Saddleworth’s Erika Heginbotham insists she felt no fear after tackling the unknown at the Delancey British National Alpine Ski Championships on Tuesday.
The downhill discipline proved another high-octane event in Tignes after the thrills and spills of Monday’s super-G.
And 16-year-old Heginbotham, who is competing in the National Championships and National Junior Championships for the first time, is a newcomer to the race.
Her time wasn’t good enough for a podium finish in either run as she came home 16th and 14th respectively, yet Heginbotham, who is part of the Delancey British U18 Alpine Ski Squad, admits the discipline fulfils her need for speed.
“A few people were quite nervous about the downhill but I really enjoyed it, it was really fun. I had only done one before but crashed, so it was great to finish,” she said.
“It was quite a straight run and the jumps weren’t very big, so I think I handled it well.
“I thought my time would have been faster because it felt faster, but it was OK. The downhill races are new to most of the other girls in the Under-18s, so it’s just a great experience.”
Following the success of the Great Britain team at Sochi 2014 and with the support of Snowsport England’s national participation campaign GO SKI GO BOARD, it has been a tremendous year for British winter sports.
GO SKI GO BOARD started in September 2013 and more than 40,000 new people had taken at least one taster or coaching session through the campaign by the end of last year.
Heginbotham has been in skis for as long as she can remember – and is now gearing up towards finishing her Championships in the slalom.
“Wednesday’s a day off so I’ll rest, and maybe do a bit of cooking!” she added. “I’m only doing one of the slaloms because I haven’t done much of them this year, but that should be fun.”
As Principal Sponsor of British Ski and Snowboard, Delancey is proud to be able to provide British Athletes with the support and training they require to continue to be a real force in winter sports on a world stage. Follow @teambss or visit www.teambss.org.uk and www.delancey.com