DUESSELDORF, Germany (December 5, 2009) Canada's Chandra Crawford may have not won the race, but definitely felt like she was standing on top of the podium after a 12th-place finish in a skate-ski sprint race at the World Cup in Dusseldorf, Germany, on Saturday.

With just over 70 days until the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, the 26-year-old had still not punched her Olympic ticket after being forced to the sidelines last year with an ankle injury. In just her third race back after a long season of recovery, Crawford continued her slow, albeit steady, progress to the form that has found her on the top of the World Cup and Olympic podium four times.

"I am super relieved and thrilled that I was able to get my Olympic qualifier," said Crawford, who needed a top-20 finish on the World Cup. "It was really close, but I felt pretty relaxed and it was great to have the nerves and adrenaline of racing again."

Close is an understatement. After qualifying in 27th spot for the head-to-head heats with the top-30 athletes, Crawford crossed the line third in her quarter-final heat. The top-two athletes advance to the next round, along with the next two fastest times. Competing in the fastest heat of the opening round, Crawford was one of the two "Lucky Losers" who moved into the semis where her quest for the podium came to an end.

"I was already starting to look to my next chance to qualify next weekend, but I had a really fast heat and got to move on," said a beaming Crawford, who also raced two distance races earlier this year. "I got three good races in today with the qualifier, quarter-final round and semis. This will be a good confidence booster for me and I'm going to continue to build from here."

In addition to her confidence, Crawford is also focused on ensuring she remains healthy and builds her shape with a plan of peaking in February.

"My new boots are great and everything is feeling really good with my ankles so that is a great feeling for me," said Crawford. "My shape is coming, but I have a long way to go and will keep working on it. I still have 70 days or so of good training and will be working extremely hard."

The only other Canadian joining Crawford in the sprint through the streets of downtown Dusseldorf was Perianne Jones, of Almonte, Ont. The 24-year-old, who pre-Qualified for the 2010 Games after her sixth-place finish at the World Championships in the team sprint with Sara Renner last year, narrowly missed qualifying for the round of 30 by a blink of an eye after posting a time of 1:49.66. The 30th-place time was 1:49.14.

Sweden's Hana Falk took home the gold medal, while Russia's Natalia Korosteleva was second and Vesna Fabjan, of Slovenia, grabbed the bronze.

Crawford and Jones will join forces for the team sprint on Sunday in Dusseldorf, Germany. The remainder of the Canadian squad will not race this weekend in order to prepare for the upcoming Tour de Ski, which takes place during the holiday season.

Cross Country Canada is the governing body of cross-country skiing in Canada. Its 51,000 members include athletes, coaches, officials and skiers of all ages and abilities, including those on Canada's National Ski Teams and Para-Nordic Ski Teams. Cross-country skiing is Canada's optimal winter sport and recreational activity with more than one million Canadians participating annually.

Complete World Cup Results: www.fis-ski.com
Top-5 Women's Results:

1. Hana Falk, SWE; 2. Natalia Korosteleva, RUS; 3. Vesna Fabjan, SLO; 4. Ida Ingemarsdotter, SWE; 5. Celine Brun-Lie, NOR

Canadian Results:

12. Chandra Crawford, Canmore, Alta.; 35. Perianne Jones, Almonte, Ont.