Another win for Hirscher as Ligety misses podium opportunity
It wasn’t nearly as dominant as his GS performance earlier in the weekend, but an additional 100 points were the result for Marcel Hirscher at Sunday’s slalom in Are, Sweden. With the win, the Austrian regains the lead in the overall standings ahead of his dominant counterpart on the speed side, Kjetil Jansrud.
The Swedish venue does not often host the men’s World Cup tour — the last time was in 2009. The weekend’s events had to be thrown together due to a lack of snow in Val d’Isere, France. An “easier” slope, the hill in Sweden rewards clean skiing and athletes who can best carry speed. But the overly ambitious can also find themselves blowing out.
Hirscher, who finished with a combined time of 1 minute, 40.37 seconds, had to battle strong challenges from the likes of Felix Neureuther, who won the first run but couldn’t quite hang on to the lead in the second. The German was fast out of the start but got late in the middle part of the course, which ultimately proved to be the difference. He finished in second place by one-tenth of a second behind the Austrian.
Hirscher was not initially thrilled that these events were moved to Are — he didn’t think the hill necessarily suited him — but with two wins in two races, who can complain?
“After this weekend, I have to say, ‘I don’t care if we are racing in Val d’Isere or here,’” Hirscher said. “It is an unbelievable week and 200 points. … It is good that I am in perfect shape and can ski with the fastest guys on the World Cup tour. But in general, it doesn’t matter if you have the (red leader’s) bib right now.”
Asked to comment on the upcoming tech events in Alta Badia and Campiglio, Hirscher simply said, “Good. Nice hotel. That’s it.”
Neureuther had a slow start to the season due to back injury; there were rumors he had tweaked it again and his participation in the race was in jeopardy. A win would have placed Neureuther in exclusive company among his countrymen. With nine World Cup victories to his name, Neureuther would have been the first German man to reach the double-figure mark in terms of World Cup wins. Instead, he remains tied with Markus Wasmeier with nine (including wins for West Germany).
“Today was very good, very close to Marcel,” said Neureuther. “I just need some more training and the I think I can get into better shape. … I still have to be a little bit careful (with my injury). I can’t do quite as many runs, like the others do. But those runs that I make, I really have to focus so that they are good.”
Neureuther said GS is more challenging in his current condition because of the “extreme positions” the discipline requires.
In third, it was a career-first podium for Alexander Khoroshilov, though he had been knocking on the door with five top-10 finishes, most recently placing eighth in Levi. It had been 33 years since a Russian slalom racer landed on the World Cup podium. Outside the discipline, it is also the first podium for Russia since Olesja Alieva was third in downhill at Lenzerheide in 2000.
Third after the first run, Ted Ligety was on the verge of doing something he hasn’t done since 2008 — finish on the World Cup slalom podium. Between runs, he called his position “bizarre,” according to TV reports, just .44 seconds out of the lead. However, the Swedish set proved less favorable for Ligety the second time through: More offset likely caused problems for the GS specialist as he became late, eventually straddled and then skied out.
“Ted was charging and having a good run,” said men’s head coach Sasha Rearick. “Unfortunately, when you are going for it ‘full throttle’ there is a risk of straddle when the course is fast and snow is grippy like it was at the bottom, due to the cold inversion. Ted was doing what he needed to do to step on the podium today. I am stoked that he was sending it with confidence.”
For the Swedes, it was a remarkable day, but also likely bittersweet. The home team finished fourth, fifth and sixth just off the podium — Mattias Hargin, Axel Baeck and Calle Lindh, in that order. The most impressive result belongs to the 24-year-old Lindh, who started 62nd, jumped to 29th after the first run and finished sixth on the day. His previous best result was 14th at the GS in Soelden this season, but prior to that, he had never finished in the World Cup points.
American David Chodounsky finished first run in 20th. His second effort was marred by a serious mistake and an athletic recovery that kept him in the course but undoubtedly cost him speed in the lower half of the run. He still managed to finish 22nd.
Alexis Pinturault had a questionable second run, clearly straddling but skiing through to the finish. He was officially disqualified after the race. Levi slalom winner Henrik Kristofferson also went home empty-handed due to a straddle very early in the first run.
Other noteworthy performances included a personal best from Great Britain’s Dave Ryding, who finished 17th, and Norway’s Espen Lysdahl, an NCAA athlete at the University of Denver, who jumped from bib 42 to finish in the points for the first time, ninth on the day. Canadian Erik Read, son of famed speed skier Ken Read, also collected the first World Cup points of his career by placing 24th.
See more photos from today’s race here.
THE SCOOP
By Hank McKee
- Hirscher, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic
- Neureuther, Nordica/Nordica/Marker
- Khoroshilov, Fischer/Fischer/Fischer
- Hargin, Atomic/Atomic/Atomic
- Baeck, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol
- Lindh, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol
- Dopfer, Nordica/Nordica/
- Byggmark, Volkl/Fischer/Marker
- Lysdahl, Rossignol/Rossignol/Rossignol
- Thaler, Fischer/Fischer/Fischer
Men’s World Cup slalom, Are, Sweden, Dec. 14, 2014:
- It is the ninth race of the men’s 36 race 2014-15 World Cup calendar … the second of 10 slaloms including a parallel city event. … The race is a relocated one moved from Val d’Isere due to a lack of snow and warm temperatures. … It is the 93rd World Cup race held at Are, the fourth of six scheduled this season.
- It is the 26th career World Cup win for Marcel Hirscher … his 14th in slalom, matching him with Benjamin Raich for most slalom wins by an Austrian male. … It is his third win of the season and second of the weekend. … The winning margin is .10. … The top five are within the same second.
- It is the 30th career World Cup podium placing for Felix Neureuther and second of the season… It is his best result at Are, eclipsing his father’s fourth place from 1971.
- It is the first career World Cup podium for Alexander Khoroshilov. … It is the first podium for Russia since Olesja Alieva was third in downhill at Lenzerheide March 5, 2000.
- It is the third scoring result of the season for David Chodounsky, his second in slalom. … It is the first-career scoring result for Canadian Erik Read, son of famed speed skier Ken Read. It is also the first-career scoring result and first top 10 for the University of Denver’s Espen Lysdahl, representing Norway.
- Hirscher moves past Kjetil Jansrud for the lead of the World Cup overall standings 440-412. … Ted Ligety (DNF 2nd run in race) is third at 246pts.
- Hirscher also leads the slalom standings 180-140 over Felix Neureuther. … Henrik Kristoffersen (DNF 1st run in race) is third with 100pts. … Julien Cousineau leads the Canadians on the slalom list in 25th with 15pts. … Chodounsky leads the U.S. in 26th with 14pts.
- Austria leads the mens Nations Cup 1363-841 over France. … Italy is third with 800pts. … The U.S. is sixth at 589pts and Canada ninth at 320.
RESULTS
1 | 4 | 53831 | HIRSCHER Marcel | 1989 | AUT | 50.52 | 49.85 | 1:40.37 | 0.00 | |
2 | 5 | 201702 | NEUREUTHER Felix | 1984 | GER | 50.27 | 50.20 | 1:40.47 | +0.10 | 0.72 |
3 | 19 | 480736 | KHOROSHILOV Alexander | 1984 | RUS | 50.92 | 49.60 | 1:40.52 | +0.15 | 1.08 |
4 | 2 | 501111 | HARGIN Mattias | 1985 | SWE | 51.15 | 49.74 | 1:40.89 | +0.52 | 3.73 |
5 | 18 | 501223 | BAECK Axel | 1987 | SWE | 50.93 | 50.24 | 1:41.17 | +0.80 | 5.74 |
6 | 62 | 501458 | LINDH Calle | 1990 | SWE | 52.21 | 49.29 | 1:41.50 | +1.13 | 8.11 |
7 | 7 | 202462 | DOPFER Fritz | 1987 | GER | 51.27 | 50.26 | 1:41.53 | +1.16 | 8.32 |
8 | 9 | 501101 | BYGGMARK Jens | 1985 | SWE | 50.97 | 50.64 | 1:41.61 | +1.24 | 8.90 |
9 | 42 | 421954 | LYSDAHL Espen | 1990 | NOR | 51.43 | 50.34 | 1:41.77 | +1.40 | 10.04 |
10 | 3 | 290732 | THALER Patrick | 1978 | ITA | 51.22 | 50.64 | 1:41.86 | +1.49 | 10.69 |
11 | 17 | 422082 | SOLEVAAG Sebastian-Foss | 1991 | NOR | 52.29 | 49.61 | 1:41.90 | +1.53 | 10.98 |
12 | 8 | 293797 | GROSS Stefano | 1986 | ITA | 51.70 | 50.29 | 1:41.99 | +1.62 | 11.62 |
13 | 30 | 191459 | LIZEROUX Julien | 1979 | FRA | 52.10 | 49.98 | 1:42.08 | +1.71 | 12.27 |
14 | 27 | 511996 | YULE Daniel | 1993 | SUI | 51.55 | 50.58 | 1:42.13 | +1.76 | 12.63 |
15 | 14 | 501017 | MYHRER Andre | 1983 | SWE | 51.79 | 50.36 | 1:42.15 | +1.78 | 12.77 |
16 | 35 | 193967 | MUFFAT-JEANDET Victor | 1989 | FRA | 52.17 | 50.13 | 1:42.30 | +1.93 | 13.84 |
17 | 39 | 220689 | RYDING Dave | 1986 | GBR | 51.92 | 50.45 | 1:42.37 | +2.00 | 14.35 |
18 | 37 | 50981 | HOERL Wolfgang | 1983 | AUT | 51.65 | 50.85 | 1:42.50 | +2.13 | 15.28 |
19 | 40 | 511902 | ZENHAEUSERN Ramon | 1992 | SUI | 51.90 | 50.61 | 1:42.51 | +2.14 | 15.35 |
20 | 10 | 50605 | HERBST Reinfried | 1978 | AUT | 51.66 | 50.94 | 1:42.60 | +2.23 | 16.00 |
21 | 15 | 192665 | GRANGE Jean-Baptiste | 1984 | FRA | 52.15 | 50.58 | 1:42.73 | +2.36 | 16.93 |
22 | 23 | 534508 | CHODOUNSKY David | 1984 | USA | 51.86 | 50.93 | 1:42.79 | +2.42 | 17.36 |
23 | 25 | 293098 | RAZZOLI Giuliano | 1984 | ITA | 51.69 | 51.12 | 1:42.81 | +2.44 | 17.50 |
24 | 54 | 103729 | READ Erik | 1991 | CAN | 52.14 | 51.40 | 1:43.54 | +3.17 | 22.74 |
25 | 34 | 320266 | JUNG Dong-hyun | 1988 | KOR | 52.18 | 57.13 | 1:49.31 | +8.94 | 64.13 |
Disqualified 2nd run | ||||||||||
11 | 194364 | PINTURAULT Alexis | 1991 | FRA | ||||||
Did not start 1st run | ||||||||||
60 | 512014 | NIEDERBERGER Bernhard | 1993 | SUI | ||||||
Did not qualify for 2nd run | ||||||||||
69 | 430610 | STARZYK Pawel | 1993 | POL | ||||||
64 | 180718 | HENTTINEN Jens | 1993 | FIN | ||||||
63 | 934523 | ENGEL Mark | 1991 | USA | ||||||
61 | 511174 | VOGEL Markus | 1984 | SUI | ||||||
59 | 532138 | KASPER Nolan | 1989 | USA | ||||||
57 | 193986 | PLACE Francois | 1989 | FRA | ||||||
56 | 511896 | MURISIER Justin | 1992 | SUI | ||||||
55 | 180703 | PALONIEMI Santeri | 1993 | FIN | ||||||
52 | 380335 | ZUBCIC Filip | 1993 | CRO | ||||||
51 | 511908 | SCHMIDIGER Reto | 1992 | SUI | ||||||
50 | 380290 | SAMSAL Dalibor | 1985 | HUN | ||||||
49 | 103676 | BROWN Phil | 1991 | CAN | ||||||
48 | 103865 | PHILP Trevor | 1992 | CAN | ||||||
47 | 291318 | TONETTI Riccardo | 1989 | ITA | ||||||
46 | 194207 | THEOLIER Steven | 1990 | FRA | ||||||
44 | 561117 | KUERNER Miha | 1987 | SLO | ||||||
43 | 201891 | SCHMID Philipp | 1986 | GER | ||||||
41 | 102239 | COUSINEAU Julien | 1981 | CAN | ||||||
36 | 6290183 | RONCI Giordano | 1992 | ITA | ||||||
32 | 421860 | NORDBOTTEN Jonathan | 1989 | NOR | ||||||
31 | 291145 | DEVILLE Cristian | 1981 | ITA | ||||||
29 | 700830 | ZAMPA Adam | 1990 | SVK | ||||||
24 | 511983 | AERNI Luca | 1993 | SUI | ||||||
21 | 192506 | MISSILLIER Steve | 1984 | FRA | ||||||
Did not finish 2nd run | ||||||||||
20 | 50625 | RAICH Benjamin | 1978 | AUT | ||||||
16 | 534562 | LIGETY Ted | 1984 | USA | ||||||
12 | 500656 | LARSSON Markus | 1979 | SWE | ||||||
1 | 50707 | MATT Mario | 1979 | AUT | ||||||
Did not finish 1st run | ||||||||||
68 | 481103 | ANDRIENKO Aleksander | 1990 | RUS | ||||||
67 | 700879 | ZAMPA Andreas | 1993 | SVK | ||||||
66 | 150398 | BANK Ondrej | 1980 | CZE | ||||||
65 | 990048 | BORSOTTI Giovanni | 1990 | ITA | ||||||
58 | 150644 | KRYZL Krystof | 1986 | CZE | ||||||
53 | 481327 | TRIKHICHEV Pavel | 1992 | RUS | ||||||
45 | 561148 | SKUBE Matic | 1988 | SLO | ||||||
38 | 202451 | STRASSER Linus | 1992 | GER | ||||||
33 | 530165 | BRANDENBURG Will | 1987 | USA | ||||||
28 | 421669 | HAUGEN Leif Kristian | 1987 | NOR | ||||||
26 | 301709 | YUASA Naoki | 1983 | JPN | ||||||
22 | 501116 | LAHDENPERAE Anton | 1985 | SWE | ||||||
13 | 380260 | KOSTELIC Ivica | 1979 | CRO | ||||||
6 | 422304 | KRISTOFFERSEN Henrik | 1994 | NOR |