Skier Nino Tsiklauri scores best results of FIS season in Italy

Skier Nino Tsiklauri has scored best results of the ongoing season after placing in top five of two giant slalom contests at Italy's Plan de Corones and Kronplatz arenas, out of five descents she entered concluding this week.

Tsiklauri, 27, missed most of the season action due to the pandemic and said in December she had not been on skis for three months, however the competitions over the past week proved to be the right place and timing for the skier.

The five slalom and giant slalom legs were held at three Italian winter resorts, with Alleghe joining the former two to form International Ski Federation-mandated fixtures.

It's been a busy 5 days with 2GS best results of the season and a World Cup start! Even if I didn't finish first run at WC I got huge experience and I tried to get back the feelings on injected slope," Tsiklauri told her social media followers on Wendesday to summarise the competitions.

On Sunday, the Georgian crossed the timing line in Kronplatz in the first run with the time of 1:12.12 and completed the second run in 1:14.62, clocking a combined time of 2:26.74 that placed her fourth, 0.43 seconds off Spain's Celia Abad and 0.01 seconds ahead of local Laura Steinmair.

At the Plan de Corones giant slalom the following day, Tsiklauri stopped the timing at 1:10.21 and 1:12.43 in the first and second runs respectively, finishing with the combined result of 2:22.64 and earning the fifth spot. The time placed her 0.03 seconds behind Canada's Caroline Beauchamp and 0.02 seconds in front of Italy's Gaia Palamara, to close off another closely contested descent.

The two races were categorised as National Junior Championships, with the Georgian also entering a third contest under the category on Friday, a CIT fixture on Sunday, and a World Cup event at Kronplatz on Tuesday. She did not finish her first runs in two of the descents, and ended up 23rd in the CIT.