If you ask Justine Dufour-Lapointe, what she and her sisters pulled off last week "might not be top-able." As in, they're not quite sure how to outdo themselves.
At Quebec's Val Saint-Come ski resort, the trio—Justine, the reigning Olympic moguls champion, 21; Olympic silver medallist Chloe, 24; and Maxime, 26—made history, becoming the first-ever Canadian women to sweep a freestyle ski podium. It also marked a first for siblings of any nationality to finish 1, 2, 3.
"I think we'll be processing it forever, what we did," says Chloe. "More and more as the days go on I say, 'Oh my god, that's big!'"
The World Cup Tour moves to Calgary this weekend at Canada Olympic Park. Once again, Canadian mogul skiers will be the team to watch on both the men's and women's sides. Quebec's Mikael Kingsbury is a five-time champion in Calgary.
The D-L Sister Sweep was the highlight last weekend, and Canada occupied five of six spots on the podium. On the men's side, Laurent Dumais earned bronze, and Kingsbury, the reigning Olympic silver medallist, added another World Cup gold medal to his collection—a record 30th. That's the most wins of any man in World Cup moguls history.
Justine isn't sure why the Canadian team is so good; it may have something to do with a strong program year after year, inspiring the next generation. "And I think we're just crazy enough to go downhill really fast with icy bumps," she says. "That's the way it is. I think it's the passion.
"The other countries are looking at us; what we're doing for jumps, speed. I think they record us," she adds. "But that's normal. It's part of the game."
And now, in the minds of the Dufour-Lapointe sisters, a sweep is part of the game, too. "We now know it's possible," says Maxime.
She and Chloe had finished their runs at Val Saint-Come ski resort this past Saturday, and were sitting 1-2, with only Justine left to do her final run.
"I was just thinking: Do a good run, do your best!" Chloe says. "There was nothing else I could do. I screamed so loud."
Justine knew a performance in the top 3 would give the sisters the sweep. "In my head I'm thinking, 'Why not just take control? This is your opportunity," she says. "I just skied with my heart and my guts."
On her second jump, Justine nailed a 360, a trick she'd crashed on in the morning training session. At that moment, Chloe and Maxime knew the podium was theirs.
"We all went nuts, started screaming, jumping around, not comprehending the whole thing," Maxime says. "The crowd went mad. I felt like we won the Super Bowl."
Chloe, who has the yellow jersey as the top female mogul skier on the World Cup circuit, calls it "the best feeling ever."
And it's a pretty addictive feeling, the Dufour-Lapointes admit. "I want us to keep doing that," Justine says, "being consistently on the podium."
"Maybe another Canadian sweep in Calgary," she adds, of Saturday's event. "That would be amazing. Why not? I always say to myself: 'Why not? Just go for it.'"
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