Anthony’s blistering World Cup start has slight hiccup

BARWON Heads resident Jakara Anthony’s perfect start to her freestyle skiing season has come to an end, with the Olympic champion beaten in the semi-finals of the World Cup dual moguls event in Idre Fjäll, Sweden on Sunday.

After winning two World Cup moguls titles in the space of a week in Scandanavia, the Bellarine Peninsula local had a disappointing third event by her sky-high standards, falling short of a hat-trick of event wins to finish in fourth place.

In the dual moguls, competitors sped down the bumpy course side by side in elimination races and were judged not only on their speed but the quality of their turns and jumps.

The 24-year-old was outpaced in three of her four duels, however relied on her superior technical skills to make her way into the last four athletes.

Following victories against Kazakhstan’s Ayaulym Amrenova and Japan’s Rino Yanagimoto, Anthony met a strong opponent in American Elizabeth Lemley in the semi-finals.

After a slightly awkward landing coming off her first trick, Anthony wasn’t able to find her best rhythm, finishing exactly one second down on the American and losing out 20 to 15 in the judge’s scoring.

In the ‘small final’ for the Bronze, Anthony lost out to her rival Perrine Laffont (France) by a single point.

Coming off back-to-back wins to start the defense of her World Cup overall moguls crown, the fourth-place finish means Anthony’s lead has been pegged back to 30 points.

The next World Cup event lands in Alpe d’Huez, France, this weekend, with Anthony hoping she can land back on the winners list.