Rochdale ski star Daisi Daniels is fast becoming a regular on the podium at the Delancey British Children’s Championships in Tignes, with a Super G silver medal added to her bulging collection on Wednesday.
Having taken her place atop the standings in the Under-16 Slalom on Monday, the 14-year-old came into the Super G brimming with confidence as one of the top skiers in the field.
With heavy snowfall and poor visibility plaguing the Lognan course, Daniels clocked a time of 1:00.61 to finish just 0.93 seconds short of her second gold medal of the week, which was ultimately taken by Sarah Woodward with Olivia Foster completing the top three.
And while disappointed not to have got her hands on the trophy, Daniels, a pupil at Beech House School, insisted she could be happy with second place given the treacherous conditions on the piste.
“Coming out of the gate, I knew I had to go as fast as I could because I really wanted to get the title,” she said.
“The adrenaline kicked in as soon as I left the gate, it felt like a life or death situation.
“After coming through the first banana, I could feel the snow grabbing my skis, and as soon as your skis hit wet snow, it pushes them backwards.
“I got onto the flat and I was too scared to tuck because of the snow. I could feel my skis going backwards under me and I was just too scared to go for it.
“I went over the next banana and my coach had told me there would be no air, which is something that I’m always worried about every time I race this course.
“I used to love having air but I crashed in a race once, and it completely took away my confidence of using the air to my advantage.
“There was one gate through which my coach told me I had to really tense my core, which I did and it felt amazing.
“But then I caught my arm coming through another gate and lost my pole, so I got into the tuck as soon as I could because I knew I was going to lose time.
“Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to get me the title, but I’m still happy with second. It’s good enough for me.”
Next up for Daniels is the Under-16 Giant Slalom later in the week, a discipline in which she is confident she can get the job done.
But having missed out on the title in the Super G, she insists there is plenty of work to do if she is to take home another piece of silverware.
“I’m going to prep my skis for the snow, and I hope that I get a good start. I had a good bib number today but clearly didn’t perform for the top spot,” she said.
“The Giant Slalom will be a good race and I’ll put as much pressure on the other competitors as I can.
“I want to try and win. It’s one of my favourite disciplines, probably my second behind Super G, so I’d love to get top spot on the podium.”
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Image courtesy of Racer Ready, with thanks.
