Evan McEachran secured a bronze medal in the freestyle skiing slopestyle event at the World Cup held in Laax, Switzerland. The athlete from Oakville, Ontario, initially held the fifth position after his first run but delivered an outstanding performance in the second round, earning a top score of 82.70 points and clinching a spot on the podium.
Birk Ruud from Norway claimed the gold medal with a score of 85.08, while Matej Svancer from Austria took home the silver medal with 84.08 points.
McEachran, aged 28, is gearing up for his third appearance at the upcoming Milan Cortina Games, having previously represented Canada in the 2018 and 2022 Olympics. The men’s slopestyle competition is scheduled to take place from February 7 to February 10 in Livigno, Italy.
In the women’s event, Eileen Gu from China secured the gold medal with an impressive score of 85.13. Maarin Hamill from the United States and Lara Wolf from Austria claimed the silver and bronze medals, respectively, with scores of 71.38 and 67.85. Elena Gaskell, hailing from Vernon, British Columbia, was the top Canadian finisher, securing the fifth position with a top score of 62.75.
In the women’s halfpipe event, Canadian snowboarder Elizabeth Hosking finished sixth in Laax. The 24-year-old athlete from Longueuil, Quebec, was in fourth place after her first run but unfortunately fell towards the end of her second run. Gaon Choi from South Korea clinched the gold, Rise Kudo from Japan secured silver, and Cai Xuetong from China earned the bronze medal.