Triumphant Guay takes super-G title
Source: Agencies |
March 12, 2010, Friday
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CANADA'S Erik Guay won the final super-G of the season to snatch the Alpine ski World Cup title in the discipline in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, yesterday.
Guay leapfrogged Michael Walchhofer and Aksel Lund Svindal in the standings after a dramatic finale on a snowy, foggy day.
Austria's Walchhofer began the day with a 46-point lead and needing only a top-eight finish to clinch the trophy but blew his chances when he could manage only 15th place, while Norwegian Svindal was third. Ivica Kostelic finished second.
Guay covered 2,200-meter Kandahar course in 1 minute, 26.36 seconds to leave Croatia's Kostelic behind. Kostelic had a surprisingly strong race, making the podium in the event for the first time this season with a time of 1:26.75. Svindal clocked 1:26.99.
Swiss Carlo Janka finished joint 11th to stay top of the overall World Cup standings but his lead over Benjamin Raich was cut when the Austrian finished sixth.
"I don't know what happened," Walchhofer said. "I felt pretty good at the start; I made a couple of mistakes but I cannot really analyze what happened.
"It wasn't quite just enough for the title. Obviously I'm really disappointed but now everything is behind me."
Guay told reporters: "I had to go for it, I knew I had to win and that I had only a small chance of winning the trophy. I fought as hard as possible and made some mistakes but I kept pushing all the time."
By winning the last two of the six super-G races, Guay swept past his two rivals to claim the title with 331 points. Walchhofer had 316 points and Svindal finished with 314.
Also, Lindsey Vonn's bid for a third successive overall World Cup title was hit when she crashed out of the giant slalom yesterday and Maria Riesch kept her outside hopes alive.
Double Olympic champion Riesch, the only skier who can catch Vonn, finished third to follow her win in the previous day's downhill.
American Vonn now leads by 165 points with today's super-G and tomorrow's slalom left in the season. One hundred points are awarded to the winner of each race.
Slovenia's Tina Maze won yesterday and Kathrin Hoelzl of Germany finished second to clinch the season's giant slalom title.
Vonn spun off around a quarter of way down the Kandahar course on her first run, got up and skied down the rest of the course.
A spokesman for the United States team said she had left the venue to undergo tests. If Vonn cannot ski in the final two races then she will have to sit out and hope Riesch does not overhaul her total.
Vonn, who overcame injury problems to win the Olympic downhill title in Vancouver last month, is bidding to become the first woman since Austria's Petra Kronberger to win three successive overall Alpine world titles.
It had looked a formality at the start of the Garmisch meeting, which concludes the World Cup season.
Vonn could have clinched the downhill on Wednesday with the right combination of results but she finished second behind Riesch, only the second time she has failed to win in eight downhills this season.
Guay leapfrogged Michael Walchhofer and Aksel Lund Svindal in the standings after a dramatic finale on a snowy, foggy day.
Austria's Walchhofer began the day with a 46-point lead and needing only a top-eight finish to clinch the trophy but blew his chances when he could manage only 15th place, while Norwegian Svindal was third. Ivica Kostelic finished second.
Guay covered 2,200-meter Kandahar course in 1 minute, 26.36 seconds to leave Croatia's Kostelic behind. Kostelic had a surprisingly strong race, making the podium in the event for the first time this season with a time of 1:26.75. Svindal clocked 1:26.99.
Swiss Carlo Janka finished joint 11th to stay top of the overall World Cup standings but his lead over Benjamin Raich was cut when the Austrian finished sixth.
"I don't know what happened," Walchhofer said. "I felt pretty good at the start; I made a couple of mistakes but I cannot really analyze what happened.
"It wasn't quite just enough for the title. Obviously I'm really disappointed but now everything is behind me."
Guay told reporters: "I had to go for it, I knew I had to win and that I had only a small chance of winning the trophy. I fought as hard as possible and made some mistakes but I kept pushing all the time."
By winning the last two of the six super-G races, Guay swept past his two rivals to claim the title with 331 points. Walchhofer had 316 points and Svindal finished with 314.
Also, Lindsey Vonn's bid for a third successive overall World Cup title was hit when she crashed out of the giant slalom yesterday and Maria Riesch kept her outside hopes alive.
Double Olympic champion Riesch, the only skier who can catch Vonn, finished third to follow her win in the previous day's downhill.
American Vonn now leads by 165 points with today's super-G and tomorrow's slalom left in the season. One hundred points are awarded to the winner of each race.
Slovenia's Tina Maze won yesterday and Kathrin Hoelzl of Germany finished second to clinch the season's giant slalom title.
Vonn spun off around a quarter of way down the Kandahar course on her first run, got up and skied down the rest of the course.
A spokesman for the United States team said she had left the venue to undergo tests. If Vonn cannot ski in the final two races then she will have to sit out and hope Riesch does not overhaul her total.
Vonn, who overcame injury problems to win the Olympic downhill title in Vancouver last month, is bidding to become the first woman since Austria's Petra Kronberger to win three successive overall Alpine world titles.
It had looked a formality at the start of the Garmisch meeting, which concludes the World Cup season.
Vonn could have clinched the downhill on Wednesday with the right combination of results but she finished second behind Riesch, only the second time she has failed to win in eight downhills this season.
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