LAKE PLACID, N.Y. (AP) - Noelle Pikus-Pace tugged on her hat, waved to a few fans and posed for a photo with one of her closest friends before walking off the finish deck at Mount Van Hoevenberg.
And although it wasn't the shade she wanted, her last race on U.S. soil was a medalwinner.
Pikus-Pace finished third in a World Cup skeleton race sunday morning in Lake Placid, the final time she will race in the U.S. before her retirement becomes official after the Sochi Olympics. Elizabeth Yarnold of Britain won the race in 56.27 seconds, Austria's Janine Flock was second in 56.61 seconds and Pikus-Pace's time was 56.72 seconds.