Holland 5th in qualifications in snowboardcross

By Lindsey Sine, U.S. Snowboarding

TELLURIDE, Colo. – Falling snow had nothing on Nick Baumgartner of Iron River, Mich., Wednesday as the World Championship bronze medalist led the U.S. in first during the qualifications for the Visa U.S. Snowboardcross Cup at Telluride Resort in Colorado.

Baumgartner led the way for 11 U.S. men into the final round, with Nate Holland of Squaw Valley in fifth, Seth Wescott of Sugarloaf, Maine, in seventh to round out the U.S. men in the top 10.

Sitting lower in the rankings headed into the second qualification run, Baumgartner decided that even with the extra snowfall, he was going to try a different strategy for the race, and it paid off.

On the women’s side, Lindsey Jacobellis of Vermont and Callan Chythlook-Sifsof of Alaska laid down a solid run time to finish fifth and sixth respectively.

The top 32 men and 16 women will go on to compete in the Visa U.S. Snowboardcross Cup on Friday.

Official results, Visa U.S. Snowboardcross Cup, Telluride, Colo., Qualifications

Men

1. Nick Baumgartner, Iron River, MI

2. Robert Fagan, Canada

3. Alberto Schiavon, Italy

4. Jake Holden, Canada

5. Nate Holland, Squaw Valley, CA

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7. Seth Wescott, Sugarloaf, ME

14. Shaun Palmer, South Lake Tahoe, CA

16. Alex Deibold, Manchester Center, VT

17. Graham Watanabe, Sun Valley, ID

19. Ross Powers, Stratton Mountain, VT

26. JJ Tomlinson, Park City, UT

27. Jayson Hale, Sierraville, CA

28. Jonathan Cheever, Saugus, MA

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31. Alex Tuttle, Sugarloaf, ME

Women

1. Dominique Maltais, Canada

2. Alexandra Jekova, Bulgaria

3. Helene Olafsen, Norway

4. Maelle Ricker, Canada

5. Lindsey Jacobellis, Stratton Mountain, VT

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6. Callan Chythlook-Sifsof, Girdwood, AK