Location TBC (Camp Fortune or Mont Ste Marie), Parallel SL
January 6 – Mont-Ste-Marie, GS
January 7 – Mont-Ste-Marie, GS
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Alpine Ontario Alpin (AOA) is the provincial governing body for the sport of alpine ski racing in Ontario. Alpine Ontario’s newly refined mission is to provide leadership and structure for high quality, sustainable and affordable programming and to communicate the competitive, recreational and lifestyle benefits of ski racing to the community. AOA represents four divisions, 44 member clubs and over 30,000 active athletes, coaches and officials (volunteers). AOA coordinates several successful programs across the province and continues to foster the development of “state of the art” ski-racing programs from the grass roots level to the elite level.
The Quebec Alpine Ski Federation, Ski Québec alpin (SQA), is a provincial non-profit sport organization. Responsible for organizing alpine ski racing in Quebec since 1967, SQA manages and sanctions competitive ski programs. Our ministerial mandate is to encourage and develop participation while seeking to remove any barriers. Our role includes promoting sport, recruiting and developing athletes, organizing competitions, and recruiting, training and retaining volunteer coaches, officials and sport administrators. We also have the role of getting athletes to participate in provincial and national competitions. Our mission is to develop, support and encourage excellence, at all levels of the development structure of competitive alpine skiing in Quebec. Our vision is to make Quebec, the best Canadian competitive sporting environment in alpine skiing.
For more information contact:
Kristin Ellis
Communications Manager
Alpine Ontario Alpin (AOA)
705-444-5111 x132
communications@alpineontario.local
Eric Aach
Communications and partnerships manager
Ski Québec alpin
Cellphone : 514-966-2573
communications@skiquebec.qc.ca