Cdn snowboarder takes bronze at World Cup

The Canadian hot streak in men's World Cup snowboarding came to an end Sunday on an icy mountain in Stoneham, Que.A Canuck boarder had won gold in each of the first four parallel giant-slalom races to start the season, but a pair of powerful Austrian riders took the top podium spots away from the speedy Canadian team - on home turf, to boot.World No. 1 Benjamin (Benji) Karl beat Andreas Prommegger to win the gold Sunday. Prommegger took home the silver in an event packed with elite snowboarders.Veteran Jasey-Jay Anderson of Mont-Tremblant, Que., won the bronze.Anderson, who has two World Cup victories this season and ranks No. 2 in the world, said the hill's icy conditions gave him a lot of trouble.He considered himself lucky to finish third."It was very intense, I felt like I was on a battlefield," said Anderson, 34, who lost to Karl in the semifinals."There's not much you can do with this, just survival. It's controlled mayhem, if that makes any sense."Toronto's Michael Lambert took seventh place.Lambert needed a top-five finish to guarantee himself a spot on the Canadian Olympic team, but is still expected to make the squad."Obviously, right after the event, it stung a bit, but I'm feeling good right now," said Lambert, who lost to Prommegger in the quarter-final.With the result, the 29-year-old Prommegger bumped him out of the No. 3 rung in the World Cup rankings."Andy (Prommegger) rode really well today," said Lambert, who beat his Austrian rival head to head earlier this month to win gold in Nendaz, Switzerland."I know that he's a competitor - I also know I can beat him."Matthew Morison of Burketon, Ont., who sat out Sunday's race to rest an injured elbow, has the other Canadian victory for the men this season.Morison, 22, is expected to be ready for the Olympics.Karl said Canada's Anderson-Lambert-Morison attack has been a force on the World Cup tour."They have a strong team - there are three riders who can win every time," said Karl, who won for the third year in a row at Stoneham."Yeah, I think they will give the hardest fight."Karl, who says he's feeling better than he has all season, likes Cypress Mountain, the site of all snowboarding events during the Games."I had a really good training there," the 24-year-old said of last year's visit. "I'm looking forward to the Olympics."The Austrians could also have a three-pronged attack of their own in Vancouver, if 2009 World Cup champion Siegfried Grabner returns from an ankle injury he suffered last month.Still, Anderson remains confident as he heads into his fourth Olympic Games."We have ferocious competitors right now in Benji and Andreas, who are very strong," he said."I'm a little more volatile than them, but when it's my day I think it's tough to count me out."In the women's event Sunday, Caroline Calve of Aylmer, Que., who was also battling to make the Canadian squad, finished seventh."This day was challenging for me, just knowing that my parents are here, my friends, everyone," she said after racing to her best result of the season."It really is a boost for my confidence."Russia's Svetlana Boldykova won the gold and her teammate, Alena Zavarzina, grabbed the silver. Nathalie Desmares of France captured the bronze.