Para Snowboard is the place of rivalries, with yet two more fierce competitors going up against one another, this time in the women’s LL1/LL2. Cécile Hernandez (FRA) and Brenna Huckaby Clegg (USA) are the prominent names in this category, once more proving why across two days of competitions. For the Frenchwoman, the Banked Slalom is an event she excels in, demonstrating her dominance in both races.
Hernandez’s (LL1) impressive time of 1:00.80 was enough to clinch gold on the back of race one, though it was a different American who challenged her in the final. Kate Delson (USA), the young 20-year-old and LL2 boarder, held her own on the snow to pick up her third podium of the season, one away from a career best in terms of top three finishes achieved in the World Cup.
Clegg earned the bronze, beating Yanhong Geng (CHN) in the small final.
With no final run on day two, the top three was decided by qualification runs. Hernandez completed the golden double, with Clegg (LL1) agonizingly missing out with a margin of +1.62 separating the two. One of the biggest winners across all categories, however, was Xinyu Wang (CHN). The young LL2 snowboarder laid down the third-best time in qualification, resulting in her first-ever World Cup podium finish with a bronze to commemorate the significant milestone.