Lydia Lassila’s hopes of a World Cup aerial skiing title rest on a head-to-head battle with Chinese rival Nina Li in the middle of Moscow next weekend.

Meanwhile a silver medal to Nathan Johnstone has led three top six results in Italy by Australian halfpipe snowboarders.

Lassila leads Li by just nine points on the World Cup standings following the penultimate event of the season in Cypress Mountain this past weekend, and must finish ahead of the dual world champion to secure the crystal globe.

The Olympic Winter Institute skier failed to qualify for the final in Cypress - the venue for freestyle and snowboard events for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics – and saw her 45-point lead in the title race whittled down to single figures when Li finished in fourth position.

Although it is mathematically possible for several other women to overtake her, Li is the most significant threat.

And after being runner-up to Alisa Camplin in 2003 and 2004, Li in 2005 and Jacqui Cooper last season, Lassila would dearly like to end a season as number one.

She started the season in fine style, taking gold and bronze in a double header event in China, but the combination of trying to upgrade her jumps to triple somersaults and some injury issues have seen her results slip away in the past two events.

The 27-year-old Mt Buller aerialist missed the landing on one of her standard triple twisting double somersaults in Cypress Mountain, finishing in 17th place.

Jacqui Cooper was the best of the Australians in the event, placing sixth on 147.88 points after missing clean landings on both of her triple somersault attempts.

Bree Munro was in tenth position on 132.89 points, Liz Gardner was in 19th place on 148.41 points, while Denita Mudge, jumping in her second World Cup, was 26th on 128.17 points.

Torino 2006 Olympic champion Evelyne Leu from Switzerland took the gold with 204.96 points, Chinese skiers filling the next four places.

The Moscow World Cup will take place on an artificial ramp in the grounds of the city’s major university, with the final scheduled for early Sunday morning Australian time.

Silver to Johnstone leads top halfpipe results

Competing in the Torino 2006 Olympic pipe in Bardonecchia, Italy Johnstone produced the second podium appearance of his fledgling career, while AIS team-mate Holly Crawford finished in fourth place in the women’s event, two spots ahead of fellow New South Wales rider Torah Bright.

Johnstone scored 43.5 points to finish behind 2007 world champion Mathieu Crepel of France, who posted 47.0 point for his best run. Louri Podladtchikov of Switzerland was third on 42.8 points.

The 18-year-old Perisher Blue rider has now collected silver and bronze from just five World Cup appearances.

The women’s field in Bardonecchia was one of the best assembled this season, with 2002 Olympic champion Kelly Clark, 2006 gold medallist Hannah Teter and two other Winter Games medallists in the line-up. US riders swept the podium, Clark taking the gold with 45.1 points from Teter on 43.2 points and Torino silver medallist Gretchen Bleiler on 39.4.

Crawford scored 36.3 points for her fourth place, while Bright registered 29.6 points. Bright struggled in the pipe in the final, but earlier in the day had laid down a 42.9 point ride to win the semi-final round.

Crawford, 24, who finished second in the 2009 World Championships two weeks ago, had won her way directly into the Bardonecchia final from her opening qualifying heat, scoring 41.9 points.

The same field is expected to line up in Cypress Mountain, Vancouver, next weekend in what will be a dress rehearsal for next February’s 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

In other Australian winter sports news, Lachlan Hay has produced a career best sixth placing in a short track speed skating World Cup 1500 metre race in Sofia, Bulgaria, while Campbelltown 15-year-old Cheltzie Lee has skated to an impressive 13th position in the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Vancouver.

It was Lee’s first senior event and she delivered a personal best score of 123.88 points, securing a start in the 2009 World Championships in the process.

Barry White
OWI