Piera Hudson's smile says it all after she clinches the final giant slalom race at Thaiwoo Ski Resort during the Far East Cup campaign to boost her world ranking to No 30. Photo / Supplied
Piera Hudson's smile says it all after she clinches the final giant slalom race at Thaiwoo Ski Resort during the Far East Cup campaign to boost her world ranking to No 30. Photo / Supplied
Hawke's Bay alpine ski racer Piera Hudson has signed off from the Far East Cup campaign in China on a high note after another emphatic victory.
Hudson won the women's giant slalom discipline at the Thaiwoo Ski Resort last night, improving to the third place she had claimed onTuesday.
That came on the heels of the two podium finishes (first and third) she had claimed at the Wanlong Ski Resort in China last week.
"I had a really great day in the last race of the series," the 23-year-old said soon after from Zhangjiakou. "I won today and scored another PB so I will be ranked inside the top 30 in giant slalom on the next FIS world ranking list."
Hudson now jets off to Europe on a confidence fix as she embarks on an arduous journey to secure a maiden berth at the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022, after missing out on the Pyeongchang one last year and Sochi in Russia 2014.
A more immediate goal is to make the cut for the Olympic qualification muster, which won't begin until next year but the points she's accruing now are crucial in teeing her up for the qualifiers.
"I'm really happy to end the series on a high with another great result and to head back to Europe feeling like the mission was accomplished after a successful week of racing," she said.
Hudson will find her mark in the Parallel Slalom World Cup in St Moritz, Switzerland, this weekend, before gauging her worth in the giant slalom World Cup in Courchevel, France, early next week.
Yesterday, the former Woodford House pupil held the lead from the first run before finishing 0.65s ahead of Hilma Loevblom, of Sweden. Zuzanna Czapska, of Poland, was third. It was reversal of positions on Monday although Czapska was consistent in maintaining her second place on the podium.
Hudson, who is under the tutelage of Jonny Rice and assistant mentor Sami Corne, will create history if she goes on to become the first winter Olympian from the Bay.
