Jacobellis Secures 60th World Cup Podium
It’s an exciting day for snowboard cross fans as Lindsey Jacobellis, the most decorated female snowboard cross athlete of all time, stood back on a World Cup podium with a second place finish in Montafon, marking her 60th career World Cup podium.
After a disappointing result in the first Montafon World Cup final on Saturday, falling in the quarterfinal to take 14th overall, Jacobellis took to the start gate on Sunday with a chip on her shoulder. The Olympic gold medalist was looking for her first individual top-three of the season, having only previously reached the podium in the Les Deux Alpes mixed team event with teammate Jake Vedder, and set herself up to do just that, qualifying through to the big final in Montafon.
It was a close final heat right from the start with Jacobellis sitting in third for the first half of the course. But that all changed after the first set of rollers when Great Britain's Charlotte Bankes took a hard fall after an unfortunate collision with France’s Chloe Trespeuch. Jacobellis and Australia's Josie Baff both made impressive maneuvers to avoid the collision, narrowly dodging Bankes’ goggles that had fallen from the crash. It was a battle for second and third up until the very end where Jacobellis showed her composure and technique to edge out Baff in the final push at the finish.
Cody Winters was the top performer for the Hydro Flask U.S. Snowboard Team on the men’s side, racing to the small final to take sixth overall in Montafon. The Hydro Flask U.S. Snowboard Cross Team will finish the 2023-24 season with a World Cup double header in Mt. St. Anne starting on March 22.