Canadian freestyle skier Cassie Sharpe will compete for her first World Cup victory in Calgary since 2019, while teammate Rachel Karker will try for an elusive gold medal at the site of the 1988 Winter Games after advancing to the women’s halfpipe final through qualifying Friday at WinSport in Calgary.
Sharpe, from Comox, B.C., and Karker, from Guelph, Ont., were among the four Canadian women to advance to Saturday’s final.
Sharpe qualified fourth out of eight skiers with a score of 85.25 points. The 2018 Olympic champion and 2022 silver medallist is looking for just her second World Cup podium of the season after a bronze at Copper Mountain, Colo., in December.
Karker qualified fifth with 82.75 points. She has been on the World Cup podium six times in Calgary (four silver, two bronze) but has never reached the top.
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The Comox, B.C. native earned a score of 89.00 on her second run to place third in the women’s freeski halfpipe event during the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup stop in Copper Mountain.
The Crystal Globe winner in 2022-23 as overall World Cup leader did not ski in the 2023-24 season as she recovered from a back injury. She returned to action this campaign with a bronze at the season-opening event in Cardona, New Zealand, but hasn’t won a medal since.
Amy Fraser of Calgary (sixth) and Dillan Glennie of Courtenay, B.C., (eighth) also qualified for the women’s final. Britain’s Zoe Atkin had the top qualifying score of 92.75.
In men’s qualifying, Brendan MacKay of Calgary, a two-time World Cup winner in his hometown, was the top Canadian in fifth place with a score of 89.50.
Andrew Longino (ninth), Noah Bowman (15th) and Dylan Marineau (16th), all from Calgary, also qualified for the 16-athlete men’s final.
David Wise of the United States had the top qualifying score of 94.50.
