Val di Sole: Jackson Goldstone wins at 19 on the Black Snake!

It was the leitmotif of this World Cup Downhill up to now: the explosion on the big stage of new very young talents, capable of forging ahead and putting the giants of the discipline behind them, without the shadow of awe.

Source: Vitesse press release

After Jordan Williams and Christian Hauser a Lenzerheide, both able to win in their first ever race in the World Cup respectively as Elite and Junior, in Val di Sole it was another terrible nineteen year old who broke the ice.

SEE JACKSON GOLDSTONE'S RUN

Canadian Jackson Goldstone (Santa Cruz Syndicate) scored his first victory as an Elite in the World Cup Downhill, and certainly not the last: the disappointment of 2022 has already been forgotten, when as a Junior, in the grand final of the World Cup in Val di Sole, a fall made a victory that seemed within reach fade away.

Between Friday and Saturday, the nineteen year old from Squamish, British Columbia, appeared at ease in all three descents: fast, clean, above all effective. In Saturday's final, his only mistake was committed right at the start, perhaps due to the desire to give his best when he felt that this day could be his. Goldstone finished his test in 3.34.926, floating on a terrain marked by passages and by the rain that has often poured into Val di Sole since Friday evening, and also wet a good part of the men's Elite test, however giving a break during the latest departures.

Behind Goldstone another Canadian, Finn Iles (Specialized Gravity, +2.224), third position for Thibaut Daprela (Commencal/Muc-Off), author as usual of a race all on the razor's edge, this time with the happy ending of a weight placement in the temple of Downhill world championship, 2.440 from the winner.

“I have no words, I am very happy. I ran a full run to the limit, pushing hard from the first corner. I made several mistakes, but managed to keep the flow. At the top I immediately made a mistake, but I was so focused that I mentally overcame it,” Goldstone recounted. “In that section I was pushing too much, luckily I saved myself. At first I was a bit tense because of the rain, but then I thought that after this race we will have a few weeks off, and it was worth trying to do something special. Today it wasn't easy to find the feeling on the ground, to understand the limit, but luckily my teammates Laurie Greenland and Greg Minnaar, who went down before me, gave me the right advice."

Fourth place for the Australian Troy Brosnan, fifth place for the other Frenchman, Loris Vergier, winner a year ago in Val di Sole, just ahead of the European Champion Andreas Kolb, while the world champion Loic Bruni, 14, is not satisfied in Trentino °, penalized by the wet and slippery ground in that stage of the race. The British Jordan Williams, brilliant protagonist of the qualifications and the semifinal round, instead made a serious mistake in the central part which cost him a fall without serious consequences.

No Italian rider managed to qualify for the final round: in the semifinal, Davide Cappello finished in 31st place, just outside the thirtieth place that would have earned him access to the final.

Thanks to the success in Val di Sole, Jackson Goldstone conquered the top of the general classification of the World Cup with 786 points, ahead of his compatriot Iles (774) and the French Vergier (742).

MEN'S ELITE RANKING

1.		GOLDSTONE Jackson * SANTA CRUZ SYNDICATE	3:34.926
2.		ILES Finn SPECIALIZED GRAVITY	3:37.150 +2.224
3.		DAPRELA Thibaut * COMMENCAL/MUC-OFF BY RIDING ADDICTION	3:37.366 +2.440
4.		BROSNAN Troy CANYON CLLCTV FACTORY TEAM	3:38.797 +3.871
5.		VERGIER Loris TREK FACTORY RACING GRAVITY	3:39.121 +4.195
6.		KOLB Andreas CONTINENTAL ATHERTON	3:39.311 +4.385
7.		KERR Bernard PIVOT FACTORY RACING	3:40.945 +6.019
8.		COULANGES Benoit DORVAL AM COMMENCAL	3:42.337 +7.411
9.		HART Danny CUBE FACTORY RACING	3:42.685 +7.759
10.		MEIER-SMITH Remy * GIANT FACTORY OFF-ROAD TEAM – DH	3:42.984 +8.058

REVIEW THE SEMIFINALS

VAL DI SOLE COMPETITION PROGRAM