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Alpine skiers prepare for emotional World Cup opener

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The Alpine Ski World Cup will soon begin in Lake Louise, but the event has been overshadowed by the death of David Poisson, who would also have competed there.

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LAKE LOUISE: The death of France’s two-time Olympian David Poisson will weigh heavily on the hearts and minds of downhill ski racers as they start their season on Saturday in Lake Louise, Canada.

Poisson, a downhill bronze medallist at the 2013 World Championships, was killed after he lost a ski, went through the safety netting, and struck a tree during training on November 13 at the Nakiska ski resort.

The 35-year-old Poisson was travelling at over 100 kilometres per hour when he lost his balance on a curve.

The Nakiska resort was used during the 1988 Calgary Olympics and is popular with many teams for preparations ahead of the World Cup events in the Canadian Rockies, which traditionally open the speed season.

The racers have yet to test the conditions of the Lake Louise course this week because of the cancellations of Wednesday’s and Thursday’s training runs due to rain and temperatures which were warmer than normal.

Poisson, who lost his own father to cancer just over three weeks ago, was a hugely popular figure on the World Cup circuit. He was known by his nickname of “Caillou” – the French for pebble – given his short, muscular build.

“My heart goes out to David Poisson’s family, friends and teammates. He was a good man, a beast, and a friend. I will miss him,” US skier Steven Nyman said in a tweet.

Poisson made his World Cup debut in 2004 at the age of 20, earning his sole podium when he finished third in the downhill in Santa Caterina last season.

Poisson, the father of a young son, took part at the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics at Vancouver and Sochi, finishing seventh and 16th respectively in the downhill races.

The Frenchman’s death is the 12th on the professional circuit, the last coming when compatriot Régine Cavagnoud died after hitting a German coach at the Austrian resort of Pitztal in 2001.

Ski racing remains a danger-laden sport, with injuries and crashes commonplace and in no place is the danger more evident than at Kitzbühel’s “Streif” piste, a 3.3-km-long rollercoaster of a run with an average gradient of 28°, where skiers have to negotiate an 80-metre jump.

Poisson claimed a top-10 finish in Kitzbühel on three occasions, each time left revelling in his mastery of the ultimate test for a professional ski racer.

By contrast, the Lake Louise course is considered one of the easier downhills on the World Cup circuit. Saturday’s downhill will be followed by a Super-G race on Sunday.

Canadian race officials say they have installed several kilometres of safety netting on the course this year, with the majority stretching from the start gate to the Tickety Chutes section. Course designers have also put up willy bags and air fences to protect the racers.

Laura Flessel-Colovic, the French sports minister, also expressed her sadness and said she would look carefully into the circumstances of the tragedy at Nakiska.

The last death of an athlete during an Olympic Games also took place at a Canadian ski resort. Luger Nodar Kumaritashvili of Georgia was killed during a training run for the 2010 Winter Games when he lost control on a sharp curve and was thrown over the sidewall, striking an unprotected steel support beam in Whistler, British Columbia.

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