Reiteralm: Zettel leads combi, Mancuso 4th

Austria's Kathrin Zettel was the surprise leader after the super G leg of a women's World Cup super combi race Friday. She held a tiny .04 advantage over her nearest rival, 17-year-old Tina Weirather of Leichtenstein, going into the afternoon's single slalom leg. France's Ingrid Jacquemod was third, with .07 to make up. Olympic giant slalom champion Julia Mancuso of the United States was fourth with a .16 deficit.

Austria's Kathrin Zettel was the surprise leader after the super G leg of a women's World Cup super combi race Friday. She held a tiny .04 advantage over her nearest rival, 17-year-old Tina Weirather of Leichtenstein, going into the afternoon's single slalom leg. France's Ingrid Jacquemod was third, with .07 to make up. Olympic giant slalom champion Julia Mancuso of the United States was fourth with a .16 deficit.
    Zettel, winner of a giant slalom in Aspen, Colorado, last month, covered the Gasselhoehe course in 1 minute, 22.63 seconds.
    She held a tiny .04 advantage over her nearest rival, 17-year-old Tina Weirather of Leichtenstein, going into the afternoon's single slalom leg. France's Ingrid Jacquemod was third, with .07 to make up.
    Zettel nailed a tough, shadowy gate preceded by an unexpected bump that threw several other women off course.
    ''I'm very surprised,'' said Zettel, a technical specialist whose best career super G result was an eighth place in Hafjell, Norway, in March. ''It was nearly an optimal run for me. Now we'll have to see for this afternoon in the slalom.''
    It was only Weirather's third World cup race. ''I was totally surprised. I thought they got my time wrong,'' she said. ''But I was lucky because I started 37th and was able to watch and see what the first racers were doing.
    ''The slalom will be tougher. I'm not so strong even though I trained slalom a lot this year.''
    Olympic giant slalom champion Julia Mancuso of the United States was fourth with a .16 deficit.
    ''I felt very out of control so I'm surprised,'' she said. ''I made a few mistakes I shouldn't have, a little bit of pilot error, so I'm excited to be in there.''  
    Mancuso did not expect much from the slalom run. ''I don't have too much slalom training under my belt,'' she said ''It looked like it was going to be sweet and easy but I think it's going to be bumpy and icy just like the super G.''
    American Kaylin Richardson was 21st, Stacey Cook 24th, Resi Stiegler 31st and Katie Hitchcock 45th.
    Though the course was bumpy with icy and slick sections, most racers were simply happy to get the competition off amid a chaotic snowless European season disrupted by repeated cancelations.
    Reiteralm is not usually a World Cup alpine stop because it fails to meet certain International Ski Federation requirements, including having the race finish in the village. But the resort picked up various races that were called off elsewhere because it was one of the few places able to make snow.
    But to fit in the required number of gates on the hill, some sections of the super G leg were set tightly, almost like a giant slalom, benefiting the technical specialists. The course also was set relatively slow, being the first super combi of the season with many of the technical specialists low on speed races.
    Lindsey Kildow was sidelined with a stomach ailment.  
    ''She thinks it's the flu or maybe food poisoning,'' Mancuso said. ''It started suddenly. She was fine last night, had a shower then 10 minutes later she wasn't feeling good.''