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Thursday, 16 February 2006 |
British skier Chemmy Alcott delighted with her downhill result
British skier Chemmy Alcott said her incredible 11th place in the
women's downhill could serve as a launch pad for her taking part in
Sunday's super-G.
23-year-old Chemmy Alcott, whose actual Christian name is Chimene,
after Sophia Loren's character in El Cid, was registered the best
Olympic result for a British female skier since 1968.
"I didn't expect anything in the downhill event," said Chemmy Alcott.
"I expected to do better in the super-G so it takes the pressure off. I
can go hell for leather in that as I've got an 11th place under my
belt", she added.
Chemmy Alcott's performance was the best Olympic skiing result for
Britain since downhill skier Martin Bell took eighth place in Calgary
in 1988, and the best by a female skier since Gina Hathorn came in at
fourth in the Grenoble slalom of 1968.
Chemmy Alcott started at 14th on an overcast day at San Sicario but she
clocked one minute 57.85 seconds to briefly take second place behind
Austria's Alexandra Meissnitzer.
However, Chemmy Alcott had to watch as she got knocked down
the leader board, to finish 1.36secs behind Austrian winner Michaela
Dorfmeister.
Chemmy Alcott said she could have ended higher up the standings if all
had gone to plan, and she said her success was mainly due to her bold
approach to the race.
"My coach gave me a choice to be either fast or scared," said Chemmy Alcott, who was 32nd four years ago in Salt Lake City.
"I chose to be fast, even though my skiing was a bit messy".
Chemmy Alcott attacked the course in spite of the poor visibility in San Sicario that day.
"I think that kind of light helped me because I'm not a scared person so that doesn't influence the way I ski," she said.
Chemmy Alcott said her Olympic display would help her career progress after a previous ninth place in the World Cup.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 21 February 2006 )
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Winter Sports 
