LAKE LOUISE -- Lindsey Vonn couldn't charm her way to a third straight victory on the slopes yesterday.
Three one-hundredths of a second was all that separated the American from winner Elisabeth Goergl of Austria in the World Cup Super G at Lake Louise.
Vonn's pair of downhill victories this weekend and the second-place finish will have to do for now.
Joining them on the podium was France's Ingrid Jacquemod.
The Canadian skiers, on the other hand, didn't fair as well as they did earlier in the week. Two cracked the top 15 ,with Kelly VanderBeek in 11th and Britt Janyk in 13th.
"Today, we were hoping for a little bit more," said Alpine Canada chief athletics officer Max Gardner. "But it was interesting conditions with it being extremely cold."
Rounding out the Canadian contingent were Emily Brydon in 17th, Larisa Yurkiw in 24th, Shona Rubens in 26th and Georgia Simmerling in 29th.
As the top Canadian, VanderBeek felt she could have had a better run. She got off to a quick start at the top but nearly crashed at the bottom of the course.
"There is a small compression just before the last roller, and right before leaving (the gate), our coach said the girls are giving it too much respect and to attack the line," said VanderBeek.
"I think I attacked the line a little bit too much and went into the compression and got twisted in the roller."
She was frustrated since the slip at the bottom cost her a chance to be among the leaders.
Brydon, who already had two podium finishes from the downhill events this weekend, dropped a lot of time at the top and finished well out of contention.
"This has been an extremely draining week for me in the sense that I have put my heart and soul into these races, and this year, it paid off," Brydon said.
With course conditions nearly perfect, Brydon felt part of the problem was that she tried to over-ski the bottom flats and lost time.
VanderBeek, on the other hand, was not complaining about the conditions. Things have not been favourable for the skiers in three previous years at Lake Louise.
"The track was perfect from top to bottom," she said.
"I have never raced a Super G like that. We have had a lot of snow and bad weather the last three years, and it doesn't get any better than this."
CAL-SPORTS@SUNMEDIA.CA
