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Guay grabs shock win at Ski World Championships

February 8, 2017

Veteran Canadian skier Erik Guay broke a long winning drought at exactly the right time. In a shock result, Guay pipped Olympic champion Kjetil Jansrud, of Norway, to gold in the super G.

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Ski alpin Weltmeisterschaft Erik Guay
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/H. Fohringer

Guay sealed the emotional victory at the Alpine World Ski Championships in St. Moritz on Wednesday. The 35-year-old earned his first victory in almost three years when he beat favorite Jansrud by 0.45 seconds.

The Norwegian skier dominated the super-G throughout this season, winning three events already, but Guay was able to edge him off the gold medal with a time of 1min 25.83sec. Guay's compatriot, Manuel Osborne-Paradis securing bronze on his 33rd birthday.

"It's incredible. I'm as happy as can be,” said Guay who underwent knee surgery back in 2014 and almost decided to put an end to his career. It had been seven years since Guay won a season-long World Cup title in super-G.

FIS World Ski Championships - Men's Super G Eric Guay
Guay timed 1:25:38 down the 1.9km-long Corviglia course in overcast conditions.Image: Getty Images/A. Hassenstein

"It's just the whole history with coming back from injuries… coming back here and forgetting about everything and enjoying it,” said the Quebec native.

Although Norway's men won five of the past seven Olympic titles in super-G, the nation's winless streak at the World Championships was extended to nine.

This is Guay's second world title after winning the downhill event during the 2011 Alpine World Ski Championships in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.