British Alpine Squad 2018/19 Named
After a stellar season highlighted by two top 10 Olympic finishes, the British Alpine Team is ready to launch into 2018/19 with 31 athletes selected across three squads.
The British Alpine World Cup Squad consists of the four athletes which were selected for PyeongChang and went on to collectively claim a share of fifth place in the inaugural Olympic Alpine Team Event.
Dave Ryding, who also earned an individual top 10 in Korea, leads the squad on the back of 11 World Cup top 10s including a podium over the last two seasons. Fellow slalom specialist Laurie Taylor steps up from the Europa Cup squad after a top 30 individual performance in PyeongChang and fourth place overall in the Far East Cup slalom standings.
Alex Tilley scored her best-ever World Cup result with 13th at Courchevel in December and will be looking for an even more consistent stream of top-level results this season. Charlie Guest returns again to the World Cup squad after an injury-hampered season which still delivered a 33rd place individual slalom finish in PyeongChang and four FIS race victories including her fourth national slalom title in the last five years.
There are three additions to the British Europa Cup squad for 2018/19: Iain Innes, Zak Vinter and Robert Poth.
Innes comes into the squad as the overall national champion (shared with Billy Major) and the overall national junior champion after a strong week at the Delancey British National Alpine Ski Championships in Tignes earlier this year. At that event, Vinter finished second behind Ryding in the men’s slalom and was also the recipient of the Craig Macfie Foundation training grant. Poth, a technical specialist, had a series of strong results in Junior, CIT and FIS races this season and – like Innes and Vinter – he steps up from the FIS Squad.
The trio join Cara Brown, Jack Gower, Billy Major, Nick Moynihan and Charlie Raposo who remain in the EC Squad from last season.
The FIS squad features 19 athletes, with Charles Rankin, Leonidis Karavasili, Soneva Scott and Lois Jackson joining 15 athletes continuing on from the 2017/18 programme.
Head alpine coach Reini Fernsebner says that it is an exciting time for the discipline with the strength and depth of talent continually on the rise.
“There is some great talent coming through and as we move into the next Olympic cycle there is no doubt that a number of athletes we have selected in the FIS and Europa Cup squads will start to push our World Cup athletes,” said Fernsebner.
“That’s the kind of environment we want to create, where we have healthy competition amongst our best skiers, pushing each other to be their best which will bring good results at the biggest competitions in Europe and America.”
The 2018/19 FIS alpine season kicks off in South America, Australia and New Zealand in July and August. The first World Cup events take place in October while this season also features the World Championships, World Junior Championships and the European Youth Olympic Winter Festival.
2018/19 BRITISH ALPINE WORLD CUP SQUAD
Charlie Guest (24, Perth SCO), Dave Ryding (31, Preston ENG), Laurie Taylor (22, Basingstoke ENG), Alex Tilley (24, Torphins SCO)
2018/19 BRITISH ALPINE EUROPA CUP SQUAD
Cara Brown (24, London ENG), Jack Gower (23, Chichester ENG), Iain Innes (20, Edinburgh SCO), Billy Major (21, Saffron Walden ENG), Nick Moynihan (24, Tunbridge Wells, ENG), Robert Poth (20, Potters Bar ENG), Charlie Raposo (22, London ENG), Zak Vinter (19, Glasgow SCO)
BRITISH ALPINE FIS SQUAD
Jess Anderson (19, Hannington ENG), Reece Bell (16, Vail USA), Will Beney (18, Vermont USA), Abi Bruce (17, Fetcham ENG), Honor Clissold (20, Richmond ENG), Olivia Foster (17, Leatherhead ENG), Tom Hudson (17, Bury St Edmunds ENG), Lois Jackson (16, Newcastle ENG), Leonidis Karavasili (18), Alicja Krahelski (18, London ENG), Darcie Mead (21, Kingston ENG), Fraser Middleton (19, Glasgow SCO), Victoria Palla (17, Zell am See AUT), Charlie Rankin (16, Glasgow SCO), Soneva Scott (16, Colorado USA), Max Vaughton (19, Haute Savoie FRA), Owen Vinter (16, Glasgow SCO), Angus Wills (19,London ENG), Sarah Woodward (16, Odiham ENG)
Head Coach: Reini Fernsebner
Ladies’ World Cup Coach: Noel Baxter
Men’s World Cup Coach: Tristan Glasse-Davies
Europa Cup Coaches: Stefan Leitner, Mike Pilarski
