SANDRA NAESLUND from Sweden broke Canada’s dominance in the women’s free skicross to win the gold at Beijing 2022 on Thursday afternoon. Canada had never conceded the event’s Olympic gold before. Naeslund, 25, who finished fourth at Pyeongchang 2018 but topped the World Cup rankings in the 2021-22 season, made a flash start in the four-athlete big final including Marielle Thompson from Canada, Daniela Maier from Germany and Fanny Smith from Switzerland. In the final, which had almost been postponed by the heavy snow, Naeslund led from the start to the end but the chasers closely followed her throughout the duel. “I did it. It feels so great,” said Naeslund after the big final. “I was feeling pretty good today, and the skiing was great, but it was hard with the snow. I didn’t know what speed it would be each run, so that was pretty difficult,” she added. The 29-year-old Thompson, the champion at Sochi 2014, tried to overtake Naeslund several times at curves but failed and had to settle for the silver. “The Olympics is such a different race every time. But the fastest girl won today and Sandra skied really well,” said Thompson.(Xinhua) | 