THE CANADIAN PRESS
WHISTLER, B.C. — The first time Lindsey Vonn ever saw the Crystal Globe given to the World Cup downhill champion she was a nine-year-old in Minnesota getting an autograph from U.S. skiing diva Picabo Street.
Vonn can now clear room for the trophy on her own shelf.
The American with the engaging smile and steely-eyed determination wrapped up this season’s downhill title by placing second in a World Cup race Friday on the same course that will host the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.
"It’s amazing I have the trophy," said the 23-year-old who lives with her husband Thomas in Park City, Utah. "It has been a dream of mine since I was a little kid. I feel like my childhood dream has come through.
"You can’t get any better than that."
Vonn finished just one hundredth of a second behind race winner Nadia Styger of Switzerland after going wide on the final turn.
"It wasn’t my best skiing," shrugged Vonn. "I think I would have had it if I hadn’t have had a brain fart on the bottom.
"It’s great to seal the deal with two races left. I don’t have to worry about that anymore. That’s a big check off on my lifetime goals. It definitely feels great."
While Vonn was satisfied with the present, Britt Janyk of Whistler, B.C., was already looking two years down the road.
Janyk had a home-town crowd on pins and needles as she battled her way down the 2.8-kilometre Franz’s Downhill but finished just off the podium in fourth place.
"As frustrating as fourth place can be I’m still satisfied with it because I laid it all out on the course," said Janyk. "It would have been amazing today if I could have won and finished first here. But winning is not easy.
"I’m learning how to find that level every weekend. I can be in there every race. I am trying my best every day. That’s the most I can ask for."
It’s the second time this week a Canadian just missed being on the podium. Erik Guay of Mont-Tremblant, Que., finished in a tie for fourth in a men’s super-giant slalom Friday.
Styger won the first World Cup race on the Franz’s Downhill in one minute 45.30 seconds. Vonn’s U.S. teammate Julia Mancuso was third in 1:45.49.
Janyk was timed in 1:45.65.
It was Styger’s fourth career victory but first in downhill. Her other wins were in super-giant slalom.
"It’s a great thing to know I can win on the slope that is the downhill in 2010," she said. "For that I am very happy. Now I know I can be fast here. That’s really important for 2010."
Vonn is the first American woman to claim the downhill title since Street in 1995-96. She has won four World Cup downhills this year and been second twice, giving her 655 points. Her nearest rival, Renate Goetschl of Austria, was fifth Friday and has 368 points.
Vonn also leads the overall standings with 1,063 points but said she’ll have trouble fending off Austria’s Nicole Hosp who is second with 999.
"It’s still going to come down to the last race," she said.
The World Cup season doesn’t end until next month.
Janyk, who has a win and a third-place finish this season, is third in the downhill standings with 350 points but thinks she can challenge Vonn for the title next year.
"I’ve made a really big step this season," said Janyk, who had to pay her own way on the Canadian team at the start of last season. "I see how much I’ve accomplished and there still are some things I can work on in my training this summer and that I am working on daily.
"The more confident I get, the more I focus on the fine details, the faster I can be."
Kelly VanderBeek of Kitchener, Ont., shook off some nerves about racing before a loud Canadian crowd to finish ninth in 1:45.89.
"I didn’t crumble under the pressure," said VanderBeek, who is fourth in the downhill standings. "I put a really good, solid run down. The times are tight. We’ll have to spend some time and really learn where we can create the difference."
This week’s World Cup races are the first sport test events for the 2010 Olympics. It will also be the World Cup skiers only chance to compete on the course prior to the Games.
The Canadians had hoped to score a podium finish in Whistler.
"There is some frustration," said VanderBeek. "We want to be on the podium. We also know it’s ski racing.
"In 2010 we’re going to have more experience, more podiums under our belt. We still have a lot more to learn. I think by 2010 we are going to get used to winning and we’ll know how to do it regularly."
Among the other Canadians, Emily Brydon of Fernie, B.C., was 17th in 1:46.50, Emilie Desforges of Montreal 39th in 1:48.94 and Danielle Poleschuk of Calgary 46th in 1:50.04.
The women will have a super-combined Sunday — a super-giant slalom and slalom. The men will race a giant slalom Saturday.
The Vancouver Olympic Games Organizing Committee spent $27.6 million upgrading the Creekside facility for the Olympics. Getting the races off was important for Olympic organizers since it was the first successful World Cup event in Whistler since 1995.
The International Ski Federation abandoned Whistler as a World Cup stop in 1998 after three consecutive years of races being cancelled due to adverse snow and weather conditions. Organizers had tried to stage those races before Christmas.