The Slalom World Cup Final in Prague (CZE) gave the home fans a lot to cheer about, with a large crowd out to see defending men’s K-1 champ Jiri Prskavec and two-time winner Matej Benus.
Having won the Slalom World Cup title in 2010 and 2015, Benus was ready for the C-1 final and steered through the course in a quick 100.26 seconds and with no penalties, one of only three finalists with a clean run. The closest was Russia’s Kirill Setkin at 102.43 and the win gave Benus a third World Cup title by just two points over Slovenia’s Luka Bozic.
On Sunday, the cheers were equally loud for defending World Cup K-1 champ Jiri Prskavec. He as even better than Benus, sailing through the course penalty-free and recording an impressive 90.67 mark. No one else was within two seconds and teammate Vit Prindis won the silver at 93.20.
The race victory was the overjoyed Prskavec’s first in three years on the Slalom World Cup circuit and gave him enough points for a 319-266 win over Peter Kauzer (SLO).
The women’s races were another triumph for Australian superstar Jessica Fox, who won both the C-1 and K-1, as she did in 2018. She now has five C-1 titles in 2013-15-17-18-19 and two K-1 titles from the past two years.
It hadn’t been the easiest of seasons for Fox, who struggled in the early races, but came on strongly in the final month. Her seven total individual titles is the most all-time for single-seat racers in the World Cup.
American teen Evy Leibfarth qualified for the C-1 final, but missed a gate and ended up 10th. But for the season, she finished in sixth place, only a point out of the top five. Summaries:
ICF Slalom World Cup Fina
Prague (CZE) ~ 6-8 September 2019
(Full results here)
Men/C-1: 1. Matej Benus (CZE), 100.26 (0 penalties); 2. Kirill Setkin (RUS), 102.43 (0); 3. Luka Bozic (SLO), 103.42 (2); 4. Grzegorz Hedwig (POL), 103.83 (2); 5. Michal Martikan (SVK), 104.04 (2).
Men’s C-1 Final Standings: 1. Matej Benus (CZE), 289; 2. Luka Bozic (SLO), 287; 3. Michal Martikan (SVK), 248; 4. Benjamin Savsek (SLO), 238; 5. Alexander Slafkovsky (SLO), 229.
Men/K-1: 1. Jiri Prskavec (CZE), 90.67 (0); 2. Vit Prindis (CZE), 93.20 (0); 3. Boris Neveu (FRA), 94.18 (0); 4. Peter Kauzer (SLO), 94.82 (2); 5. Kazuya Adachi (JPN), 97.29 (2).
Men’s K-1 Final Standings: 1. Jiri Prskavec (CZE), 319; 2. Peter Kauzer (SLO), 266; 3. Vit Prindis (CZE), 262; 4. Boris Neveu (FRA), 219; 5. Giovanni de Gennaro (ITA), 214.
Women/C-1: 1. Jessica Fox (AUS), 113.95 (2); 2. Kimberley Woods (GBR), 113.99 (2); 3. Tereza Fiserova (CZE), 118.39 (2); 4. Lucie Baudu (FR), 124.83 (2); 5. Shi Chen (CHN), 124.95 (4). Also: 10. Evy Leibfarth (USA), 180.92 (56).
Women’s C-1 Final Standings: 1. Jessica Fox (AUS), 312; 2. Ana Satila (BRA), 225; 3. Tereza Fiserova (CZE), 222; 4. Lucie Baudu (FRA), 186; 5. Nadine Weratschnig (AUT), 172. Also: 6. Evy Leibfarth (USA), 171.
Women/K-1: 1. Jessica Fox (AUS), 101.11 (0); 2. Ana Satila (BRA), 103.98 (0); 3. Eva Tercelj (SLO), 104.30 (0); 4. Eliska Mintalova (SVK), 105.64 (0); 5. Kimberely Woods (GBR), 106.13.
Women/K-1 Final Standings: 1. Jessica Fox (AUS), 278; 2. Eva Tercelj (SLO), 265; 3. Corinna Kuhnle (AUT), 248; 4. Ana Satila (BRA), 240; 5. Stefanie Horn (ITA), 196.