Marion Thénault captures gold at Freestyle Skiing World Cup in Finland

Marion Thénault came close to 100 points and won the gold medal in the aerials event at the first Freestyle Skiing World Cup event in Ruka, Finland on Sunday, the third career victory for the Quebec native.

Her well-executed maneuver earned her first place with a score of 99.05 points, while Australian Danielle Scott took second place with 88.47 points and Kazakhstan’s Zhanbota Aldabergenova rounded out the podium with a score of 77.43 points.

“It’s still cool to start with the yellow bib. It puts pressure, but it’s pressure I want to have,” said Thénault of getting the World Cup leader bib.

Thénault was on the podium at the World Cup in Ruka last year, but in second place, behind Australia’s Scott. Her teammate Charlie Fontaine finished 11th in her first World Cup start with a score of 67.60.

On the men’s side, Lewis Irving took sixth place following a fall, as he concluded the day with a score of 72.12 in the final. His teammate Alexandre Duchaine ranked eighth with a score of 96.02 points.