Jackie Wiles led the way for Team USA, finishing 13th in the Olympic Super-G on Thursday in Cortina, Italy. Keely Cashman was 15th.
"The conditions definitely felt a little bit softer and peelier," said Wiles. "But I still think that the track held up pretty well and was really nice to ski."
It was a challenging day on the Tofane with almost 50% of the field not making it to the finish line. The weather and changing conditions made it difficult for the women to push hard and recover from mistakes. Nonetheless, the women pushed the limits as they all chased an opportunity to medal.
"I had high expectations for today and just kind of didn't happen how I wanted it to. But that's ski racing," said Cashman.
Italy’s Frederica Brignone won an emotional gold medal for the host country, just nine months after suffering season-ending injuries at the Italian championships. She had only returned to World Cup racing just a couple of weeks ago. Her winning time was one minute, 23.41 seconds. Romane Miradoli of France took the silver at 0.41 back. Austria’s Cornelia Huetter won the bronze at 0.52 back.
The silver lining for the U.S. team was when Olympic gold medalist Breezy Johnson was proposed to by her now fiancé in the finish area in front of teammates, friends and family. It was an emotional moment for the medalist, who caps off a successful Olympic run now with a diamond ring.
"I always dreamed of getting proposed to at the Olympics," said Johnson. "I have been planning this for a year, it was a challenge but I had a lot of people helping me so it paid off and we are happy," said Connor Watkins, Johnson's fiance.
The course proved difficult for many racers, including Team USA's Breezy Johnson and Mary Bocock. However, Bocock was all smiles as she made her Olympic debut with family in the stands.
"My Olympic experience has been awesome," said Bocock. "I have a huge group of people here cheering me on, which is nice of them to come. I do wish you could have made it down, but that's okay."
This race marks the end of the women's speed races. Now we turn to tech the women's giant slalom on Sunday, and the slalom on Tuesday.
RESULTS
Women's Olympic super-G