FREESTYLE
World Cup
Many of Therrien’s athletes, inspired to maintain a pas-
sion for freestyle, have become coaches and further
spread the gospel, explains David Mirota, the CFSA high
performance program director (and one of Therrien’s
disciples).
And that’s what separates Quebec from the other prov-
inces: keeping retired national team athletes in the sys-
tem, paying them enough money to be full-time coaches,
building water ramps for summer training, getting provin-
cial government funding to build a World Cup training
run (but keeping the regional-caliber run beside it, thus
allowing kids to progress at their own pace).
The Quebec “star system” instills an allegiance to the
sport and a belief that every racer is capable of making
it to the very top. It also creates an atmosphere of cohe-
sion among athletes, parents and coaches — a feeling
that they are all part of one giant extended family.
“Quebec has a strong school of learned coaches, great
athletes and the perfect infrastructure with the right sup-
portive environment,” says Russia’s Denis Dolgodvorov,
ranked fifth in the world for moguls. “These three factors
make world champions — even if they are in Mongolia.”
Jean-Paul Richard, now head coach of the woman’s na-
tional team is another reason for Quebec’s dominance.
When he and Mirota coached the Quebec team, their
attitude was slow, long-term and big-time. They split the
team into junior (under 16) and senior (over 16) sections
and trained them both as if they were a national program
with intense, sport-specific dryland, and training camps
in Chile, Argentina, France and Whistler.
But Richard kept his junior team close to home for com-
petitions and brought them to national and internation-
al races only when they could start producing results.
He wanted them to win. Most of those kids, including
Kingsbury and Dufour-Lapointe, are now on the national
team.
“Western coaches are really focused on technique,”
says Alberta-born moguls skier Chelsea Henitiuk. “Que-
bec coaches are really focused on getting the gold. It’s
way more ‘Go for it, go fast and go big’ around here.”
And if all else fails, there’s a bowl of poutine at the base
area.
Dufour-Lapointe of Montreal and
Kingsbury of Deux-Montagnes,
Quebec, celebrate their podiums at
Mont Gabriel.
