InsideJapan News Network

Aiko Uemura, the Japanese freestyle moguls skier finished in second place at an FIS official event in Colorado, United States, on Monday (December 19th).

In what was her first FIS meet in two seasons, the former World Cup winner performed well to finish behind Australian Britteny Cox, the Mainichi Daily reported.

Uemura finished qualifying for the tournament, which was held at Steamboat Springs, in third place but despite a slightly nervy start rallied to finish in second place with a score of 23.07.

Japanese skier Tae Satoya finished the tournament in fifth place.

The performance will stand Uemura in good stead to regain her place on the World Cup circuit.

After the competition, the skier, who turned 32 this month, said: "I still have to gain strength. It will be hard for me to make aggressive turns this year. I don't want to push myself too hard," the news provider quoted.

Uemura, who is married to alpine skier Kentaro Minagawa, became the first ever Japanese skier to win the World Cup moguls in 2008.

After narrowly missing out on a medal at her fourth successive Winter Olympics with a fourth place finish at the Vancouver Olympics last year, she decided to take time out from the sport.


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